Rick Steves’ Europe: Going Dutch in Holland’s Polder Country
The Netherlands welcomes the world’s business, but the country is not designed for big shots. Hans explains, “Being ordinary is being prudent. We Dutch say a plant that grows above the grains gets its head cut off. Even our former queen prefers to do her own shopping.”
While Hans and I talk, Marjet skips ahead of us on the beach, collecting shells with the wide-eyed wonder of a 10-year-old. “Cheap souvenirs,” Hans teases. One cliché the Dutch don’t dispute is their frugality. Hans quizzes me: “Who invented copper wire?”
I know that one. “Two Dutch boys fighting over a penny.”
Hans points up the coast at a huge arc of mud shooting up from a ship. “We’re moving mountains of sand and mud to make our dikes stronger against the sea.” The frugal Dutch are, at heart, pragmatic. They spend their money smartly. In this era of global warming and rising sea levels, the Dutch are spending billions to upgrade their dikes and bulk up their beaches to hold back the sea. All this technological tinkering with nature reminds me of a popular local saying: “God made the Earth, but the Dutch made Holland.” They made it, and they’re determined to keep it.
Marjet scuffs through the sand, her pockets full of seashells, her scarf flapping in the wind like a jump rope. Under big, romping white clouds, I think, “Everything’s so ... Dutch.”
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(Rick Steves (www.ricksteves.com) writes European guidebooks, hosts travel shows on public TV and radio, and organizes European tours. This article was adapted from his new book, For the Love of Europe. You can email Rick at rick@ricksteves.com and follow his blog on Facebook.)
©2022 Rick Steves. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
(c)2022 RICK STEVES DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.
