The Dutch start-up European Sleeper is introducing a night train that will take you from the Dutch capital via Rotterdam and Berlin to the city of Prague in one fell swoop.
If you’ve been planning on doing a little trip around Europe next summer, then this is the news you need to hear. With trains already running between Amsterdam and London, this is another milestone in connecting the Netherlands’ capital with different corners of Europe.
Connecting European gems
The European Sleeper night train will connect major European cities — Brussels, Antwerp, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Hannover, Berlin, Dresden, and Prague — and is supposed to start running in April 2022.
The plan is to offer the train connection three times a week for the first months. After that, there could be as many as one of these sleepers running a day, the train operator announced on its website.
Ticket prices announced soon
Travelling by train is not only an exciting Murder-on-the-Orient-Express-like experience but it can also help reduce the environmental costs of flying, which — let’s be honest — are still very real even despite numerous flight cancellations during the pandemic.
The first private railway company to enter the Dutch market since 1999, European Sleeper aims to put overnight trains back into the limelight.
The company has partnered with the Czech railway operator RegioJet to offer their first route. Ticket prices and the exact travel times are to be announced soon.
So @EuropeanSlpr has announced their route will be Brussels-Amsterdam-Berlin-Dresden-Prague, and in cooperation with RegioJet… I will still believe this when I see it! But Brussels-Berlin – sure, I’m in! https://t.co/hX6GvHYTwipic.twitter.com/z4gMsuatV5
For the trip to Prague, the company advertises friendly staff, free internet, privacy, free coffee, and even breakfast in bed. Sounds like a pretty good way to start your adventures in the heart of Europe, right?
If you’re not jumping with excitement already (why aren’t you, though?), maybe you’ll be happy to know there have also been plans to introduce trains from Amsterdam to Scandinavia, or cities like Vienna and Zurich.
Will you be taking this overnight train from Amsterdam to Prague next year? Tell us in the comments below!
The private data of 533 million Facebook users have been leaked online. The leaked file contains data of 5.4 million Dutch users.
Your name, phone number, place of residence, relationship status, employer, and sometimes your email address — this is all information that could potentially be found in the leaked database.
According to RTL Nieuws, the file contains data that had already been stolen in 2019 by abusing the function which allows Facebook to automatically look up your contacts.
This was discovered by the website TechCrunch. At that time, Facebook said that nothing indicated that the phone numbers were being misused.
533,000,000 accounts having their personal information leaked is apparently considered “fixed” by Facebook’s definitions.
— Alon Gal (Under the Breach) (@UnderTheBreach) April 3, 2021
What’s the danger?
When such a leak occurs, the company in question is obliged to inform its users. However, with Facebook, this didn’t happen.
It’s easy to become a bit immune to Facebook scandals – there’s so many of them! – but Facebook’s comms admitting they knew of this latest breach – of 533 million people – almost 2 years ago *but did not inform users* is pretty breathtaking https://t.co/eLBqE1a3cK
“The main danger of this leak is that the data can be used for fraud, for example via WhatsApp. The more data such a scammer has on you, the more convincing he can make the message,” says journalist Daniël Verlaan.
Scammers can easily gain your trust by for example mentioning your name or employer in a text message.
Was my data stolen?
Dutch Facebook users can check whether their data was part of the leaked file by simply entering their first and last names into this tool. If any matches are found, the database will show the last three digits of the linked phone number.
The developer of this tool, Joost Schuttelaar, states that he doesn’t store any data of Facebook users who use his software. This other tool uses Dutch and Belgian phone numbers to search the leaked database and also doesn’t store any user data.
How do you feel about this leak? Let us know in the comments below!
A shorter third wave of coronavirus than previously predicted and fewer ICU admissions are the RIVM’s prognoses for the Netherlands. But hold your horses because the OMT is not entirely convinced.
According to new predictions from the RIVM on Friday, the peak of the third wave will be earlier than expected. In mid-March, it was predicted that the Netherlands would experience the peak at around May 1, but new data published by the RIVM suggest that the peak will be somewhere in mid-April.
Predicted ICU numbers also drop
The predicted number of ICU patients during the peak has also decreased, from 1,400 to 800 according to the NOS. This comes as welcome news for the Netherlands as it’s firmly settled into the third wave of coronavirus, with some hospitals already overflowing.
A spokesman for the OMT, Marc Bonten, tells Nieuwsuur that he is happy with the new predictions for the Netherlands, but he has reservations. He suggests that these figures are “on the assumption that many people will be vaccinated in the coming weeks. The second condition is that we do not relax.”
Bonten stresses that if either of these factors changes, these predictions could look very different in the coming weeks. He also says that he sees little room for easing of measures since the R number (rate of infection) is currently above one in the Netherlands.
