paganfrog Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 i like to try unusual world foodstuff. i have tried various weird and wonderful sweet or savoury food, drink or candy. but one thing i find a very strange idea is dutch candy. much of it is salty stuff. the most popular candy amongst the dutch is salty licorice. Link to comment
aniyn Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 In the last 50 years, the Dutch have spent an unbelievable 2.5 trillion dollars on flood protection. Link to comment
Fredhead Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Since it is Halloween here in the USA, I thought waht about in Holland....HMMMMMM The Dutch celebrate it on the 11th of November instead of the 31st of October. The kids go door to door just like here, except, they only wear masks, no costumes. And instead of saying trick or treat, they sing songs for candy, at all of their neighbors. They get as much or more candy then I did as a kid here. Just to be correct: It's not Halloween, but St. Martijn. It's actually a religious holiday, but kids do go around and sing for candy in masks. Link to comment
Fredhead Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 A bit more on Saint Martin's Day: This is the story of why the Dutch celebrate Saint Martin. It was a dark and stormy night, Martin was quite alone on that dark stormy night. He only had a cloak and a singular piece of bread. He was returning home when suddenly a poor and homeless man appeared in the darkness. Martin felt pity for the man and gave him half his piece of bread, and half his cloak and offered him hospitality in his home. Now he is called St Martin and is known for his kindness to the stranger. That is why the Dutch celebrate Saint Martin's Day. Link to comment
Fredhead Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Another Saint Martin's Day ite: November 11th, is a celebration in Holland very much like "trick-or-treat" in England and the US . People in Holland go around getting treats by ringing on some doorbells singing songs for which they are given sweets or tangerines. They go around with lanterns and here is one the songs they sing: Elf November is de dag, Dat mijn lichtje, Dat mijn lichtje. Elf November is de dag, Dat mijn lichtje branden mag. Words to Sint Maarten Song Sint Maarten, Sint Maarten, De koeien hebben staarten, De meisjes hebben rokjes aan, Daar komt Sint Martinus aan! Team Van Stoffelen maybe you could tell us the English version, my Sister does Latin, but I do not do Dutch. Link to comment
+Team Van Stoffelen Posted October 31, 2009 Author Share Posted October 31, 2009 Another Saint Martin's Day ite: November 11th, is a celebration in Holland very much like "trick-or-treat" in England and the US . People in Holland go around getting treats by ringing on some doorbells singing songs for which they are given sweets or tangerines. They go around with lanterns and here is one the songs they sing: Elf November is de dag, Dat mijn lichtje, Dat mijn lichtje. Elf November is de dag, Dat mijn lichtje branden mag. Words to Sint Maarten Song Sint Maarten, Sint Maarten, De koeien hebben staarten, De meisjes hebben rokjes aan, Daar komt Sint Martinus aan! Team Van Stoffelen maybe you could tell us the English version, my Sister does Latin, but I do not do Dutch. I'll give it a try: First song: November 11th is the day, that my light that my light November 11th is the day, that my light may shine. Second song (just a silly rhime): Saint Martin, Saint Martin, cows have tails, girls wear skirts, there comes Saint Martin. And an extra song sung in Gronings (dutch dialect): Kip kap kogel, Mien moeke is ’n vogel, Mien pa is ’n muske, Ze geev’n elkoar ’n kuske. Chicken, hood, bullit, my mother is a bird my father is a little sparrow, they give each other a kiss. As you can see. Dutch children will sing anything to get candy! Link to comment
Fredhead Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Another Saint Martin's Day ite: November 11th, is a celebration in Holland very much like "trick-or-treat" in England and the US . People in Holland go around getting treats by ringing on some doorbells singing songs for which they are given sweets or tangerines. They go around with lanterns and here is one the songs they sing: Elf November is de dag, Dat mijn lichtje, Dat mijn lichtje. Elf November is de dag, Dat mijn lichtje branden mag. Words to Sint Maarten Song Sint Maarten, Sint Maarten, De koeien hebben staarten, De meisjes hebben rokjes aan, Daar komt Sint Martinus aan! Team Van Stoffelen maybe you could tell us the English version, my Sister does Latin, but I do not do Dutch. I'll give it a try: First song: November 11th is the day, that my light that my light November 11th is the day, that my light may shine. Second song (just a silly rhime): Saint Martin, Saint Martin, cows have tails, girls wear skirts, there comes Saint Martin. And an extra song sung in Gronings (dutch dialect): Kip kap kogel, Mien moeke is ’n vogel, Mien pa is ’n muske, Ze geev’n elkoar ’n kuske. Chicken, hood, bullit, my mother is a bird my father is a little sparrow, they give each other a kiss. As you can see. Dutch children will sing anything to get candy! When I Trick-or-Treat tonight I will try this..... I still may have to say Trick-or-Treat Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 A bit about the Netherlands Flag: Netherlands Flag Description: The flag of the Netherlands consists of three equal sized horizontal stripes - the top stripe is red; the middle one white; and the bottom stripe is blue. Netherlands Flag Meaning: The red stripe which was originally orange, along with the white and blue stripes, are based on the heraldic colors (coat of arms) of Prince William of Orange, who led the fight for Dutch independence. Link to comment
