Worthy purpose, humble elegance and a great beach: The Hague is worth a visit

Most of us spend our working life in pursuit of profit.  For ourselves, our shareholders, or both.  We might slip a bit of "corporate social responsibility" into things to give back to our communities but, by and large, the adjective "worthy" is rarely associated with corporate jobs.

This thought crossed my mind frequently as we wandered around The Hague, a small Dutch city filled with a lot of global organisations big on worthy objectives like justice and world peace.  Especially when our friend Sally showed off her Nobel Peace Prize.  Yes, really. It doesn't get more worthy than that.

Sally works for the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.  Most of the world's nations
(190, to be exact) have signed up to membership and contribute funds to keep the OPCW running.  They monitor and track chemicals that can be used to make weapons, work to safely destroy old stockpiles and get called out when people unearth potentially dangerous weapons from old conflicts.  Thanks to their efforts, more than 80% of the world's declared stockpile of chemical weapons has been destroyed.  That's why Sally and all of her colleagues got the award; they're well on their way to completely eliminating a whole class of weapons from history.  And, of course, they're the guys who get called in when chemical weapons are suspected in modern situations.  These days, Sally spends her time working on Syria.  All those investigations into whether or not chemical weapons were used?  Objective experts need to research and make the calls.  That's what happens here.  Sobering stuff that made me feel quite humble, and more than a bit inadequate, when comparing what I do with my working hours.

I wondered, as we wandered around The Hague, how the cluster of noble international organisations like the OPCW, the International Court of Justice and the Institute for Historical Justice and Reconciliation effects life here.  Is everyone just generally nicer to each other?  Certainly in our day of exploration, I can say that The Hague feels civilised, dignified and cosmopolitan.  While not an obvious day trip from Amsterdam, we found it a relaxing and interesting day out, though I'm not sure it would have been so enjoyable without a local to show us around.

Most of the international organisations are headquartered in modern offices, but there are a handful of impressive historic buildings.  The International Court is located within the Peace Palace, a massive neo-Medieval pile with soaring towers and romantic rooflines.  One wonders if it's accidental or intentional that the architecture of world peace shares a look with Walt Disney.  The authentic Middle Ages still live in the Binnenhof and Ridderzaal, the home of the Dutch parliament.  (Which is a close architectural cousin to the Palace of Westminster.)  The Grote Kerk is an imposing yet simple old Protestant cathedral, Dutch austerity shown off in its towering windows of unadorned, clear glass.  It's been decommissioned as a church and is now used as a hall for cultural and social events.

There's a small but dignified royal palace in the town centre, while on the outskirts you can get a peek through trees at the modest and elegant official residence of the Prime Minister, currently Mark Rutte.  Locals pointed out, with some pride, that Rutte walked from home to recent Nuclear Summit meetings, while U.S. President Obama and entourage had shipped over the full motorcade to cover short distances.  Granted, there are different levels of security threat for the two men, but a humble, down-to-earth attitude towards life seems to be a point of pride for all residents here.

Lacking Amsterdam's canals, the old city centre has a more generically Northern European vibe about it.  With its general tidiness, prosperous feel and preponderance of boutiques over chain stores, it reminded me a lot of Luxembourg.  On the edge of this older district sits the modern part of town, with the main train station, a small cluster of office towers and bustling streets with internationally-known brands. You'll pass through here if you come by train but don't linger; it's the older part of town that has the charm.

We had a fine dinner in the old town at Pastis Den Haag, a bistro so classically French that, if dropped here without context, you'd swear you were in Paris.  Fortunately since Sally's a regular they squeezed us in a corner at short notice; you really should book in advance.  Crab and avocado salad, foie gras, beef tartare and lots of Loire Valley white wine mixed to enhance the day's general feeling of well being.  (And please note, British protesters, that a town dedicated to all sorts of worthy causes has no issue eating engorged goose liver.  Please consider turning your attention to something more important to humanity, like preventing chemical weapons.)

Earlier, with a blazing sun suggesting a date much further advanced than late March, we enjoyed another of The Hague's claims to fame:  the beach.  Scheveningen has more than a mile of broad sand, a boardwalk for leisurely strolls, a pier filled with attractions and a name that's almost impossible for foreigners to pronounce.  Sally told us the mark of real success in Dutch is to be able to say this one word like a local.  It took her years, but she's finally mastered it.  All I could do was sound like a cat spitting up a hairball.

There's a line of beach restaurants that pop up every spring to take advantage of the good weather.  It's
hard to believe they're not permanent, with their cool decor, funky bars, wind screens and plush outdoor furniture.  But they're all disassembled for the winter, when this stretch of coast takes a furious pounding from vicious North Sea storms.  In fact, dredgers need to replace the sand every couple of years because of winter erosion.  On our visit, however, it could have been the Cote d'Azur.  With a better beer selection and far less pretension.

The Hague is definitely worth further exploration, even in less spectacular weather.