What do foreigners (from around the world) actually know about the Netherlands (in Europe)?

Question

I will help you out:

Windmills, cheese, tulips, wooden shoes, euthenasia, legelised abortion, coffeeshops selling joints instead of coffee are just a few stereotypical examples.

The most vibrant dance scene in the world and famous dj's like DJ Tiësto are also part of the Netherlands.

Holland AND the Netherlands ARE by the way one and the same country just two different names...

Answer 1

Netherlands and its people suffered greatly during the German Nazi occupation because of their refusal to cooperate-many non-Jews died

The same buildings have stood there preserved and maintained for several hundred years

That the real estate prices had been dependant upon the amount of frontage of the canals and even the most shoddy houseboats cost upwards of US$250,000

That Amstel River was dammed up to flow through the different canals and flush them out intermittently

The airport has a mini museum where you can see a few paintings brought from the Rijksmuseum

That one of the best Dutch food is actually Indonesian food

That ardent Protestants vandalized Catholic churches and persecuted Catholics so the Catholics had to worship in secret

The people who helped Anne Frank's family hide in the rear of
the building was, oddly enough, not punished too harshly by the Nazis

Answer 2

I can list few things I know about the Netherlands.

I like to eat Poffertjes and make shopping in Rotterdam. The prices are lower than Belgium and France but higher than in Germany.

If you want QWERTY keyboard laptops, you can buy from the Netherlands.


I know that although I cannot see any apparent different Dutch people and Flemish people from Belgium claim that their languages and cultures are extremely different.

Traffic is very dense on Dutch highways.

You can get flashed with a speed camera anytime and place but the fees are less.

If global warming continues, most of the Netherlands will be lost to sea as these parts are already below sea level.

Dutch are very talented in business and are quite flexible.

Almost anybody speaks English in the Netherlands.

Many people think Netherlands and Holland are the same thing but actually that is not true.

Many people think that Amsterdam is the capital but they overlook the Hague is also a capital.

There is a big community of Turkish people living in the Netherlands and most political parties took the Turkish candidates off their election list because they would not recognize the Armenian genocide. By the way the Armenian Genocide is only accepted politically as historians cannot agree if it actually happened.

Keukenhof is great to visit on May.

Answer 3

The Netherlands is one of the most beautiful countries in Europe.

By the way cordial you are wrong in two things:

1) The Netherlands and Holland ARE the same thing.
The Netherlands = name of the country
Holland = name of two provinces in the Netherlands: Noord-Holland and Zuid-Holland.

2) The capital of the Netherlands IS Amsterdam.
Den Haag (The Hague) is the Capital of Zuid-Holland and the place where the Government and the Queen's Residence can be found.

Answer 4

Actually Holland is only one part of the Netherlands.

Maritime empire, Tulipomania, Dutch East Indies, Suriname, Van Gogh, Van Eynks, Nagasaki, Gouda cheese, Maastrict treaty, dykes, KLM, Phillips, Amsterdam, The Hague, Maastrict, Rotterdam, Wassenaar, Aruba,

better get off the couch

Answer 5

.............. yep, and don't forget Rembrandt, Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten, Shocking Blue, Golden Earring, Anne Frank's house, Delft Blue, bikes, and most important of all: haring, stroopwafels, hagelslag, dubbelvla and drop ;-)

As for some black pages in our history book:

Slave trade into the West Indies, 400 years of colonialism in Indonesia, leaving the Mollucas, Acheh and West Papua betrayed and suffering up till now. Oh and..... the most well-known Dutch word in international languages: apartheid.

More?

Answer 6

soft drugs, euthanasia and abortion are not legal at all in this country. We just deal with it in a very pragmatic way.

People like to think in stereotypical examples without knowing how it really works in this country and then get all these dumb questions from non dutch.

Answer 7

orange is a national color... very historical country... was once a world power and major player in European history... people there ride bicycles quite alot... there are sea ports... lands have been reclaimed from the sea using dikes and levees to hold back the sea... prostitution is legal and openly marketed... there is a Muslim community and a grandstanding member of parliament is raising tensions between Muslims and non Muslims... crazy radicals react badly in these types of situations...

Answer 8

I know big portions of the country are below sea level and the sea water is managed by huge dikes and special massive sea gates.

Answer 9

Aruba which is the best damn island in the caribbean is part of the Netherlands.