+GATOULIS Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 At the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, the Netherlands declared itself neutral once again as it had done during World War I. Even so, on May 10, 1940 Germany invaded the Netherlands. One of the purposes of the German invasion of the Netherlands was to draw away attention from operations in the Ardennes and to lure British and French forces deeper into Belgium as well as to pre-empt a possible British invasion in North Holland. Also the Luftwaffe had insisted on seizing the Dutch soil for they were in strong need of the availability of airfields near the Northsea coast. The German forces faced little resistance at first, but their advance was eventually slowed by the Dutch army. At the Afsluitdijk, the Grebbeberg, Rotterdam and Dordrecht the Dutch army offered strong resistance. A German airborne landing at The Hague, intended to capture the Dutch royal family and the government, failed, and about 1,000 of the paratroopers and airlanding troops that had not been killed were captured and shipped to Britain. Queen Wilhelmina and her government stayed in Britain, but during the Battle of Britain her daughter Princess Juliana and her children proceeded to Ottawa, Canada. On May 14 the Germans - surprised by the Dutch resistance - demanded the surrender of the city of Rotterdam, threatening to bomb the city. A surrender was agreed upon with Dutch and German forces, with the Dutch intention of protecting its own civilians. However, due to miscommunication between German negotiators on the ground and the Luftwaffe units assigned to carry out the bombings, the city was bombed by error. After this bombardment, the German military command threatened to bomb the city of Utrecht as well if the Netherlands did not surrender. The Dutch army laid down arms at 1900 hrs on 14 May, and formally capitulated on May 15, with the exception of the forces in Zeeland. They resisted for a few more days, until the bombardment of Middelburg on May 17, which forced the Zeeland forces to surrender as well. Aftermath of the invasion The invasion resulted in 2,300 dead, and 7,000 wounded Dutch soldiers and the deaths of over 3000 civilians. The German army lost 2,200 men, suffered around 7,000 wounded and 700 troops reported missing, and 1,300 were captured and shipped to Britain. Initially the Dutch expected to be liberated quickly by the Allied armies, who were expected to drive the Germans back. This did not happen, however. The Allied armies stationed in northern France were forced to evacuate Dunkirk for Britain, and those that remained surrendered as Germany won the Battle of France. The Dutch now knew the Nazi occupation would not be over soon. Shortly after the German victory, the Dutch government led by Prime Minister Dirk Jan de Geer was invited by the Germans to return to the country and collaborate with Nazi forces, as the Vichy France government had agreed to do. De Geer wanted to accept this invitation but Queen Wilhelmina did not approve it, and dismissed De Geer in favour of Pieter Gerbrandy, who wanted to continue fighting, as the new leader. Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Netherlands Flag History: The Netherlands flag was adopted on February 19, 1937. The Netherlands flag was originally orange, white and blue and featured up to nine stripes. The Netherlands flag is nicknamed the 'Prince's Flag' and was based on the heraldic colors (coat of arms) of Prince William of Orange, who led the campaign for independence against Spanish rule in 1568. The Netherlands independence was finally recognized by Spain in 1648. The orange-white-blue flag first appeared around the early 1570s. In the early to mid-17th century, the orange stripe was changed to red but the reason is unclear. One theory is because red is more visible than orange when viewed from a distance. Red, white and blue were officially announced as the colors of the flag in 1796. The flag was banned for a short period at the turn of the 19th century after France occupied the Netherlands. The Netherlands was again independent in 1813 and the flag was reinstated. Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Interesting Netherlands Flag Facts: The Netherlands flag influenced the design of the Russian flag when Peter the Great, Tsar of Russia, visited the Netherlands in the 17th century to observe the country's shipping industry. When he returned to Russia he assembled his own shipping fleet and designed a white, blue and red flag in honor of the Netherlands. That flag eventually became the state flag of Russia. The Russian flag would then inspire the flags of many other Slavic nations, and the colors became known as the pan-Slavic colors. Link to comment
