Top Ten Fun Facts about the Netherlands! 🙈🌷🌸

Hey guys,

I decided to research some of the best, interesting facts about the Netherlands to see what I could find! Here are my favourite ones:

1. Tulips aren’t native to the Netherlands: The tulip was imported from Turkey in the 16th century. In the 1630s, ‘Tulip Mania’ gripped the country. Prices rose until a single bulb could cost as much as a house, then the industry suddenly collapsed leaving many in economic crisis.
2. The Dutch were the first to develop Fairtrade certification: Growing out of this colonial heritage, the Dutch were the first to develop fair trade certification, launching the Max Havelaar certificate in the 1980s.
3. Home of the orange carrot: Dutch carrot growers developed orange carrots in the 16th century through careful breeding of existing varieties. At the time, carrots were a range of colours, from pale yellow to purple.
4. The Netherlands is the bicycle capital of the world: The Netherlands is home to more bicycles than people, with approximately 18 million bicycles. That’s more than 1 bicycle per person.
5. The Dutch love their coffee:  After Scandinavians, the Dutch are the world’s biggest coffee drinkers. They drink no less than 140 litres of coffee a year on average. That’s 3.2 cups a day!
6. School children who pass their exams celebrate in an interesting way: When Dutch schoolchildren pass their exams, they hang a Dutch flag and a school bag outside their homes.
7. The Netherlands has the highest part-time work rate in the EU: In the Netherlands, four out of ten people work part-time.
8. The Netherlands and Holland are not synonymous: Holland is largely the western coastal region of the Netherlands, comprising of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Haarlem, Leiden and the Hague.
9. The Dutch are really tall: The Dutch are the tallest in the world with an average height of 184 cm for men and 170 cm for women. Some believe its the combined result of DNA and dairy.
10. Due to its flat landscape, they are world experts on keeping back water from the sea and rivers turning Netherlands into an Atlantis: The US government turned to the Dutch for help during the hurricane Katrina disaster.

I hope you enjoyed reading these facts. Let me know what your favourite fact is about the Netherlands below 😄 

-Hope x