De Waagplein

De Waagplein is the main square of Alkmaar, a historic town in North Holland, and it is named after the Waag, the weighing house that dominates one side. The Waag is a striking building with a tower and a carillon whose figures appear at set times, and it began in the late fourteenth century as a chapel of the Holy Spirit before being converted into a weighing house in the sixteenth century, when Alkmaar's cheese trade grew. Today it contains the Dutch Cheese Museum, and the square in front of it is the stage for the best known event in the town, the Friday cheese market.

The cheese market takes place from spring to early autumn on Friday mornings, and it is described in more detail elsewhere. On those mornings, the square is lined with rows of cheeses, and carriers in white clothes and coloured hats move them on barrows to be weighed, to the delight of the crowd. On other days, the square is a more everyday place, with terraces, cafes and restaurants, and a few shops, and it makes a natural meeting point and starting place for a walk. Other events occasionally take place here, among them festivals and the traditional delivery of beer by horse and cart, which keeps an old custom alive.

The buildings around the square help to set the scene. Gabled houses, some of them centuries old, line the sides, and the old canals that run through the town are only a few steps away. The area is attractive in the evening, when the Waag is lit and the cafes are busy, and the square is pedestrian, so there is plenty of room to wander and take photographs. It is open to the public at all times and free to enter, and it is a good place to people-watch.

The rest of Alkmaar is close at hand. The Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk is a large Gothic church with a famous organ, and the Stadhuis, the town hall, is a fine old building. The Drommedaris is a tower at the harbour, De Hoop Mill is a windmill that can be seen from the canals, and the Oudezijds Haven is an old harbour lined with houses. Alkmaar is a short train ride from Amsterdam and a short bike ride from the dunes and the coast at Bergen and Egmond.

The square suits families, photographers and anyone who enjoys a lively old town. Visit on a Friday morning in season for the cheese market, or at other times for a quieter coffee and a walk.