Hidden away between the lovely streets of The Hague’s neighbourhood Duinoord lies a green oasis of the neighbourhood called Sunny Court. Luckily enough, I get to call this great neighbourhood my home and have Sunny Court as the view from my balcony. Although, it took me a couple of years to realize that the park wasn’t just a communal back garden.

Up until 1923, the area between the houses on the Obrechtstraat and the Laan van Meerdervoort was a wasteland. In the years after this, it was transformed to a cactus nursery and from a nursery to a tennis court after the second World War. That is also how the park earned its name. Fun fact: in the past, when it froze during wintertime, the tennis courts would be covered with water so that people from the neighbourhood could ice-skate. Since 1977 Sunny Court is a lovely little park where people can come together and where kids can play.

There is a separate, more overgrown part of the park where hedgehogs, birds, toads and other animals can live in peace. Also, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that there is a neighbourhood initiative to maintain all of the greenery (they also open and close the park every day). So, when you are ever in need of a bit of green serenity while being in The Hague, I highly recommend stopping by Sunny Court.