Escher on National Museum Weekend then a hot date with Madame Jeanette

To take advantage of the discount/free entry on National Museum Weekend, I caught the train to the Hague with my friend Nahry to be mind-boggled by MC Escher at Het Palais.

The Netherland's well-known mathematical tessellating lithograph and drawing artist did not fail to impress. The museum showcased his works on the first two floors in extravagant palatial rooms, then had an interactive optical illusion walkthrough on the top floor. I spent equal time gazing at the OTT (over-the-top) chandeliers in each as I did Escher's works.

In the afternoon, we found a small Surinamese eatery tucked away in the multicultural Hague streets. The sneaky local Surinamese dining one seat down along the bench handed me the yellow sauce container, and not the black ketjap container, and failed to say anything else. I piled a dollop of yellow garlic-looking sauce onto my plate thinking that, with my experience, I could handle anything. In fact, this was Madame Jeanette, an explosive Surinamese chilli pepper in a ground paste form, not commonly found in Asia. It is hotter than Laotian som tam and it burnt my mouth out. I was crying inside but kept a grateful friendly demeanour for my onlooking smiling table companions.