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Where to go in Holland |
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The Netherlands today has dispelled all images of it being an archaic land of clogs and windmills, with its string of exciting cities, including the cosmopolitan capital, Amsterdam – one of Europe’s great cities. Elsewhere, Arnhem, Eindhoven, The Hague, Utrecht and the especially buzzing Rotterdam all boast their own charms. Away from the cities, the idyllic land of windmills and tulips does still exist in the bucolic splendor of the countryside, as do a number of coastal towns and resorts, many with fine beaches and similarly interesting heritages to The Netherlands’ bigger historical cities. |
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Dutch cheese |
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Dutch soil was and is pre-eminetly suitable for cattle-breeding and their remains have been found in the northern part of the Netherlands dating back to 1600 B.C. In Fiesland in the north of The Netherlands, pots and vessels were discovered which indicate that as early as two centuries B.C., cheese was being made there. An extensive trade has existed since the Middle Ages. |
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Tulips in Holland |
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Widely available at modest prices today, tulips are still closely associated with the Netherlands. However, the tulip is not a native Dutch flower. Like many other products in western Europe, such as the potato and tobacco, tulips came to the Netherlands from another part of the world. Not introduced to the Netherlands until 1593, the tulip was first seen by Europeans in Turkey. It was there in 1556 that Busbeq (A.G. Busbequius), the ambassador sent by the Austrian Emperor Ferdinand I to the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, witnessed the flowers growing in the gardens of Adrianople and Constantinople. Scholars now believe that the Turks had been cultivating tulips as early as AD 1000. |
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Windmills |
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Europe was the heart of Windmill development and fortunately many fine examples are preserved, some, especially in Holland where Windmills are present in large numbers in a small area. Even more remarkable is the fact that many of these windmills are in very reasonable, many of them even in excellent, condition and a considerable number of them are working regularly. Moreover, there are windmills of the many varied types: drainage mills, corn mills, and industrial mills for all sorts of purposes. See for more in the windmill database. |
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