+GATOULIS Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Of the 140,000 Jews that had lived in the Netherlands prior to 1940, only 30,000 survived the war. This high death toll had a number of reasons. One was the excellent state of Dutch civil records: the Dutch state, prior to the war, had recorded substantial information on every Dutch national. This allowed the Nazi regime to easily determine who was Jewish (whether fully or partly of Jewish ancestry) simply by accessing the data. Another factor was the disbelief of both the Dutch public as a whole and the Dutch Jews themselves. Most could not believe that the Jews would be subjected to genocide and sent to death camps. This meant the Jews needed to hide in others’ homes, but that was difficult especially in urban areas. It was also punishable by death. Despite the risks, many Dutch people helped Jews. One-third of the people who hid Jews did not survive the war. Link to comment
+GATOULIS Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 By the end of the second world war, 205,900 Dutch men and women had died. The Netherlands had the highest per capita death rate of all Nazi-occupied countries in Western Europe, 2.36%. Another 30,000 died in the Dutch East Indies, either while fighting the Japanese or in camps as Japanese POWs. Dutch civilians were held in those camps as well. Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 (edited) The Netherlands have a rank far behind the most other European countries concerning people using the internet. Well I read this and thought...HMMMMM... So I looked and here is what I found: Demographics There were 14,272,700 internet users in Netherlands (representing 85.4% of the population) in June 2009, according to Internet World Stats. This was up by 266.0% compared to 2000. (Internet World Stats, September 2009) eMarketer estimated the number of internet users and penetration level in Netherlands for the period between 2007 and 2012 as follows: - 2007: 13.3 million (80.1% of the population) - 2008: 13.6 million (81.9%) - 2009: 13.9 million (83.2%) - 2010: 14.1 million (83.9%) - 2011: 14.2 million (84.5%) - 2012: 14.3 million (84.6%) (eMarketer, February 2008) Looks like you are ahead of the curve. Wish I could have been the single ISP in 2000 Edited October 31, 2009 by Queenie-Boo-Bay Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Some additional ISP info. Internet Access The Netherlands has the highest percentage of households in the European Union with home internet connections. Only one in eight Dutch people have either no access to the internet from their own home (1.2 million), or do have access, but do not use it (0.5 million). Two-thirds of people with no home connection have a relatively low education level. Around half are over 65 years of age and/or single. Youngsters aged up to 25 years nearly all have access to the internet from home: only 2% of this age group do not. Nearly six in ten people who do not have internet access do not want it or are not interested in access, 12% think it costs too much. Privacy considerations and physical handicaps are mentioned by only very few people as reasons for not having an internet connection at home. People younger than 60 who do not use their internet connection have lower education levels than their peers with no connection at all. Level of education is therefore a relevant distinguishing characteristic in all groups. People who do not have internet access at home are also less likely to use other modern technologies such as mobile phones. Fewer than seven in ten Dutch people without internet at home sometimes use a mobile phone, compared with 95% of people with internet access. Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 A bit on Digital Media versus Traditional Media: Digital Media Media use via the internet in the Netherlands is displacing traditional forms of published media such as printed newspapers, according to Statistics Netherlands. Just over half of internet users in the Netherlands listened to radio and/or watched television programmes online in 2008, while a slightly lower proportion read newspapers online or downloaded them. The percentage of Dutch internet users who read or downloaded newspapers via the internet rose by more than a third between 2005 and 2008. The increase in watching and listening to television and radio programmes online is even larger: it has more than doubled since 2005. In 2008, for the first time the number of people who watched television programmes and listened to radio programmes via the internet was larger than the number of people who read newspapers online. Male internet users more often read newspapers online than female internet users, 54 compared with 41%. Just over half of 25-44 year-olds read newspapers online. For other age groups this share is just over 40%. 