The Dutch are good at two things: making cheese and playing football. Okay, maybe a few more, but the playing football part is definitely true. The Dutch women’s team has been skyrocketing in popularity in recent years – and goalkeeper Sari van Veenendaal just got named FIFA’s Best Women’s Goalkeeper for 2019. That’s right, the best!
The crowning glory came as part of the The Best FIFA Football Awards at a ceremony in Milan last night. While all eyes were on Dutch male defender Virgil van Dijk for FIFA Best Men’s Player, he was pipped at the post by Argentinian and Barcelona captain and forward Lionel Messi.
But, all is not lost, because Van Dijk did manage to sneak into the dream team FIFPRO World 11, alongside fellow Dutchies Matthijs de Ligt, and Frenkie de Jong.
A win for the women
The Dutch women already impressed us with their ferocity and stamina in this year FIFA Women’s World Cup when they beat the odds to make it to the Grand Final against the US. Let’s not also forget their domination on home ground at the 2017 European Championship either.
Now, our favourite female goalkeeper Sari Van Veenendaal, captain and backbone of the women’s team, has been officially named the Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper 2019 – is that a tear coming to our eye?
It gained Van Veenendaal a spot in the FIFPRO Womens World 11 – but sadly our other mighty Dutch women didn’t make it in. We’re still proud!O Nederland, o Nederland!
Have you been watching the FIFA awards? Should Van Dijk have been crowned number 1? And how proud are you of our women’s team? Let us know in the comments below!
Aaah, a mystery cruise promising to whisk you away on a “special voyage” to explore “undiscovered gems” on a “holiday to remember. Sounds like a dream right? But, as recent participants on a British cruise found out, sometimes ‘undiscovered gems’ untouched by tourism are “undiscovered” for a reason.
The estimated 900 passengers of the 710 room cruise vessel paid up to 1600 euros for their 11-night glamour filled adventure, filled with excitement for their first glamorous stop, The Sun reports.
Buuut, their dreams were destroyed when their first stop was Great Yarmouth, where some travellers had come from in the first place. Stop number two has to be an improvement, right?
Wrong! What a fun game. They then headed to Dunkirk, a small town on the east coast of France famous for a WWII battle, and now with enhanced police security due to a serious influx of migrants.
“Some have said they won’t get off the ship at the next destination. They just want it to be over,” a passenger told The Sun.
Stop number three actually was huge upgrade when the ship headed to beautiful Antwerp in Belgium for some fries and waffles – and it all got better from there.
Just kidding! The grand finale was a stop in the Netherlands, home of stretching fields of tulips and beautiful cheese milked straight from the cows! Sounds great, right? But instead of docking in beautiful, historic Amsterdam or newly-built Rotterdam, they found themselves in … IJmuiden, an industrial port city in north Holland.
One word? Picturesque. Image: Udo Geisler on Flickr
Now, at DutchReview we don’t discriminate – we love all parts of the Netherlands! But, suffice to say the British passengers were not impressed with the small city.
“[I]t was like being on a council estate, with cheap shops like Poundland.” one passenger told The Sun. “There have been a lot of complaints and the crew know people are not happy.”
Another passenger told The Sun “It’s mutiny on here. God knows where we will end up next.”
But, the cruise company is defending themselves. Martin Lister, head of itinerary planning & destination experience, said they’ve received a number of positive comments.
“It is a shame that a minority feel this cruise has not met expectations,” he told. “We hope our guests will continue to get into the spirit of the cruise and are looking forward to those destinations that they have not yet visited.”
What do you think of this luxury cruise itinerary? How happy would you be to dock in IJmuiden? Let us know in the comments below!
Thomas Cook, a British travel agency, has declared insolvency and left thousand of travellers stranded as flights and package deals have been cancelled. How this will affect the Thomas Cook’s Dutch branch is still unknown.
We are sorry to announce that Thomas Cook has ceased trading with immediate effect.