How do you feel about the RIVM’s predictions? Let us know in the comments!
So much for those sunny rays we had last week. It’s a chilly start to the week in the Netherlands, with cold winds and wintery showers on Easter Monday.
We all knew the nice weather wouldn’t last, but we held out hope for a sunny Easter weekend. Alas, it wouldn’t be a Dutch spring without a few twists and turns. There is an icy chill coming in from the North Pole, according to Buienradar meteorologist Leander de Wit.
Sorry to the sun worshippers, the temperature will only reach a high of six degrees today. This may not sound that cold, but there is a wind chill of below zero. 😬
Snow later in the week
If you think today is cold, you’re in for a shock at what is coming ahead. Tuesday’s weather takes even more of a turn, the temperature lying between one and three degrees, with thunderstorms, hail and snowy showers. De Wit told RLT “the saying ‘April does what it wants’ does not exist for nothing.”
White Wednesday in the north of the Netherlands
The wintery weather continues into the middle of the week. From Tuesday night a precipitation layer is predicted, which will likely leave a blanket of snow over the northeast of the country. This means the northeast of the Netherlands could wake up to a white Wednesday according to Buienradar.
By the end of the week, the temperature looks like it will creep back up to double figures. Those April showers will continue throughout the week, so as we expected, it’s a bit too soon to say hello to summer. 😩
What do you make of this wintery weather? Let us know in the comments below!
Dutch weather can be just as confusing as modern dating. You get just enough to keep you interested, but there are no signs of full commitment and you’re left hanging for days on end.
But on Thursday, it all started to change. While provinces such as Limburg could enjoy an extra day of the summer-like 20 degrees, temperatures didn’t go over nine degrees in the northern parts of the Netherlands.
Not-so-good Good Friday
The high temperatures of the past days are not coming back for the time being and the weather on Good Friday will be anything but good. In most parts of the country, temperatures won’t go above 10 degrees, reports Weerplaza.
However, there is a ray of light — literally — as the sun is expected to peek through the clouds every now and then throughout the day.
Best time for Easter egg hunt
If you’re wondering when you should hide your Easter eggs, then we suggest you place your bet on Sunday. Despite a moderate wind, it will stay dry for the day.
Monday, on the other hand, will start with clouds and rain showers, particularly in the southeast of the Netherlands.
How will you be spending this Easter weekend? Let us know in the comments below!
On April 1, 2001, the Netherlands became the first country in the world to legalise same-sex marriage. Since then, 20,000 same-sex couples have said their vows.
More than 19,000 men and almost 21,000 women in the Netherlands are married to someone of the same sex. Out of these people, 1,400 men and 1,100 women walked down the aisle in 2001, reports Statistics Netherlands.
The first married gay couples
Gert Kasteel and Dolf Pasker were one of the first gay couples to ever get legally married. Today, they celebrate their 20th anniversary.
“It’s nicer to say to other people ‘he’s my husband, he’s my man,’” Dolf tells Reuters.
However, even though same-sex marriage has been legal for 20 years now in the Netherlands, about a quarter of couples who formalize their relationship still choose to enter a registered partnership instead.
Most gay marriages are in Amsterdam
While Amsterdam wasn’t always a safe haven for gay people, it now has the biggest share of same-sex marriages, with 45 in every 1,000 married couples being gay. This is followed by Nijmegen and Arnhem.
But unfortunately, not all of the Netherlands is tolerant towards the LGBTQ community. The share of same-sex marriages is especially lower in the so-called Bible Belt — an area running from the province of Zeeland, across South Holland, Utrecht, and Gelderland all the way to Overijssel, where many Orthodox Protestants live.
How will you be celebrating this anniversary? Do you think the Netherlands still has a long way to go to be fully tolerant of the LGBTQ community? Tell us in the comments!
A small town in North Holland, at least one street or a square in the bigger Dutch cities, and an entire type of tree are all named after Anna Paulowna.
Also known as Anna Pavlovna, the queen with unobtrusive but lasting presence represents a single strong link between the history of Russia and the Netherlands.
Who was Anna Paulowna?
As a granddaughter of Catherine the Great and daughter of the Russian emperor Paul I, Anna Paulowna was a Grand Duchess of Russia upon birth. As the eighth of ten children, however, she had slim chances to ever be an acting queen. Anna was schooled thoroughly in languages, mathematics, and physics. Many of her relatives coming from the House of Romanov made quite a name for themselves, but nothing spectacular was expected from her life.
As Anna grew into a young princess, she also turned into a political tool. The powerful position of the Russian empire at the time and her solid schooling made the princess an excellent match for any European court.
Among the candidates were the future Ferdinand I of Austria and Charles Ferdinand of the Bourbon dynasty. She really took the spotlight, however, when none other than Napoleon Bonaparte asked her hand in 1810. He was in the search of a suitable union for his empire but also for a wife capable of bearing his children (after Josephine failed).