1 in 8 people who read newspapers online had a subscription to the online newspaper. Internet television and radio programmes are very popular among internet users younger than 25 years. Just over 70% of these young people use these media. The use of internet to watch and listen to television and radio programmes decreases as age increases. For people aged 25 years and older, online television and radio is about just as popular as online newspapers. The rise of online media products is displacing traditional physical media such as newspapers. The total domestic circulation of daily newspapers fell by some 16% between 2002 and 2008, from 4.3 million to 3.6 million copies. (Statistics Netherlands, May 2009) Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Since my Brother took Halloween I thought Christmas would be good to look at, here is what I found: Traditional Christmas Greeting: "Zalig Kerstfeest", "Vrolijk Kerstfeest en een Gelukkig Nieuwjaar" (Dutch) Location: Western Europe Tree Type: Traditional / Cultural Decorations: The candles, glass ornaments, beads, angel hair, icicles and snowflakes represent the traditional ornaments used on the tree. The delft pottery, wooden shoes and tulips represent the culture of the Netherlands. Homes in the Netherlands are decorated with evergreen and holly. Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Traditions: St. Nicholas (Sinter klaas), who is dressed in red Bishop's robes, arrives either on a white horse or in some areas in a boat from Spain and gives gifts to children on December 6th. Black Peter (Sarte Piet) accompanies him. Black Peter carries a birch rod to punish those children who have been bad in the past year. The children leave their wooden shoes filled with hay and a carrot in anticipation of St. Nicholas. If they have been good they will find small toys, nuts and candy in their shoes. Sometimes St. Nicholas will visit the house and will question the children on how they behaved in the past year. In addition to the gifts received from St. Nicholas, the children play a game of hide and seek. The children will look in the cupboards and cubbyholes of the house for special gifts and they are rarely disappointed. Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Dutch Christmas Cuisine Traditional Dutch Christmas foods include boiled chestnuts eaten with butter and salt, marzipan, and Kerstkrans, which are Dutch Christmas cookies. On Christmas Eve, after the kids have been tucked into beds, adults enjoy tea and speculaas (hard cookies). Letterbanket, letter shaped cakes, are also distributed on Christmas Eve. For a main course at Christmas dinner, roast goose may be served, or turkey, or perhaps venison or rabbit. On New Years Eve, a donut-like pastry called an Oliebollen is served. I am drooling just thinking about that. Link to comment
paganfrog Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 waffles Stroopwafels (Dutch: syrup waffles) are thin waffles with a syrup filling. They were first made in Gouda in the Netherlands during the 18th or 19th century. The stiff batter for the waffles is made from flour, butter, brown sugar, yeast, milk, and eggs. Medium-sized balls of batter are put on the waffle iron. When the waffle is baked and while it is still warm, it is cut into two halves. The warm filling, made from syrup, brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon, is spread in between the waffle halves, which glues them together. They are popular in the Netherlands. Link to comment
+ECplus3 Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 When I visited the Netherlands in 2005 my last stop before flying home was a candy shop. I grabbed an assortment of stuff without really knowing what I was getting and brought it home for my friends. Let's just say that Dutch tastes are a little different from North American tastes! One of my friends described the assortment as a 'blend of soap and dirt, and very salty!' LOL! One thing I did fall in love with, however, was hagelslaag!!! Any nation that starts off its day with chocolate sprinkles on buttered bread is okay in my books! I can't get enough of the stuff. Literally! It is very hard to get around here. My wife loves Muisjes -- little licorice flavoured sugar pearls spread on buttered toast or rusk. Link to comment
+ECplus3 Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 A well worn joke (told to me by my father-in-law) tells how copper wire was invented by two Dutchmen fighting over a penny. Fodors travel guide for the Netherlands says that inhabitants have a quaint habit of calling anything they can't see over a 'mountain'. Link to comment
paganfrog Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Amsterdam has 1,281 bridges! Link to comment
paganfrog Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Orange-coloured carrots appeared in the Netherlands in the 16th century. Before that carrots were white, yellow, black, purple or red. Orange carrots are said to have been bred in honour of the House of Orange, who led the Dutch Revolt against Spain and later became the Dutch Royal family. Orange is still the official colour of the Netherlands and a sign of patriotism. The Dutch national football team wears a bright orange shirt. Link to comment
paganfrog Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Dutch people have the lowest incidence of lactose intolerance of any country - only 1%. Link to comment