Earlier today, it became infeasible to book any further travel plans with the company. However, as it currently stands, their online site remains live.
It is estimated that over 10,000 Dutch people are currently travelling with Thomas Cook. NOS reports that the travel agency has around 400,000 customers in the Netherlands every year.
Bankruptcy at Thomas Cook?
If Thomas Cook declares bankruptcy, the Stichting Garantiefonds Reisgelden intends to take care of the travellers. So if you have booked with Thomas Cook you need not worry, you will be rebooked through another travel agency or get your money back.
Peter Fankhauser, Chief Executive of Thomas Cook, commented “We have worked exhaustively in the past few days to resolve the outstanding issues… on an agreement to secure Thomas Cook’s future for its employees, customers and suppliers. Although a deal had been largely agreed, an additional facility requested in the last few days of negotiations presented a challenge that ultimately proved insurmountable.”
“This marks a deeply sad day for the company which pioneered package holidays and made travel possible for millions of people around the world.”
BREAKING: The last Thomas Cook passenger flight lands at Manchester Airport after the company collapsed following failed rescue talks.
Many people were quick to make a reference to Brexit and draw attention to the raft of legislation that protects EU holiday packages for Brits travelling around Europe.
One of the many silent benefits UK citizens have received from EU membership was the raft of protection legislation on package holidays
This is the legislation that is protecting #ThomasCook holidaymakers
Four men who took part in Operation Market Garden and who showed up for the events 75-year anniversary last night were turned away. The reason? The VIP room was already full.
The British soldiers were turned away by the municipality of Arnhem during the commemoration at Airborneplein. Various events have been set up this year to remember the failed WWII military operation which led the deaths of at least 15,000 Allied soldiers.
The memorials for the 75th year are particularly grand, and attendees must show a personalised ticket. The men who were turned away did not possess this.
But, the four veterans were puzzled by the rejection. “We have been around since the early 1980s and have never needed a pass. We thought our medals served as entry tickets,” said 95-year-old veteran Leslie Reeves told NOS.
Who was turned away?
Reeves was the only survivor of his tank unit after fighting in Nijmegen and was seriously injured in Germany after crossing the Rhine. “It is utterly embarrassing that they sent us away. I will never experience such a special occasion again,” Reeves said.
Of the four veterans that were unable to enter, two were eventually able to enter the memorial – but only after a Dutch couple saw them being turned away and gifted them their personal tickets.
96-year-old naval veteran Simeon Mayou and a fellow veteran were forced to turn back to their hotel. “Every year we look forward to the celebration. We saved the whole year to gather the money for the trip to the Netherlands,” he told NOS.
“There were people who were not even born during the war. But we were not allowed in. Our hearts broke.” he continued.
Why were they turned away?
The municipality of Arnhem has expressed regret over what happened, but says that places were limited. Spokesman for the municipality Carlo van der Borgt told NOS that the anniversary event meant only limited tickets were available.
Amazing footage of the landings at Arnhem, 75 years ago today. Can you imagine what it would feel like to jump? Or to be on the ground, seeing salvation arrive? (via @16AirAssltBde)pic.twitter.com/zs6b0c6nfc
According to Van der Borgt, Arnhem veterans had been invited, and those without an invitation could access an extra area. However, the veterans said that area was so full it was inaccessible.
The mayor of Arnhem, Ahmed Marcouch, wants to set the wrongs right. “If we missed veterans, I want to make up for this as quickly as possible,” he said.
What do you think about these veterans being turned away from the commemoration? Let us know in the comments below!
Dutch political parties have joined forces to create a majority in the Lower House to support a proposal from D66 that would grant Dutch people living in the United Kingdom dual citizenship.
Current law on dual citizenship
As it currently stands, Dutch law does not permit you to hold two nationalities. This means, if you have a Dutch passport and want citizenship from another country, you must relinquish your Dutch passport.
