The inspired author of that quote remains anonymous. However, one of the coolest day trips you can make from the Netherlands is a tour of their famous neighbor, Belgium- particularly of their beer crafting abbeys.

A beer tour will take you by car, bus or even bicycle around some of the abbeys, monasteries and farmhouses where the best beer in the world is grown and brewed.

Alternatively, if you can't make it out of the Netherlands or simply don't want to (understood) then sample the best of what Belgium has to offer without ever stepping foot inside at Gollem or Cafe Belgique in Amsterdam, two excellent and laid back beer bars.