The Netherlands, also known unofficially as Holland¹, is a small country², has about 15 million inhabitants, and is located in Western Europe bordering Germany, Belgium and the North Sea.

Many first-time visitors comment that its population is densely packed. Cities and towns take up about 40% of the land mass, the rest is farmland, pastures, forests and woodland. As half of the land was reclaimed from the sea, the country is mostly flat and below sea level. The sea is prevented from flooding this land by a protective system of dikes and dams.

The busiest area is called the Randstad³, the area in the west in-between and around the four major cities: Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam and Utrecht. The Randstad is a densely-populated area of towns and cities that have grown and clustered together, and it contains most of the population and light industry.

The People

The Dutch are friendly, proud, independent, productive, open-minded and liberal people. Literacy is very high⁴, and most Dutch people speak English and some German, as well as their native Dutch. The people generally are very sociable, and welcome visitors to their country. They're usually happy to help out tourists where they can with directions or explanations of Dutch customs and ways of doing things.

The average Dutchman is very proud of his country, although they can also be quite critical about it, especially where government or money is concerned. Basically they're a very down-to-earth people, whose ethics are best described by two typically Dutch sayings:

• 'Just act normally, that's weird enough.'
• 'In Holland shirts are sold with the sleeves already rolled up.'

Further Reading

• To find out more about the Netherlands' geography, and to find out why it's not Holland, read Topography of the Netherlands.
• When you know that, it also helps to know something about Transportation in The Netherlands.
• The Netherlands is also famous for its Polders and Dykes.
• If you've still not satisfied your desire to know everything about the Netherlands, why not read Facts and figures of The Netherlands.
• Finally when you know how to get around in the Netherlands and how to speak Dutch, you could start learning The Wilhelmus, the Dutch National Anthem.

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¹ Holland is actually part of the Netherlands.
² It is about twice the size of New Jersey.
³ Which means 'Edge City'.
⁴ Approximately 99%.