Waaggebouw Alkmaar

Alkmaar is famous for the cheese market held since 1622 (Dutch Alkmaarse Kaasmarkt). This market is held every Friday between Easter and the fall. The spectacle with the "cheese carriers" dressed in white always attracts many onlookers. For example, in 1916, around 300 tonnes of cheese were sold per market day. To date, the tradition of making the cheese has changed significantly, but not the interest primarily of tourists. Every year about 300,000 people visit the Alkmaar cheese market. The cheese market is the only one in the Netherlands that retains the old traditions of selling. Thus, the cheese market takes place from the first Friday in April to the first Friday in September only on Friday mornings. A market day is always a big event in Alkmaar. In the morning, the entire marketplace is cleaned up and cleaned thoroughly. Then the loaves of so-called "setters" are piled up in long rows and next to each other. At 10 o'clock the bell sounds as a start signal. Then the cheese carriers - often equipped with large carrying racks made of wood - criss-cross the market place. The cheese loaves are extensively tested and offered. Haggling is an important part of the purchase, which is always sealed by handshake.

The tower with clock is, if you are in the city center, from everywhere to see and hear. The adjacent square "Het Waagplein" is the busiest square in the whole city. In the summer he is full of chairs of the cafes. But not every Friday, because then the famous cheese market takes place on the square.

The Waag in Alkmaar is a building on the Waagplein that was used as a chapel and weighing house. The Dutch Cheese Museum and the Tourist Office are now located in the building. The building has a tower with famous riders and a beautiful carillon. The building was declared a national monument in 1969. The cheese market takes place on the Waagplein in the summer. Source and further detailed information: nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waag_%28Alkmaar%29