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 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.'
2. The Universe / The Earth / Europe / Netherlands
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