besem Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 In October 1899, the famous South African president Paul Kruger fled to the Netherlands, during the Second Boer War, on the Dutch warship "Gelderland". Even back then the English were too hoity-toity for the Dutch, as Queen Wilhelmina simply ignored the British naval blockade of South Africa! [] Link to comment
besem Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 A "strange" custom I came across when I was studying in the Leiden. If someone hands you something and you say "thank you", they say "please"! (All in Dutch, of course.) Link to comment
besem Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Testing of the spacecraft of the European Space Agency takes place in Katwijk in the Netherlands. I visited the centre, but unfortunately there were no spacecraft at the time... Link to comment
+islander1988 Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 The Netherlands is bordered by only 2 countries: Belgium borders in the south and Germany in the east. Link to comment
+sterni2009 Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 (edited) I remember a true story from me in the Netherlands. When I was a little girl (about 14 or 15 years old), me and my schoolclass went sailing on the IJsselmeer for one week. It was so great, the sun was shining all the time, we could swim in the wonderful ocean and everything was great... until I fell in love with the co-skipper You know, little girl, a strong co-skipper playing his guitar and singing, with long blond hair... I was young and so full of hope... It was one of the evenings when the co-skipper played his guitar and sang and I sat next to him, having my head on his shoulders... that was the moment I fell in love with him... I tell you, I was so da.mn happy and the next morning I went to his cabin and waited until he woke up... well, and told him about my feelings... Of course, a man who is not abnormal, does NOT have a relationship with a 14/15-years old girl... so he told me that there will be nothing between us... me, the little girl, was so down, that I cried the whole next days... My teachers had to comfort me, too... people of my class thought I was crazy Very sad in those days, very funny today Edited October 31, 2009 by sterni2009 Link to comment
+GATOULIS Posted October 31, 2009 Share Posted October 31, 2009 Well.... there was a story I heard a long time ago, but I do not know if it is true!!! Please if you know more let me know!!! When German troops occupied Netherlands. they confisceted all the bicycles!!! (I do not know if that is true!!) Many years later, I think in euro cup 1988 (football) that took place in Germany, there was a poster in the Netherlands showing 2 of the footballers of the Netherlands team (was it Gullit and Van Basten????) giving to an old women a bicycle and it was writen.... do not worry we will bring all the bicycles back... or something like that! There was a big talk about this poster because the turnament was in Germany, and this had to do withthe Germans!!! I think they played against in the semi finals!!! Netherlands won with 1-0 with a goal from Marco Van Basten (What a player!!!!), in the 89th minute! That "killed" the Germans!!! The game is also remembered for its post-match shenanigans, including Ronald Koeman, who, in front of the German supporters, provocatively pretended to wipe his backside with the shirt of Olaf Thon as if it were toilet paper!!! That was not so nice!!!! Anyway...I do not know if they brought back the bikes, but they came to the Netherlands with the european Cup!!! the won in the Finals, the USSR with 2-0!!! The funny is that they lost from them in the first round with 1-0!!! Link to comment
+burgessfour Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 I learned from my best friend that you know when you get close to Zeeland as you can smell the onions (and leeks) that are planted in the nearby fields............ dank je Link to comment
Maine Family Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 Shops are open from Tuesdays to Fridays from 09:00 or 10:00 to 18:00. Most shops close on Mondays or Monday mornings. Most shops open on Saturdays until 17:00. However, many shops in cities and medium-sized towns (such as Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague) do not close until 18:00. on Saturdays. The shops remain open until 21:00 one day a week. In most villages, this is on Fridays, while in most towns and cities, it is on Thursdays, with the exception of The Hague. In the main town centres, many shops also open on Sundays. Large supermarkets are open until 20:00 or 22:00, mainly depending on their location. Link to comment
+burgessfour Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 (edited) Hagelslag is to be served on bread and not eaten straight out of the box Edited November 1, 2009 by burgessfour Link to comment
lorca.nl Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 Hagelslag is to be served on bread and not eaten straight out of the box ohhhhhh my ...... how you know that girl some USA lady told me that i must eat it right out the box now i`m so so confuse Link to comment