“Cannot be taken hostage by Brexit”
D66 MP Sjoerdsma stated on twitter that “Now that they are making chaos across the North Sea, Dutch political parties are joining forces. Dutch nationals in the UK cannot be taken hostage by the Brexit”.
Nu ze er aan de overkant van de Noordzee een chaos van maken, slaan Nederlandse partijen de handen ineen.
The emergency law will only apply to Dutch people living in Great Britain and vice versa. But they will not be left behind as the cabinet has already assured British people living in the Netherlands will get a 15 month extension if the UK leave the European Union without a deal.
3million support the proposal
3million, a large grassroots organisation of EU citizens in the UK who fervently campaign to protect citizens rights support the proposal. But they also believe that British nationals living in the Netherlands should be given a Dutch passport.
They stated on twitter “for someone whose livelihood depends on working in several EU countries, taking on Dutch citizenship provides the only way of keeping their precious EU citizenship”
De reactie van @the3million op de dubbele nationaliteit noodwet:
With a fellow orange man across the pond trying to make his country great again, we, at DutchReview, are poised to tell you the story on how to make Holland great again!
Every now and then an idea comes by that shows the full potential of Dutch imagination. Different times when Dutch visionaries weren’t held back by typical Dutch modesty in the megalomaniac dreams they had. Times when the Afsluitdijk, the Delta Works and Flevoland were created. Or even better, when the Dutch set out to conquer the rest of the world (okay, this definitely caused much worse times for other people.)
When a post only needs three sentences to break out a delicious crazy-ass picture of Wilders in a VOC outfit then you know we are are up to GREATNESS (or utter ridiculousness, depends if you catch the sarcasm).
What we like most here at DutchReview is that these projects show how things can be changed which seem unchangeable. The fact that the Zuiderzee had been there for centuries didn’t seem to bother Cornelis Lely, godfather of the Zuiderzee works. So let’s dam this water, create a new province and completely change the map of the Netherlands.
We think this kind of ideas need more attention, whether they’re actually realized or not. That’s why we’re introducing the hashtag #MakeHollandGreatAgain to collect all these projects!
Now no time to waste, time to kick-off with megalomanic plan number one:
Make Holland Great Again With: The Dutch mountain
Before you came here you probably knew about the weed, tulips, rain and this:
Basic image of people when they think of the Dutch scenery
This country here is a flatter than flat country with the exception of Maastricht and it’s surroundings – which we didn’t even want in the Netherlands in the first place. Sadly our flatness prevents us from going on a ski-vacation in the Netherlands or organising a cycling event with a decent mountain (no, the ‘Vaalse heuvel’ is not a proper mountain you Limburgians).
Since we just couldn’t stand the stupid Swiss with their mountains and cheese-fondues (should have been a Dutch invention as well) people immediately jumped on the band wagon of the Dutch Mountain idea by journalist Thijs Zonneveld.
Een foto die is geplaatst door DutchReview (@dutchreview) op
Yes, that image is correct! The idea was for a 2000 meter mountain right there in the middle of the Netherlands. Besides being downright awesome, it would also serve as a much needed ski-ing and mountain-biking area.
Thankfully, instead of just building it when Thijs launched the idea, some people felt it was necessary to do some calculations as to whether it was actually possible to build. Turns out that we would have experienced a mid-Holland implosion due to the ridiculous weight of the thing. Besides which, the whole thing was going to cost like 7 jillion gulden (yes, GULDEN, we’re not gonna make Holland great again with the stupid euro).
Scientists said the whole thing might be a better idea to build it off the coast, but even then it would be unfeasible. So with this information Thijs Zonneveld and the rest of the Netherlands had to put the plans for a decent mountain in the koelkast.
Make Holland Great Again With: New Islands
This a small country with some dirty spots and we Dutch people just connived a plan to solve both. Just northeast of Amsterdam, the Netherlands has come up with the ingenious solution of building a string of new islands while at the same time cleaning up the polluted lake.