Unconvinced of the political and personal prosperity of such union, the queen-mother, Maria Feodorovna, managed to delay the answer to such extent that Bonaparte eventually lost patience and married the Austrian archduchess instead.
The Prince of Orange
At that time, Anna Paulowna’s father, Paul I, had already been assassinated and was succeeded by his eldest son, Alexander I. After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, a marriage was still on the table for Anna, and Alexander had a good candidate — his friend, distinguished commander and hero of the Battle of Waterloo — Willem, Prince of Orange.
Unlike other royal families of the age, the Russians had strict rules against wedding two people whose first meeting was at the wedding ceremony. Thus in December 1815, Willem arrived in St. Petersburg in order to meet Anna.
The visit was successful — Anna and Willem married the following February with two ceremonies, one Christian Orthodox for the bride, and one Protestant one. Anna was allowed to retain her faith, but the children had to be raised Protestant. Such freedom was uncommon at the time, as Anna’s own mother, born Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg, converted to Orthodox Christianity and changed her name to Maria Feodorovna upon marrying Paul I.
Between Brussels and The Hague
The couple left for the Netherlands six months after the wedding and initially settled in Kneuterdijk in The Hague. However, problems between Willem and his father forced them to quickly move to Brussels (which was at the time under the Dutch crown), where Anna first came in touch with the relatively informal attitude of her new court.
She found the class system in the Netherlands much less strict and didn’t like it one bit. Raised to be a queen, although never assumed as one, Anna Paulowna was used to certain etiquettes and ceremonialism. Other than that, the story goes that Anna really enjoyed Brussels for its aristocratic and sophisticated royal life.
The Belgian revolution of 1830 and the subsequent independence sent Willem and Anna back to The Hague, where, in 1840, the two were crowned as king and queen of the Netherlands, following the abdication of Willem I. Anna would then became known as the 343rd Dame of the Royal Order of Queen Maria Luisa until her death on March 1, 1865.
Among the common people and those close to the royal court, Anna Paulowna was seen as a distant and cold persona.
She would never give up the lavish ceremonial etiquette of her birthplace and insisted on preserving some old Russian traditions. She maintained strong ties with her family, visiting and corresponding with them often. The bond she had with her two youngest siblings, Nicolas and Michael, would stay just as strong as they grew older.
Ever since she met Willem II, Anna Paulowna felt superior in rank to him. After all, she was a Grand Duchess of Russia, an exceptionally powerful empire, and she had been a greatly desired target of marriage.
A woman of character
Anna had strict convictions that she held on to. After the unexpected death of her husband, a turbulent relationship with her oldest son, and a lasting dislike for life in The Hague, she became described as a solitary and sad figure.
The statue of Anna Pavlovna in The Hague. Image: Pvt pauline/Wikimedia Commons/C3.0
But she was a woman of character and never gave up the role of a queen as it was perceived back in those days — to take care of the weak, to offer moral support, and to be a motherly figure for the kingdom.
Already in Brussels as a young princess, Anna Paulowna opened a sewing school for underprivileged women and a hospital for soldiers wounded during the Belgian revolution. During her nearly 50 years in the Netherlands, she founded over 50 orphanages. She was a talented painter and quickly excelled in the Dutch language, speaking it even better than her husband.
Anna had a rocky marriage marked by Willem’s adultery (with both men and women) and his gambling problems, which frequently left him in significant debt. She even suspected him as the culprit when jewelry once went missing. When he ultimately passed away in 1849, she was forced to sell a valuable collection of paintings to pay his debts. But Anna remained loyal to him all her life, gave birth to five of his children, and often acted as an arbiter and a peacemaker in the political and personal arguments between her husband and her father-in-law.
Coming from a powerful royal family, Anna had the capability and the opportunity to seriously interfere in political affairs like many other queens before her — Marie de’ Medici, Anne Boleyn, Marie Antoinette just to name a few.
Yet, she chose the discreet charm of a consort, proving once again that people with true character are able to blend in the role life has destined for them. Whatever this role may be.
Have you heard Anna Paulowna’s story before? Tell us in the comments below!
Feature Image: Pvt pauline/Wikimedia Commons/C3.0
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in May 2017, and was fully updated in April 2021 for your reading pleasure.
A study has confirmed what we all could have guessed: Dutch children and teenagers are the tallest in the world.
It’s not a tall tale — the large-scale study of 65 million youngsters aged 5-19 stretched across almost 200 countries. The research found that Dutch male 19-year-olds have an average height of 1.83 metres. Meanwhile, Dutch female 19-year-olds average 1.70 metres.
