Hollandsche Manege

Today we explored the Hollandsche Manege - the Dutch Riding School. My mom was keen on stopping since a friend of hers suggested we pop in for a cup of tea. My mom was thrilled that we arrived just in time to watch a riding lesson. All the instructions were in Dutch, but it was still fun to sip our tea and marvel at the history of the school. (It is the oldest riding school in the Netherlands - dating back to 1744.)

Every time someone walked past the stall of the horse above, he would stick his nose out. Of course, we had to oblige and scratch his nose - every time one of us walked by. Which of course became a very fun game. Though I'm not sure who enjoyed it more - the kids or the horse.

The Riding school is one of those places that if you weren't looking for it, you'd never know it was there. If it hadn't been  suggested that we visit, we never would have thought a ring like the one below was hiding behind that building facade. 

Apparently we were supposed to pay €8.00 each to get in, but there was no sign and the door was open so we just walked in. As we were leaving we noticed a sign had been put out directing visitors through a specific door. Luckily no one seemed too concerned about us; the only other people there were parents watching lessons and a small group of children who appeared to be celebrating a birthday. 

Photo of the horse ring courtesy of Amsterdam Municipal Department for the Preservation and Restoration of Historic Buildings and Sites (bMA.)