They’ve called it the Marker Wadden (after the Wadden islands that lie just off the country’s northern coast) and these new islands are being created while you are reading this Napoleonic-complex-filled-article.
The new four square kilometre site will not only mean more landmass for the Dutch (#MakeHollandGreatAgain!) but it will also mean a severe improvement for the sea life and bio-state of the Markermeer. Once created, the island on itself will ‘collect’ more land from the sediment and sand and such.
The Markermeer’s history as a lake is a relatively short one. Until 1932 it was part of the Zuiderzee, a shallow, brackish bay feeding straight into the North Sea, albeit partly sheltered by a string of islands.
Then in 1932 the Afsluitdijk was constructed and the Zuiderzee was renamed as the Ijsselmeer on account it being not a sea anymore. Back then they really knew how to make Holland great because after that the Dutch created Flevoland, the 12th province of our country – which can shamefully proclaim to have some of the ugliest cities of the Netherlands.
Make Holland Great Again With: Schiphol in the Sea
Every true Dutchmen loves Schiphol. From the moment when one lands at our national airport and sees the cheesy cheese shops, the murderous Dutch efficiency with luggage-transferring and the swarms of shady illegal-cab drivers at the entrance a Dutchman knows he’s thuis.
Who doesn’t choke up when they see the giant Heineken cans? Such beauty (source: wikipedia/CC)
Every decade or so the Dutch decide that one Schiphol just won’t do, and the grand plan of Schiphol in the Sea is reintroduced again.
The plan would literaly put an airport on the sea, and to be fair it does have certain advantages. No one will be bothered by the noisy overflying airplanes and the North Sea is considerably less densely populated than the rest of this small country.
In 2007 construction companies Haskoning and Van Oord, came up with such a plan once again (totally not because they want to make money) and they proposed rotating, floating landing strips.
The Ministry of Transport had already concluded in 2003 that a second national airport was hellacrazy and mucho expensive, after Schiphol and the TU-Delft originally came up with the idea of Schiphol at sea in 1997.
The parameters under which the plan is reintroduced are always the same. Schiphol is getting too small for our ambitions, and the plans always come when economic tide is at its highest in the Netherlands and we’ve got money to burn. And the reason why this doesn’t happen is the same as well: just too expensive when our economy isn’t flourishing anymore. The last plan was introduced more than a decade ago, so we should be seeing the latest iteration of the plan soon.
Well at least we might have a new touristic attraction:
Nonetheless, the Schiphol in the Sea plan is a great example on how to make Holland great again in the future!
Of course the Dutch don’t always succeed at everything they do – in fact sometimes they downright fail. What do you think of these plans to #MakeHollandGreatAgain? Got any suggestions? Let us know in the comments below!
Feature Image: Public Domain/Wikipedia Originally published 24th October 2016. Updated September 2019.
What the Rijksmuseum is to Amsterdam is what Museum de Lakenhal is to Leiden. Museum De Lakenhal is the visual arts, history and crafts museum of the city of Leiden. It is a understated yet striking building that faces the Oude Singel, a beautiful canal in the heart of Leiden – just a minute or two from the DutchReview office. Located in a gorgeous national monument and reopened to the public by King Willem-Alexander in June 2019 after undergoing years of renovation; you can understand that we really needed and wanted to share what a visit to the Lakenhal is like.
What’s there to see at the Lakenhal in Leiden?
The museum has something for everyone to enjoy. Whether you’re interested in renaissance art, Rembrandt, contemporary sculptures or pretty buildings – it has it all! It’s a pretty special place to visit as it highlights Leiden’s rich history and has many enticing displays a range of art. Some of the more coveted pieces of art such as The Last Judgment, which tower over you as you stand beneath it, are awe-inspiring and worth a visit in and of themselves!
The Last Judgment by Lucas van Leyden. Photography by Ronald Tilleman
So, do you want to know about this fascinating building and the art it boasts? Then read on to learn all about the renovation of Museum de Lakenhal and the artistic decisions.
