When visiting the Netherlands, you will want to see the tulips, the windmills, Amsterdam, the art and much more ( here are my tips for a few days in Amsterdam ). When you venture off the beaten path and go into the rest of the country you will find some pretty amazing people, sights and places. One of them is the Brunssummerheide  (sorry this one is in Dutch). Heather in early bloom - middle of August Where is it? The town of Brunssum is about 2 hours south east from Amsterdam, and about a 20 minute drive from Maastricht or Aachen (DE). It is literally on top of the old dutch coal mines and as you drive around Brunssum you will see reminders of the old mines. You are in the hilly part of the country, and we are all very proud of those hills. They are quite picturesque, and if you like this area make sure to visit Valkenburg, Gulpen, and for example Vaals where you can walk in 3 countries in 5 seconds... Many bike routes run through the Brunssummerheide and if you like to...

Playing tourist in your own country is often times so easy. Of course I knew about the statue garden and the modern art museum Kroller Muller, but I had no idea the museum houses a very large set of Vincent Van Gogh paintings, including one his most famous works and some of his early beginnings. Yes, even Vincent had to start somewhere, and some of it is downright funny to look at. Most visitors to the Netherlands won't make it to this place, it is in the middle of the country, in a nature reserve, which means you will want to drive there. Arnhem is the largest, somewhat known city (WWII - a Bridge too Far) near the park and museum. The Museum You can find the usual details on their website (in English) . We actually spent a large portion (5 hours) of the day at the museum, enjoying the outdoor statue garden, eating at the restaurant under the canopy and lastly checking out the inside with the Van Gogh collection. As always, the museum gets busy in the early afternoon. So lea...