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netherlands | destinations


De Zwaluw windmill in Friesland


FIVE MINUTE GUIDE: FRIESLAND


• ABOUT: Friesland is the northernmost and largest of the 12 provinces of the Netherlands at 2,220sq miles and much of it is below sea level. The area has its own unique character. It has its own language, Frisian, the second official language of the Netherlands. It also has its own sports: skûtsjesilen, sailing on former freight ships; fierljeppen, jumping across a canal with a long pole; and kaatsen, a ballgame similar to tennis but without bats. Many festivals are held across the province year- round, including an artistic lights projection festival in February, a classic car festival in June and a food festival in September.


• WADDEN ISLANDS: Just off the north coast of Friesland in Noord Holland (North Holland) is the UNESCO World Heritage


Site of the Wadden Sea, home to the eight Dutch Wadden Islands. Five of these are inhabited, with the largest being Texel, (pronounced ‘tessel’), which has a population of around 13,500 and is a popular place for day trips for walking and cycling. Attractions include the Maritime Museum and Beachcombers Museum. The other islands are Vlieland, Terschelling, Ameland and Schiermonnikoog. The islands are reached by ferry from Den Helder.


• MUD FLAT WALKING: Wadlopen (mud walking) is a popular activity with thousands of visitors who don knee-high Wellington boots (available from tour companies) and take walking tours from the mainland to the Wadden Islands across the seabed, which is exposed at low tide. Walks start from one of the many dykes along


the coastline, crossing the salt marshes, which are knee to waist deep in mud, then over the seabed to the islands. The walk offers views of the stark beauty of the area and wildlife, with seabirds such as oystercatchers, lapwings and black-headed gulls, plus jellyfish and seals along the way.


• FOOD: Food in the Netherland’s north centers around hearty meat and potato dishes and bready comfort food. Savoury Frisian dishes include broeder, a boiled buckwheat pudding; spekdikken, miniature pancakes with bacon; mosterdsoep, mustard soup made with cream, butter and leeks; and eierbal, like a Dutch scotch egg. Many meals are accompanied by roggebrood, a moist, dense rye bread. Sweet treats include pannekoeken, large, thin pancakes with cheese, apples or raisin


fillings; wentelteefjes, similar to French toast; and groninger koek, a rye gingerbread cake often eaten for breakfast.


• TOWNS AND CITIES: Friesland has 11 cities, all connected by canals. Leuuwarden is capital of the area, with about 100,000 inhabitants. It’s a lively city with shopping, night clubs and many arts. A long-distance ice-skating event, Elfstedentocht, is held in winter and when the ice is thick it’s possible to skate between all 11 towns. Highlights of some of the towns include boating and visiting the Frisian lakes from Sneek, seeing the tree-lined gardens along the canal side in Ijlst, exploring the 17th-century ramparts and canons in Sloten, and enjoying pottery and the art museum of Dutch artist Jopie Huisman in Workum.


Worldwide Destination Guide 2023/24 | ASTA | 431


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