The museum building is interesting in and of itself
The old museum
Having to learn about the history of a building may be akin to grandparents who begin a story with “back in MY day…” and proceed to explain how much has changed since they were young (and things were so much better). But if we get over the initial eye-roll there can be so much valuable information to learn.
The building was constructed in 1640 by the famous architect Arent van ‘s-Gravesande and was used as the Leiden cloth administration hall for many years. The fabric was exported all over the world and gained Leiden international success during the Dutch Golden Age. Many debates were had and decisions contested; it must have been a lively affair indeed!
At the end of 2009, Leiden found funding and began building a new part of the museum which faces onto the Lammermarktplein. The key focus of this renovation was to create unity within the building by linking the new and original architecture. The original front of the building is still completely intact which is pretty amazing. The inside has changed over time.
Outside of the museum. Photographer – HCVAPainting of original building and photo of building after renovation. Photo by Abuzer van Leeuwen
The Renovation of De Lakenhal: A perfect mix of classic design and new construction
The Lakenhal of 2019 is a prime example of a renovation of an old classy building done right. One minute you’re walking through rooms built 300-400 years ago and the next you are entering an exhibition room that was opened in 2019. The difference is noticeable but blended tastefully together.
The beautiful new entry of De Lakenhal where our journey starts. (Source: LM/ Karin Borghouts)
Museum De Lakenhal boasts a range of both old and contemporary art. Flitting between old and new art makes history recognisable in the here and now and certainly gives pause for thought.
Kavana from DutchReview admiring the art. Photograph by Freya Sawbridge
A café and museum shop were also built during the renovation so having a gander in the shop or getting a bite to eat is a nice way to break up the experience. Lectures and other events are also intended to take place in the new auditorium which seats 120 people.
The Leiden connection of De Lakenhal
Museum De Lakenhal more or less only displays art that has a connection to Leiden. This involves paintings of Leiden, artists who were born or taught in Leiden and artwork that tells a story about Leiden. For many museums in the world this would normally be a limiting factor to their awesomeness, but not in Leiden – which has been culturally buzzing for 400 years and is the birthplace of somebody like Rembrandt (and yes, they do have some Rembrandts at the Lakenhal).
With this in mind, from the extensive collection of around 23,000 objects, art was chosen on the basis of the following seven key themes:
1.The Siege and Relief of Leiden
2. Leiden as the birthplace of the Golden Age
3. Leiden University City
4. Devotion in the Middle Ages
5. Renaissance
6. Seven centuries of Leiden cloth
7. Collectors in the 18th centuries modern age
In the renewed museum, visitors come face to face throughout the building with current works of art from Leiden or international artists. So there is modern and contemporary art including but not limited to artists like Marlene Dumas, Atelier van Lieshout, Erwin Olaf and Eric van der Schalie.
DutchReview crew admiring the ‘spectacles pedlar’ by Rembrandt. Photograph by Abuzer van Leeuwen
The dedicated modern art section should not to be overlooked
With loads of terrific pieces from some of the finest Dutch masters on display it’s easy to forget that De Lakenhal is more than just that. The museum is home to many modern art pieces and often puts these on display. The curators make an effort to pair modern art with old art to emphasise the fluidity between past and present. Such as the following photo:
The sculpture of the man propping up the wooden cross is entitled “preparations” by artist Roy Villevove and is among the collection of 16th-century religious triptychs by Lucas van Leyden and Cornelis Engebrechtsz. It is quite a bold (and some would even say controversial) placement but nonetheless intriguing.
Here’s King Willem Alexander checking out a couture dress made with Leiden fabric. Photograph by Monique Shaw
The dress pictured above was commissioned by fashion designer Edwin Oudshoorn. He was challenged to create a brand new fabric based on old crafts and new techniques. Oudshoorn was inspired by the elegant collection of Amphora pottery. The dress is accented with Swarovski diamonds and detailed with beads, raffia, sequins, tulle and colourful prints.