+Team Van Stoffelen Posted November 1, 2009 Author Share Posted November 1, 2009 (edited) Hello Gatoulis, During WW2 about 100.000-150.000 bicycles are confiscated. In the summer of 1942 the german occupier ordered the dutch to hand over their bikes. They were needed for the Wehrmacht. It was not a great succes, the german troops only confiscated 1.000 bikes. Nobody voluntairly gave up their bike. It resulted in more bike confiscating street razzia's. In total that summer 53.000 bikes where confiscated. There would be no more big bike confiscating actions until the last year of the war. Many has been told and written about 1988. It was a football year of fame and shame. Was it the war? That was more then 40 year ago. Was it the (in dutch eyes unfair) lost world championshop soccer final in Argentina 1974. More likely. The 1988 dutch coach Rinus Michels was coach also in 1974. He once said: Football is war. Fact is that all these sentiments came together in an outburst after the wonned game agains the germans. And now on topic again... Well.... there was a story I heard a long time ago, but I do not know if it is true!!! Please if you know more let me know!!! When German troops occupied Netherlands. they confisceted all the bicycles!!! (I do not know if that is true!!) Many years later, I think in euro cup 1988 (football) that took place in Germany, there was a poster in the Netherlands showing 2 of the footballers of the Netherlands team (was it Gullit and Van Basten????) giving to an old women a bicycle and it was writen.... do not worry we will bring all the bicycles back... or something like that! There was a big talk about this poster because the turnament was in Germany, and this had to do withthe Germans!!! I think they played against in the semi finals!!! Netherlands won with 1-0 with a goal from Marco Van Basten (What a player!!!!), in the 89th minute! That "killed" the Germans!!! The game is also remembered for its post-match shenanigans, including Ronald Koeman, who, in front of the German supporters, provocatively pretended to wipe his backside with the shirt of Olaf Thon as if it were toilet paper!!! That was not so nice!!!! Anyway...I do not know if they brought back the bikes, but they came to the Netherlands with the european Cup!!! the won in the Finals, the USSR with 2-0!!! The funny is that they lost from them in the first round with 1-0!!! Edited November 1, 2009 by Team Van Stoffelen Link to comment
+GATOULIS Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 Oh, I am sorry if I brought back this story! I just remembered that poster but I was not sure about the bicycles!!! WOW! It was strange! Germany was making one of the best bikes (I think the first with a reverse... it could also go backwards), they had great vehicles and tanks for their military... and even though... they conviscated bikes... Probably it was an easy way to transport but they could had made some in their factories.... I am thinking if that was for psychological reasons! Since bikes were a way of living for the Dutch, by conviscating them it was a way to show that they rule now! Since almost everything was done with bikes then (transportation etc), it was like they were cutting your feet... I hope I will not offence any Geocacher from Germany with that! I hope my dear friends from there understand that this is a military tactic that was widely used, from many armies... The best thing to stop the strength of ressistance is to "injured" the prestige of them! If bikes were making the Dutch feel nice and free.... Of course... this may have other impacts, and bring nerves, hate, and the strength to ressist till the end..... It is a mess, but... can you find logic in a war??? Link to comment
+Team Van Stoffelen Posted November 1, 2009 Author Share Posted November 1, 2009 (edited) Wake up, everybody. Still less than 5 hours to go before this cointest end. And what is more. I've already decided that there will be three winners instead of two! Edited November 1, 2009 by Team Van Stoffelen Link to comment
+burgessfour Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 The Netherlands has two official languages, Dutch and Frisian Link to comment
+sterni2009 Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 The Netherlands have a rank far behind the most other European countries concerning people using the internet. Well I read this and thought...HMMMMM... So I looked and here is what I found: Demographics There were 14,272,700 internet users in Netherlands (representing 85.4% of the population) in June 2009, according to Internet World Stats. This was up by 266.0% compared to 2000. (Internet World Stats, September 2009) eMarketer estimated the number of internet users and penetration level in Netherlands for the period between 2007 and 2012 as follows: - 2007: 13.3 million (80.1% of the population) - 2008: 13.6 million (81.9%) - 2009: 13.9 million (83.2%) - 2010: 14.1 million (83.9%) - 2011: 14.2 million (84.5%) - 2012: 14.3 million (84.6%) (eMarketer, February 2008) Looks like you are ahead of the curve. Wish I could have been the single ISP in 2000 Hey, Idid not write that only few people in the Netherlands use internet, but in comparison with the other European countries, they have a low rank.Here is the link: Fact 36 out of 40 "Auf der Liste der Länder mit den meisten Internetnutzern (Stand 2008) belegen die Niederlande mit 11,8 Millionen Usern einen hinteren Platz." Link to comment
