More features:

• Dutch courage

  
  Michael Caine perhaps said it best in the third installment of the Austin Powers film trilogy when he said: ‘There are two kinds of people I can't stand in this world....

• Gare du Nord

  
  Music brings people together from all over the world. The Netherlands has multiple musical traditions, varying from contemporary Dutch popular music (this style is sung in both Dutch and English) and more traditional Dutch music called Levenslied (songs about life)....

• Bitter… balls?

  
  The name bitterballen, or bitter balls, conjures up all kinds of images and not entirely wholesome ideas from sour edibles hardly fit for consumption to a sex toy you might find in the Red Light district....

• Space oddity

  
  If you fly KLM frequently and have collected plenty of air miles, you can soon exchange them for a rather unusual outing....

• Empty farms, crowded cities

  
  The Dutch countryside is depopulating rapidly. Despite the fact that Holland's general population continues to grow each year and that 16....

• Liquorice and cheese

  
  When Dutch people travel abroad they are great promoters of traditional Dutch products. More than 50% ...

• Amsterdam calendar of events

  
  Here's what's going on in Amsterdam this winter. New Wave icons Echo & the Bunnymen will perform at the Paradiso on January 21....

• Dutch crooners

  
  Hang out in local Amsterdam pubs long enough, as we have, and you’ll come across a deep, dark Dutch secret....

• Crisis? What crisis?

  
  Of the 12.6 million Dutch who went on holiday last year, almost half chose to spend time in their own country....

• Enemy of the state

  
  The Netherlands and water have always been intricately and permanently linked. Because large parts of the country are below sea level, its inhabitants have been fighting floodwaters for as long as anyone can remember and this has resulted in an ingenious hydrological system....

• Waste not, want not

  
  On average, Dutch consumers throw away 20% of the food they buy in supermarkets and shops. Thankfully, a website has been launched that strives to tackle this problem: www....

• Dutch gifts (1)

  
  Dutch national football team shirts:The orange jersey was already popular in the 1970s when the Netherlands finished in the World Cups of 1974 and 1978 as runners up....

• A step behind the Scandinavians

  
  The Scandinavian countries of Finland, Sweden and Denmark top the list of the 'Happiest Consumers' in Europe, while the Netherlands was ranked just below them in fourth place....