The dress is based in the Nieuw Leids Laken which aims to bring the textile industry back to life and educate people about the booming trade of a bygone era in Leiden.
The Free Leiden Art Tour
Each year on the last weekend of September, the museum hosts a Leiden Art Tour. For the 25th time, people will be privy to behind the scenes art and professional artists at work. This tour is free to the public and will take you on a journey of the museum, galleries, artist’s initiatives and is punctuated with fun activities and unique exhibitions along the way.
Worthwhile temporary exhibitions
The ‘Museum in Transition’ room
From 2016 to 2019, Karin Borghouts, who specialises in photographing architectural locations and interiors, documented the rebuilding process at Museum De Lakenhal with her camera. This room is unique and the photographs of rubble, deteriorating walls and demolition are really detailed and intriguing.
Karin strolled through the museum on countless occasions, trying to capture powerful moments of demolition. Whilst doing so she rediscovered historical details and the building chaos, as well as more unassuming details.
This exhibition will be displayed until September 29, 2019 (hurry!)
Photos of the museum in transition. Photograph by Karin BorghoutsCapturing the demolition. Photograph by Karin Borghouts
The young Rembrandt exhibition
The Young Rembrandt “Rising Star” exhibition will open on November 2, 2019. This exhibition showcases the wonderful work of Rembrandt he produced between 1624 and 1634. The spectacular, rapid development of that talent can be read from work to work in those first ten years. He never opted for paths that have already been explored and he was always searching for new insights and possibilities. He was a true explorer and innovator. In the first ten years, Rembrandt laid the foundation for his later work. That foundation led to Rembrandt’s great fame and greatly contributed to the character of Dutch painting in the 17th century.
Three pieces at Lakenhal the DutchReview Crew enjoyed
We were lucky enough to get a private tour of the fantastic new museum. Here were three of DutchReview’s favourite pieces of art
How a newspaper is made
This giant stained glass piece of art illustrates the stages of producing a newspaper. This was particularly pertinent to us at DutchReview! I think we sat here for a long time.. It is definitely worthwhile to check it out
DutchReview crew gazing at this wonderful stained glass art. Photograph by Abuzer van Leeuwen
Seven centuries of Leiden cloth
On permanent display in the museum is the old inspection room where the cloth would be scrutinised and inspectors in the Cloth Hall would make sure that real pigments were used to dye the cloth. Nicole Roepers, curator of contemporary art at the museum, told Leidsch Dagblad “there was sometimes cheating with charcoal, for example, but when the fabric was cooked, the cheaters fell through the basket. The industry also brought child labor and environmental pollution”
In this room is a wonderful sculpture by Atelier Van Lieshout that represents the interworkings between man and machine and pays tribute to the arduous working conditions people endured in Leiden’s cloth making industry.
Seven Centuries of Leiden Cloth by Atelier Van Lieshout
Oil paintings by Jan Wolkers
Jan Hendrik Wolkers was a Dutch author, sculptor and painter. He is sometimes referred to as one of the “Great Four” writers of post-World War II Dutch literature. His vibrant paintings, constructed from small paintstrokes hang just beneath the stairwell in Museum de Lakenhal. Wolkers was inspired by the colours of nature on Texel. It is hard to capture the detail of the paint strokes but Wolker’s pieces are very impressive!
So what are you waiting for? Head along to this fantastic museum and come out as an art pro! It is open from Tuesday to Sunday 10am – 5pm and welcomes anyone and everyone whether you’re from Leiden, Europe or another country!
Have you already got your Museum de Lakenhal fix? Do not fear! Leiden has 13 other great museums to visit and so many delicious cafes and bars you can ponder all art knowledge once you’re done.
There’s a big chance that you’ve already seen Eye Filmmuseum, it’s that eye-catching building right across the river IJ north of Amsterdam. Over 700,000 people per year visit the architectural highlight, but surprisingly there are still some people who have not paid a visit to the iconic building.
