NETHERLANDS
LOCATION AND GEOGRAPHY
Covering an area of 41,526 sq. km, Netherlands is situated in the northwestern part of Europe. Sandwiched between Germany and the North Sea, Netherlands is a small country. About a quarter of its land area is below sea level and only half of its surface area is about 1 meter above sea level, as a result it has numerous dikes and dunes that protect these areas from flooding and massive pumping stations keep the ground water level in check. Large parts of Holland, for example, all of Flevoland (the largest man-made island in the world) has been reclaimed from the sea and these areas are known as polders, this is the reason for the saying "God created the world, but the Dutch created the Netherlands."
INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT NETHERLANDS
- Holland is the other name by which Netherlands is known.
- Even though the country has only 0.008% of the world’s area, yet it is the world’s third largest agricultural exporter.
- The country has enormous number of cycling tracks- 15000 km of them!
- The city of Amsterdam in Netherlands is built entirely on piles (piles are cylindrical or flat pieces of wood, steel, concrete etc. that are either tapered or pointed at the lower end and hammered vertically into the soil, to form part of a foundation or retaining wall).
- It is a country of compromises since it always has a coalition government.
- There are about 1000 traditional working wind mills in the country.
- There are twice as many bikes as cars in the country as every citizen owns a bicycle.
- Almost one quarter of the country is below sea level and when your plane lands at Schiphol, it is 4.5 meters below sea level.
- There are 1281 bridges, 42 museums and people of 200 nationalities in Amsterdam.
POLITICS
Since 1815 the Netherlands has been a constitutional monarchy and since 1848 a parliamentary democracy. The monarch is the head of state, though today he mainly has only a ceremonial function. The constitution, however, allows for the exertion of real power by the monarch, should the responsible ministers subordinate themselves. The monarch appoints the members of the government and signature is needed for any law or warrant to come into effect. The Prime Minister is the head of the government. The parliament has a lower and upper house and the provincial assemblies and the 150 members of the Lower House are directly elected every four years.
PEOPLE, CULTURE AND LANGUAGES
The Dutch, who are basically the descendants of Franks, Frisians, and Saxons, form the majority of the population of Netherlands. Over 60% of the people follow different forms of Christianity and about 4% are Muslims. Interestingly, a large percentage of the population, about 34% of it, does not belong to any religious body. The Dutch culture is one of the most liberated cultures in the world and there is no room for conservativeness in it.
Almost 90% of the population of Netherlands speak Dutch and recognize it as their official language. About 3 % of the people, mainly in the northern province of Friesland, speak and recognize Frisian as their first language.
Hard-working and punctual, the Dutch have a great sense of duty. The Dutch are the second largest coffee drinkers in the world after the Scandinavians.
CURRENCY AND ECONOMY
The former currency of Netherlands was Gulden, which it replaced by Euro, on January 1, 1999 along with the other adopters of the single European currency.
The economy of Netherlands is prosperous and open, in which the government has reduced its role since the 1980s. The country has a highly mechanized agricultural sector employs only 4% of the labor force but it provides a large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. In value of agricultural exports, the Dutch rank third worldwide behind the US and France.
International trade (Dutch colonialism started with cooperative private enterprises such as the VOC), banking and transport are the other important parts of the economy.
CAPITAL AND MAJOR CITIES
Since 1588 The Hague is the Netherlands' seat of government, the home of the monarch and the location of most foreign embassies but despite that Amsterdam is the capital of the country. Only for a short while in the history of the country, from 1808 to 1810, King Louis Napoleon resided in Amsterdam and declared the city capital of his kingdom and seat of government.
Amsterdam has a dense network of canals and within this network lie all the major attractions of the city. As you stroll along the city you will come across these attractions like- simple yet elegant facades of the narrow merchant houses, one of the city’s reputable museums, the Rijksmuseum, which holds one of the most impressive collections of paintings from the Dutch Golden Age in the world, the Stedelijk Museum, which is an important center for Modern art, the Rembrandt House Museum and the Van Gogh Museum, which commemorate the lives and works of these two excellent artists and ,the Anne Frank House, which is dedicated to the little diary-keeper from Amsterdam.
The other key cities of Netherlands include: Delft, Groningen, Leiden, Maastricht, Nijmegen, Rotterdam and Utrecht.
TOURIST ATTRACTIONS IN NETHERLANDS
The Dutch are extremely fond of the bicycle and have a little less than 2000 km cycling tracks. It’s a great way to also travel around the country and get to explore it minutely. So when in Netherlands, cycling is almost the inevitable thing to do.
Amsterdam ahs a number of waterways and harbor and you could take a glass-topped boat tour of the city.
Near Arnhem, is the Hoge Veluwe national park, which has an underground museum dedicated to subterranean life, and the Kröller-Müller Museum that contains 280 Van Gogh paintings as well as numerous other works?
A 30km (19 mile) barrier, the Afsluitdijk, built in the 1930s to close off the Zuiderzee from the North Sea, creating the now freshwater IJsselmeer, is a great place to drive around and see.
In Rotterdam there is a high-speed lift up Euromast, where you can dine at a height of 100m (328ft) overlooking the world's biggest harbor?
The Hague presents a fascinating sight due to its remarkable architectural heritage at the palaces and government buildings.
At Amsterdam you can visit the diamond traders, and watch craftsmen cutting and polishing the precious stones.
In Amsterdam's many museums and galleries, you can see some of the many great works of art, including those of Dutch painters such as Rembrandt, Van Gogh and Vermeer.
Witness the most spectacular glimpses of Netherlands' many tulips. The best of these flowers can be seen in Haarlem.
Holland’s cheese markets, at Waagplein, in Alkmaar, open every Friday from mid April to mid September, and at Gouda, is a spectacle worth enjoying.
TRANSPORT FACILITIES
Air
Domestic air travel is limited because of the small size of the country. Domestic flights from Amsterdam to Eindhoven and Maastricht are operated by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.
Water
The Wadden Islands (Ameland, Schiermonnikoog, Terschilling, Texel and Vlieland) across the Ijsselmeer (former Zuyder Sea) and Schelde Estuary are serviced by regular ferry services.
Rail
Netherlands has a highly developed rail network, which is efficient and cheap, and connects all towns. On all principal routes both intercity and local trains run at least half-hourly.
Road
Netherlands has an excellent system of roads and extensive regional bus services. Alternatively taxis and car hire are also available.
ACCOMMODATION
From luxury hotels in the big cities to modern motels along motorways and holiday villages in the countryside, the country has all kinds of hotels.
‘Pensions’ or guest houses are a cheaper way to stay.
Holland has a huge number of bed and breakfasts, about 3,400 in all!
Months in advance, you can book farm houses if you are traveling with a large group.
In the relatively unknown parts of Zeeland, holiday chalets too can be booked in advance.
Camping and caravanning are cheaper and yet adventurous accommodation styles and the country have about 30 youth hostels for the budget traveler, for which you would need to have a Hostelling International card.
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