The Solo Scale:

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If you’re going to Holland, you might want to do some of the more traditional tourist attractions. Traditional to Holland in this case could mean windmills or the canals of Amsterdam. It can also mean finding out how gouda cheese and wooden clogs are made. Luckily, at Alida Hoeve just outside of Volendam, you can do both of those things at the same time. This is where the Henri Willig company has a massive showroom floor of edam and gouda. It doesn’t stop there. You’ll discover about two dozen types of flavours in between that you might never have dreamed of. Plus, it’s where you can learn about clogs from their origins to how they’re made.

So, let’s get into the details of what you can see during your visit.

Alida Hoeve is on the way to Volendam (only a couple minutes out) and about a half hour from Amsterdam. It’s a fairly easy drive that brings you to the seaside. Just as you’re about to arrive, turn into the parking lot. There’s a few buildings on the property. To begin on our tour, we started with the cheese.

This begins with a very brief mini-show. One of the employees gives a high-level overview of how cheese is made and showing the tools that they use. The guide was extremely funny and engaging and made cheese-making into an entertaining affair.

You won’t have to spend too long learning all the technical details about cheese. They know their audience and what they’re there for. Within five minutes, you’re already let loose into their gift shop, but this is also where you can sample cheeses in all corners. There are some truly unique flavours like tzatziki, garlic and herbs, cumin, and more. That said, despite having a large range, some of the best tasting ones were the simplest — like the sheep, goat, and gouda cheeses. The others were a little too overpowering and sometimes made you miss the actual taste of the cheese.

There’s other little souvenirs to buy including little magnets if you’re at the beginning of your trip and won’t be able to bring the cheese onward with you. There’s a small break in between the cheese portion of the visit and the clog demonstration. You can spend it shopping, tasting cheese, or you can wander the grounds a little.

When enough people have migrated toward the secondary building, they’ll begin the clog demonstration.

There are several hay bales that you can sit on as you watch your teacher explain the history and purpose of the clogs (specifically the reasons for wearing, including for farmers, fishermen, and as a proposal vehicle).

They also show the range of phases of the shoes, made from poplar, prior to showing the creation of one using what’s essentially a 3D printer, but specifically for clogs.

After the first machine sands the piece of poplar into a clog shape, a second machine comes in to hollow it out. Then, a sanding machine is in place to smooth it out, followed by a shoe guillotine to cut off the back and front pieces that the shoe printer left behind. The teacher for this portion was just as amusing and entertaining as the woman from the cheese demonstration.

At the end of this visit, you can wander the clog area to try on sample clogs (which are definitely heavy). There are multiple sizes available to try on. After all, they want you to purchase them. If you’re not in the market for a clog, you do have another opportunity to pick up traditional tourist souvenirs.

If you’re in a cheesy mood or want to learn more about clogs, a visit to Alida Hoeve is a perfect choice for a day just outside Amsterdam. To get more information, visit the website here!

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