The Eye Filmmuseum is a stunning ferry ride from Amsterdam Central Station. Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
Is it a movie-theater? A movie museum? A bar? What’s happening there and should I visit?The answers to those questions are: yes, yes, yes, tons of stuff and here are six reasons why you should definitely take the time to visit Eye Filmmuseum.
#1 It begins with a sweet ferry ride
For the regular Dutch folk who have to make the trip everyday it can be a bit of a nuisance, but if you’re new in a town it’s always a great experience to hitch a fare on a free ferry. Exit the Central Station, walk up to the river and take any of the two ferries on the right (do not take the farthest left one, that take you to the NDSM-werf).
It’s free, you can take your bike, and it only takes 3 minutes. That’s just enough time to get your mind prepared for some mesmerising movie experiences.
#2 Eye’s Architecture is awesome
You’ve got to admit that the architecture of Eye Filmmuseum is really something. It’s only been open since 2012, but it already feels its been there forever. The building was conceived by a Vienna based firm called Delugan Meissl Associated Architects and it perfectly dances that fine line between impressing, imposing and inviting.
On the inside it’s equally impressive with loads of great use of glass, wood and cinema-references. Check out their view of the IJ, not only is it very nice but they also did a play on the black bars of the movies. See?
Like something out of a movie. Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
And all that nice architecture really plays well with those kick-ass exhibitions they have going on.
#3 Eye Filmmuseum has awesome exhibitions
Being home to the museum of the moving picture, Eye can almost always boast having 2 exhibitions going on at the same time: a permanent one and a temporary one.
The permanent one has a whole bunch of nice features. There was one set where you can have yourself star in a few short films thanks to the movie-magic that is the green screen. What makes it really special is that Eye will, without significant cost or effort, mail you a link to the movie. Free souvenir!
Here’s a pic, the movie was too embarrassing for me to share:
Fancy being a movie star? Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
Or chill in one of the mini-cinema Pods and watch a movie from the EYE’s fantastic collection (their curating is really classy). I can really recommend some of the Haanstra movies on the better old days in the Netherlands.
I also watched a movie of Rotterdam before the bombing in 1940, really breathtaking. It would have been easy to spend a day at this museum (if you’re a student with nothing to do I would highly recommend it!)
Look who was also in the pod. Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
There’s also a bit of a rather hypnotic room where they project all kinds of movies from iconic genres on the walls. This 360 degrees room brings you some of the best classic scenes in an original way, and no worries for the non-Dutch speakers – both English and Dutch are used to explain everything.
Stacks to explore. Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
Besides all of this there are tons of classic cameras, projectors and devices with names as the phenakistoscope, the praxinoscope and the thaumatrope on display. Try pronouncing those names after going to the bar!
Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
Eye also has some kind of temporary exhibition going on for 50 weeks of the year. Check their website for their latest and greatest!
#DutchLife. Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
#4 You can see a movie
This one is a no-brainer. Eye has 4 in-house cinemas, ranging from a large +300 seater to a classy old-timey movie theater. It’s more appealing than visiting the regular cinema in the city for a variety of reasons. Loads of movies which are screened at EYE are art-house movies or classics, so some movies aren’t to be found anywhere else on the big screens in the city.
A sizeable amount of the (Dutch) movies are also shown with English subtitling, so you can finally see a Dutch movie and catch all the lines! Here’s their schedule, better bookmark it ?
And then there are the different screen sizes for the purists among us. They try to get it all the variables right at Eye, such as that time when they showed Tarantino’s Hateful Eight in the intended 70mm version.
#5 That bar is must-visit
Did I mention already that the building is mostly is free of admission? And that’s a good thing because it has an iconic bar-restaurant with just the best views of the IJ and all it’s river-life passing by.