+Team Van Stoffelen Posted November 1, 2009 Author Share Posted November 1, 2009 (edited) Thank you all for your contributions. The cointest is over. It really was very fun to read. Of course there were the usual contributions with a lot of facts and figures. Some quit interesting and fun, but also extremely useless, for example that the world has enough wasted paper to cover the Netherlands every five minutes. Funny also was Gatoulis contribution about the Dutch kingdom (read it before, it’s all over the internet, but still fun), and his advice to take mothers-in-law to the Netherlands. There were a few things I really did not know (if true). For example that it is illegal to urinate in the canals unless you are pregnant. I specially want to thank the personal contributions. Paganfrog with her unexpected dutch roadtrip and her wooden clogs, Gatoulis with his Dutch badge story, Brewmeister with his contribution to Dutch taxes, Vegasgamblers with his brother and wife pulling bicycles from canals , besem with his Dutch handshaking and Sterni2009 with her teenage love story. To burgessfour is want to say that the mentioned friend may be a little exaggerated. Zeeland has 1. 787 square kilometers of land and quite a few islands/peninsula’s. Not all farmers grow unions . And by the way, the hagelslag your pretty daughter holds up for the camera are the Muisjes (mice) E&Cplus3 talked about. We’ve got them in blue and white and they are eaten on dry crumbly ruskes when a child is born. Thank you all for your contributions. It was hard to pick some winners. But the only member of the jury had to do what the only member of the jury has to do… 1. Winner in the category ‘strangest fact’ is: Paganfrog, with the orange carrot story (#124) 2. Winner in the category ‘most fun’ is: Murphyrulez, with the illegal urination topic (#10) And there are two extra winners: 3. Gatoulis, for his many contributons (hey, I’m into coins and history so that makes him an easy winner). 4. Six little spookies, just for living in a State so flat that even Dutch hills are considered mountains Thanks all. It was a great joy! Edited November 1, 2009 by Team Van Stoffelen Link to comment
+burgessfour Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 Congrats to the winners!!!!!!!!!!!! And thank you for this cointest it was really fun and interesting to read all the posts Link to comment
paganfrog Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 thanks for the fun cointest team vs it was great to be able to participate and findsuch interesting facts. well done to the other winners it was great fun to read. Link to comment
+fairyhoney Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 LUCKY, LUCKY WINNERS ! ! ! CONGRATULATIONS Link to comment
+GATOULIS Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 Hello to all! I just came back from one of the worst days in geocaching and...generally!!! Oh boy..... I will write our adventure in the online geocacher magazine for sure!!!! WOW!!! I was one of the winners??? I am so glad that I won such a beautiful coin, and I am so glad to meet an other collector!!! So my friend you are into coins and history too!!! congratulations to all winners!!! Thank you my friend for the great cointest!!! I will sent you email very soon! Link to comment
Queenie-Boo-Bay Posted November 1, 2009 Share Posted November 1, 2009 Congrats to all of the Winners. Thanks for the Cointest. Link to comment
+kini_ont Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Hello to all! I just came back from one of the worst days in geocaching and...generally!!! Oh boy..... I will write our adventure in the online geocacher magazine for sure!!!! WOW!!! I was one of the winners??? I am so glad that I won such a beautiful coin, and I am so glad to meet an other collector!!! So my friend you are into coins and history too!!! congratulations to all winners!!! Thank you my friend for the great cointest!!! I will sent you email very soon! Sorry GATOULIS that you had a bad day caching that should never be, but I to went caching today and really enjoyed myself. So I'm happy to see that you and the others are very lucky in this cointest and want to thank Team Van Stoffelen for not just one coin but four coins, that is very generous Link to comment
+Six Little Spookies Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Awesome! Thanks Team Van Stoffelen! Congrats to the other winners too. Four winners, very generous! (My wife misses real mountains an awful lot! That and snow!) Link to comment
+murphyrulez Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Thanks!!!! I'm speechless!!! I'll send an email soon, when I pick myself up off the floor... yay!!! Link to comment
ATMouse Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 I had lots of fun reading the entries! Congrats to the winners and thanks for the cointest. Link to comment
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