Waterschappen - Waterboards

Dutch water boards, waterschappen, are regional governmental bodies managing water barriers, waterways, water levels and water quality (around 26 percent of the area of the Netherlands is at or below sea level).

These water authorities are among the oldest forms of local government in the Netherlands, some of them having been founded in the 13th century.

With a rich history dating back to the Middle Ages, they are the oldest governing bodies and the oldest democratic institutions in the Netherlands. 

Dutch waterboards housed on buildings called gemeenlands huis have their own coat of arms.

Below photo is from the Gemeenlandshuis of Leiden.

Windmills - Clockwork pumps (..among other things)

Papiermolen (papermills), poldermolen(watermills), graanmolen (grainmills), korenmolen (cornmills),

stellingmolen, standerdmolen, no matter what they are purposed for the internals of a windmill remain the same, 
a series of gears that harvest free wind as source of energy to cut plywood, grind grain but most

importantly keep the polders dry.

Windmills are the quintessential trademark of Dutch practicality and ingenuity.

Zaandam

In the Dutch Golden Age, Zaandam was as a large milling hub. Thousands of windmills powered saws that processed Scandinavian wood for the shipbuilding and paper industries.

Windmills made Zaandam a leading city in the first Industrial Revolution. 

In 1697, Czar Peter I of Russia spent time in Zaandam, where he studied shipbuilding.

Egmond aan zee

Egmond aan zee is a popular seaside resort since the beginning of the 20th century. It's well known for its healthy/clear sea air. 

Hattem - Hanzestad

Hattem in province Gelderland, obtained city rights in 1299 and it is surrounded by gorgeous nature. It is situated in the Veluwe area, well known for the wonderful hikes and cycling routes.

Hasselt - Hanzestad

Hasselt in the Dutch province of Overijssel received city rights in 1252 and became a member of the Hanseatic League around 1350.

Elburg - Hanzestad

Elburg is a municipality and a city in the province of Gelderland. The city was recorded as a member of the Hanseatic League and before the closing off of the Zuiderzee was a prosperous  fishing village with access to the North Sea.

Münster

It was in Münster/Germany where the Peace of Westphalia was signed in 1648.

This agreement ended the "Eighty Years' War" or Dutch War of Independence (1568–1648), a revolt of the Seventeen Provinces of what are today the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg against Spain.

WinterWelVaart - Groningen

On the last weekend before Christmas, the people of Groningen organize the atmospheric WinterWelvaart event.
Groningen with its century old Hanzestad warehouses becomes more photogenic than ever. Intimate concerts, exhibitions, performances and a cozy Christmas market.

Dickensfestijn Deventer

This two-day event has been held since 1991 on the weekend before Christmas in the medieval Bergkwartier in the old Hanseatic sector of Deventer. 

Volunteers play hundreds of characters from the books of Charles Dickens (1807-1870), such as Scrooge, Oliver Twist, Mr. Pickwick, Christmas Carol singers, orphans, drunks, artisans and many other poor and wealthy people. The Dickens Festijn is visited annually by about 120,000 people. There are also many foreign visitors, especially from Germany.

Entrance for the festival is free.

Terschelling - Wadden Sea

Terschelling a.k.a the Pearl of the Wadden sea is famous for its pristine nature and its extensive network of cycling paths. Terchelling is also a Unesco natural reserve of great natural beauty and is part of UNESCO's World Heritage Natural sites. 

Willem Barentsz one of the greatest Dutch navigators and Arctic explorers was born in Terschelling.

Joep Beving, from backyard pianist to Spotify star.

Joep Beving from Gelderland was an amateur Dutch musician until his music got published on Spotify. 

His album Solipsism has already reached 85 million on-line streams.

Dutch youngster takes on the oceans' plastic soup

Boyan Slat from Delft is a young Dutch scientist/entrepreneur who has come up with an innovative solution to clean up the oceans from the 'plastic-soup'.

Netherlands in 26 iconic objects

In 'The Netherlands in 26 iconic objects' Dutch writers are given the task of writing a short text about an object that is quintessentially Dutch. 
From beer bikes to crockets and from garden gnomes to stroopwafels this is a book about everyday objects and how they capture the Dutch mentality. (buy it here)

Maasvlakte 2

Maasvlakte 2 is the latest extension for the Port of Rotterdam. Built on reclaimed land, it's a fully automated container terminal, powered by wind-generated electricity. 

A true engineering marvel!

De Hoge Veluwe National Park

This stunning time-lapse was captured by 22 years old student Rick Kloekke who filmed for a year the change of seasons in Hoge Veluwe National Park.

LoRa van KPN

From Schipol's buggage handling to Rotterdam port's depth sounders and Utrecht's rail switches low-energy and low-data sensors are taking advantage of KPN's IoT LoRa Network.

These sensors generate a massive wealth of data/info that can be used to optimize operations or sense the environment. LoRa started as a pilot in 2015 and went officially live on a national scale this week. 
Milk cows are soon to join the network. Sensors will be sending infologs about their health, performance and whereabouts.

Schiedam

Part of Rotterdam's metropolitan area, the city of Schiedam is the capital of Jeniver (gin) production. Schiedam is how the English and the French call gin. The city was an industrial powerhouse during the 18th and 19th century nicknamed Zwart Nazareth (Black Nazareth) due the smog of surrounding distilleries and glasswork factories. Harr Wiegman created the cartoon character Proosje Van Schiedam in 1975 to mark the 700 years of Schiedam. 

Hugo Grotius

On the left side of Rotterdam's Townhall seats the statue of Hugo Grotius (or Hugo de Groot). Born in Delft, he was a prodigy child that mastered Latin and Greek early at his age. Hugo served as a pensionery (mayor) of Rotterdam in 1613 and he is the founder of International Law.

Dutch courage a.k.a. Jenever

Dutch courage is what English soldiers dubbed the gin-induced bravery they observed on their Dutch peers during the anglo-dutch wars. 
Jenever or Dutch Gin further spread as a spirit of preference after the Dutch Prince William of Orange succesfully invaded England in 1688. This invasion secured the Glorious Revolution and strengthened English parliamentary democracy.