Compare that to the countries that fall short on the list. According to the study, the men in East Timor are the most vertically challenged. At 1.60 metres, the men are ten centimetres shorter than the average Dutch woman. Meanwhile, the shortest women in the world are in Guatemala, at just 1.50 metres.
Something in the water?
So is it something to do with the Dutch love for sandwiches or cycling? Well maybe. Clinical geneticist Wendy van Zelst-Stams of Radboud UMC says that the factors which make someone tall are kind of like a jigsaw puzzle.
“If that puzzle is incomplete and pieces are missing, that has an influence,” Van Zelst-Stams tells RTL Nieuws. “Every piece of the puzzle can be a genetic factor, but also, for example, lifestyle and nutrition are part of it.”
Researcher Paula van Dommelen from TNO agrees. “The better the factors in which you live, such as the prosperity in the country, illnesses and access to healthcare, the greater the influence of your genes on your body. So it is a combination of all those factors that can make you tall.”
She compares the Netherlands to Great Britain, a country similarly developed to the Netherlands. “But British children have relatively less healthy eating habits than in other European countries. That means they are heavier and therefore shorter.”
Dutch people have been topping the charts for some time now, but paediatrician-endocrinologist Vera van Telligen says that the Dutch may have maxed out their limits. “What you see is that the Dutch have not been getting taller in the last ten years or so. We are still the tallest people from surveys, but we are no longer getting longer.”
Low blows
Being tall isn’t always fruitful though. Trousers and shirt sleeves are almost always too short. Attending a concert means blocking the views of other spectators. And a long-haul aeroplane trip can be an absolute nightmare.
Do you feel tall, short, or average when walking around the Netherlands? Tell us in the comments below!
Feature Image: Andrea Piacquadio/Pexels Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in November 2020, and was fully updated in April 2021 for your reading pleasure.
Yesterday, parks across the country, including Amsterdam’s Vondelpark, were evacuated due to large crowds gathering to soak up some sunshine.
Utrecht saw Park Lepelenburg closed down and an alcohol ban was brought in for Sonsbeek Park in Arnhem. In Groningen’s Noorderplantsoen, a police van arrived to ask visitors to comply with coronavirus measures and an alcohol ban.
However, Amsterdam’s Vondelpark saw the most drama.
Vondelpark closed
The decision was made to close the park’s entrances at 2:45 PM yesterday. At 6:30 PM, the park was cleared of the remaining visitors on the orders of Amsterdam’s mayor, the NOS reports.
Kreeg dit filmpje net doorgestuurd. Veel plezier met dit handhaven. Nog nooit zoveel zin gehad in goed weer en geloof me, ik hou van goed weer. pic.twitter.com/t3iJhw3vkn
According to the mayor’s spokesperson, “a large group clumped around the monument with drinks and music. It was too large, it did not adhere to the corona measures and did not keep a meter and a half away.”
Some did not want to leave
When police and enforcement approached the large group, there was aggressive behaviour and visitors were slow to leave during the evacuation of the park.
Het Parool reports that in some cases, bottles were thrown, fireworks were set off and people started climbing the park’s fences. Two people were also arrested.
Some visitors took the party elsewhere. Once the Vondelpark was evacuated, people gathered in the Museumplein. However, a fight broke out, leading to the hospitalisation of one person and the crowd eventually diminished.
Litter left behind
Many parks were left littered with rubbish and plastic.
The Dutch government is introducing a plan to allow tens of thousands of people to visit trial events this April.
The events will be held throughout the whole country. Museums, theatres, sports venues, music venues, zoos, amusement parks, sports halls, and other event organizers can all participate.
The number of visitors per event per day will range from 45 in the province of Zeeland to more than 3,700 in Noord Holland. All trial event locations will have to follow strict safety protocols.
Large-scale testing at events from May
The trial events of this month are supposed to help enable reopening as soon as possible. If they are successful, the government hopes for a large-scale deployment of ‘access tests’ for events from May onwards, reports RTL Nieuws.
Depending on the results, some measures could also be relaxed more quickly, for example allowing a maximum of 100 people instead of 30 at some events. The exact plans for the trial events will most likely be announced by the Dutch cabinet next week.
At all nine shows, a maximum of 3,500 spectators will be allowed at a time. This is about half the number of spectators expected for last year. Visitors will need a negative coronavirus test to be able to attend.
“The fact that we now have the opportunity to open the script for a Eurovision Song Contest with an audience again is something we could only dream of,” says the executive producer of the event, Sietse Bakker.
Final decision
Eurovision is set to take place between May 18 and May 22. The organizer will provide more information for visitors about the safety protocol for the event in the coming weeks.
However, the final decision whether a live audience can attend Eurovision or whether we’ll only be able to watch the contest on our screens is supposed to come at the end of April.
Will you be attending any of the trial events in April? Let us know in the comments below!
