Netherlands
A small country with a big profile, the Netherlands offers a beguiling blend of
rural, traditional beauty and vibrant culture. Occupying a delta at the confluence
of three major rivers where they empty into the North Sea, it is truly a water world:
canals, coast and lakes are never far from view. Flat as apannenkoek, it also makes
an ideal destination for cycling, an integral mode of transport among the Dutch
themselves, and many visitors plan their trips around the extensive infrastructure
for two-wheeled travel.
Holland (as the country is alternatively referred to) is also a deeply cosmopolitan
place where museums overflow with paintings from its Golden Age and a cavalcade
of festivals showcase performing artists from within and beyond its borders. Added
to this is an eye-opening nightlife scene in cities like Amsterdam and Rotterdam.
A tolerant people, ever open to outside influence, the Dutch place a high value
on a quality they call gezelligheid: a sense of cosiness and conviviality that's
immediately apparent to anyone who's ever stepped into a bruin café, the Dutch version
of a pub. The object of all their scrupulous planning, it seems, is to share their
enjoyment of life.