Dem views though. Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
During the more sunshiney-periods in the Netherlands their terrace is open for business, perfect for grabbing a beer and just sittin’ on the dock of the bay watching the tide roll away.
#6 The gift shop is to die for
Yes, normally the gift shop is that annoying place where you just end up buying something ridiculous for your mom which is actually made in China. But you will get lucky with the gift shop here because the merchandise that comes with the field of classic movies is just epic. I’ve browsed the shop for a good half an hour, and just so many original and nifty items are sold there. Perfect gifts (for yourself) and for the non-tourist as well can be bought here.
Yes, thats original Return of the Jedi soundtrack on LP there! Image: Abuzer van Leeuwen
More on the opening hours, tickets and all that jazz can be found here.
Have you been already to Eye Filmmuseum? What did you think of it?! Let us know in the comments below!
Feature Image: Eye Filmmuseum Netherlands/Supplied This article was originally published in January 2017. We updated it for your reading pleasure in September 2019.
Canadian department store Hudson’s Bay will be shutting shop in the Netherlands by the end of this year, reports NOS. After having been open for just over two years, they will be closing down all 15 branches in the country.
There have been rumours going around that this would happen for a while now, but they never confirmed it. The 1400 people who work for them in the Netherlands got word this afternoon. “We have also seen retailers in the past who pulled the plug and had themselves declared bankrupt. The employees are then left empty-handed,” said Jacqueline Twerde of the trade union CNV Vakmensen.
But they’re going to do the right thing and make sure the employees get a severance payment. This plan will include people who have been working for them for less than two years where they will get reimbursement. They can apply for other jobs in the coming months. Hudson’s Bay wants to aid them in this by organising a job market for them.
Hudson’s Bay in Leiden, the Netherlands. Image: Abuzer van Leeuwan
People already know that things were going downhill for Hudson’s Bay, especially in its European branches. They suffered a major loss of 317 million euros last quarter. 47 million euros of this loss was at its European stores. So people had an inkling that things were not going so well for them. They didn’t reveal how much of this loss was in the Netherlands, but clearly things were bad.
Are you sad to see Hudson’s Bay go? Were you a frequent shopper there or does this not affect you? Let us know in the comments below!
If you’re on the morning commute right now, struggling to stand for the whole journey because there are no more seats available to sit down, then you will definitely appreciate this news. There are long-term plans by the public transport sector to handle the growth of train passengers.
The latest figures show us that the number of passengers has grown by 4.6%. With growth rate increasing fast, the officials are saying that it will not be possible to extend the timetables and trains from 2027, reports NOS.
According to Roger van Boxtel, the NS chief executive, the Dutch need more trains, and they need them quick! “Now that the rail ceiling is approaching early, we urgently need more capacity to be able to run more trains,” he explained. “NS is, therefore, arguing, together with other transport companies, that the budget for ProRail should be made available sooner to resolve bottlenecks in the infrastructure for 2027.”
Therefore, for these plans, they are asking for 20 billion euros in total to be allocated from 2020 to 2040. According to RTL News (RTLNieuws), this was seen on a wishlist that The Telegraaf (De Telegraaf). They believe that if these plans are executed well, then train traffic will be running smoothly even after 2030.
What’s on their proposal?
The money will be allocated and budgeted so that it’s spent on getting the rail network in order, maintenance, eliminating bottlenecks, and to make more space available. It might include a sooner introduction of trackless driving into the railway network. Introduction of these trains will mean faster and more frequent international connections, according to a ProRail manager.
They also want to extend the North/South line in Amsterdam to Schiphol. A representative of the airport said that they’re all on board for this plan as this would relieve a lot of the traffic pressure on the train station.
They also want to improve “light rail connections between cities” so that they run at least 12 times per hour. The Utrecht-Arnhem line and bottlenecks like Venlo and Den Bosch will be on their list of tracks to focus on.
What do you make of these plans? Do you think they will indeed get 20 billion euros? Do you think they’re enough to tackle the problem? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
