Donderdag

Photo credit: Joop Ankerman

Thursday (Donderdag) is late shopping night in Venlo. On other days, most shops in the downtown area shut at 6 pm; on Thursday they stay open until 8 or even 9 pm.

This makes Thursday a good night to head downtown, have a drink or an early dinner, and do some shopping. There are many places to choose from for a drink or dinner. At this time of the year, the days are long and the weather warm enough to sit outside on one of the squares. Each restaurant has its own tables, many under the cover of umbrellas in case of showers. The photo above shows the historic city hall which graces the main square in town.

We had planned to go out for dinner and shopping this week, but wet weather during the day added some uncertainty to our plans. Fortunately the clouds blew away and the weather was fine. We chose a restaurant on the main square which has a seasonal asparagus menu. White asparagus is the special food at this time of year, and the traditional way to eat it is with ham, boiled potatoes, a hard boiled egg and melted butter for dipping. The white asparagus has a subtle flavor compared to green, and is slightly sweet. It goes well with the local pilsner beer.

A bonus was the 16-man brass band that appeared on the square to play popular tunes, including a few we recognized. Saturday is Koninginnedag, Queen's Day, and we figured the performance was a warm up for the festivities, which begin Friday night. Regardless of the reason for the band, it did create a festive atmosphere.

We did end up doing a bit of shopping, but for me, Donderdag is about enjoying life ... whether the shops are open or not.