The Netherlands Board Of Tourism & Conventions is launching http://us.holland.com a fully Web2.0 based site, as well as the official launch of the world’s first National Tourism Board in Second Life, www.hollandsecondlife.com.
The new Holland.com is a fully web2.0 based website which offers not just a quick and easy way to find information about travel […]

“You live in Holland, oh you must be smoking a ton of pot” is the typical thing I hear when I tell Canadian friends that I live in Maastricht. And I tell them no, I barely know any Dutch people who smoke. I think pot is more visible in Vancouver than in this snazzy shopping town. But I’m obviously missing something since 1,5 million drug tourists reportedly come through Maastricht every year to buy weed and drive home. [continued…]

Bright pink brochures in hand, thousands of people roamed the streets of Maastricht on May 26th, 27th, and 28th, with only one thing on their minds: modern art! It was the weekend of the 8th annual Kunsttour (ArtTour), and Maastrichters young and old alike enjoyed the displays of cutting-edge art exhibited all around our city. The types of art were diverse, including contemporary art, design, and new media art, but those attending the ArtTour had at least one thing in common: a genuine appreciation for artistic innovation. [continued…]

Ahhh, spring in Maastricht! Outdoor chairs appear at every café, the sun shines, flowers bloom, and Maastrichters head outdoors with gusto. The parks of Maastricht become popular, and populated, once again. This time of year these public spaces have shed their gray winter coats to become sunny green magnets for one and all: dogwalkers, sunbathers, sports players, families, bikers, strollers, readers, writers, and all the rest. [continued…]

Once the heart of Charlemagne’s kingdom, Aachen is now a center of technology and learning. Located in western Germany near both the Dutch and Belgian borders, the city is considered a model for cross-border cooperation.
Read full article: Deutsche Welle, 27 April 2007
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Every year on Koninginnedag (Queen’s Day), 30 April, the Netherlands celebrates the Queen’s official birthday. Street parties and other events are held all around the country. This year in Maastricht, a large “vrijmarkt” (free market) was organised in the StadPark (City park) and many music bands performed for the public. [more photographs…]

Anniversaries are, by definition, special. The 60th birthday of the Genootschap Nederland-Engeland (Netherlands-England Society or GNE) branch in South Limburg, however, was extraordinary. This jubilee, with its rich and entertaining program, will last in the memories of the people who attended it for a long time. [continued…]

One of Maastricht’s most majestic groups of buildings, the Saint Servatius Basilica, became a stunning concert hall for Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Passion according to Saint Matthew” for two consecutive nights on the weekend before Easter. A review by Hector P. Alvarez for Crossroads. [continued…]

What can you do in Maastricht on the second day of Easter after you’ve been to church (for those who go), eaten all you can, caught up with the family and already travelled all around?

Well, there is still one thing which is really worth investigating further while living in the Netherlands. Why, I’m talking about beer of course! Surely everyone here indulges in more than a glass a week of that refreshing and tasty beverage, as a nice start into the evening… [continued…]

It’s spring time again – so what better way to spend our Sunday than on an excursion? That’s why my charming flatmate Joanna and I allow ourselves the pleasure - or set ourselves the task, as you like it – of dedicating our Sunday afternoon energy to such trips. [continued…]

Everyone in Maastricht has seen the Alexander Battalaan near the central train station or rode down the Franciscus Romanusweg on the eastern bank of the Maas river, but how much do we actually know about the people behind these street names? Crossroads presents a list of twenty five famous inhabitants of Maastricht over the course of history. [continued…]

The importance of the city of Maastricht began a long time ago, when the Romans recognized the strategic value of its location and built a settlement here. Nowadays, Maastricht still benefits from this geographical advantage: its nearness to Germany, Belgium and France certainly contributes to give an international image to the city.

Maastricht is often described as a student city, but it also boasts historical and renovated monuments, underground fortifications, Romanesque and Gothic churches, beautiful bridges, museums and theatres, nice city walks, a variety of pubs… but above all shops! [continued…]

“I can certainly say that our delegation has never been so well accommodated at any previous European Council. I am sure that contributed to the success of the summit.”
British Prime Minister John Major, December 1991 [continued…]

In the Emperor’s Room of the council chambers in Rothenburg on the Tauber, there used to hang a painting, three metres high and six metres wide, representing rebels from Liège besieging Maastricht in 1408. [continued…]

Two visions of Europe at the Spaans Gouvernement Museum, by Hector Pascual Alvarez. [continued…]

A short story by Maastricht’s famous writer Alphonse Olterdissen, especially translated from the Maastricht dialect for Crossroads. [continued…]

I ventured into the centre of Maastricht for opening day of Carnival last Sunday and managed to snap some photos of the colourful party. Here’s just a few of the amazing costumes that were on display. [more photographs…]

When we moved to South Limburg and heard that Maastricht was THE capital of carnival, we were initially more worried than excited.

I had not particularly enjoyed my first encounter with carnival in the Netherlands back in 1992. At the time, my Dutch husband and I lived above a pub in Hoogland, a village near Amersfoort in the centre of the country, and I remember how the stench of stale beer had permeated the air for weeks after the three days of madness. [continued…]

Are you interested in British culture? Or maybe you’d like to meet fellow expats living in South Limburg? Genootschap Nederland-Engeland (Netherlands-England Society) is a Dutch organisation hosting events related to British culture across the Netherlands and it might be just what you’re looking for. [continued…]

During my childhood years in the late 1950’s, carnival didn’t start earlier than one week before Ash Wednesday. Our schoolmaster at the Saint Francis primary school, in the Maastricht district of Nazareth, would set out to teach us the new carnival song in Mestreechs, the dialect of Maastricht. [continued…]

A Cornish Kaleidoscope: 30 good reasons for exploring Britain’s south western peninsula!

A slide presentation presented by Tom Burr and organised by the Limburg branch of the Genootschap Nederland-Engeland (GNE)
Practical information
Price: non-members are welcome at € 3.50 each (students €2.50). There normally is an interval as well as Q-time
Venue: Grand Hotel l’Empereur (opp. the Station), […]

If you have the chance, on a sunny morning, to contemplate the medieval towers of Maastricht from Mount Saint Pieter, you will not find it hard to imagine yourself back in centuries past. [continued…]

Crossroads proudly presents an original short story by Anke Scheeren, a promising young writer from Maastricht. Anke’s imagination was triggered by a sinister event that took place here almost 400 years ago…

De la Court and brother Nottijn had discussed the meaning of life for a while, but now they looked puzzled. They stared into the direction of the Spanish fort in Navagne. [continued]

A couple of weeks ago, I took a city bus from Maastricht to Wahwiller with my boyfriend Emiel and friend Malan. We travelled southeast and got off after about a half an hour. With only rolling green hills in sight, we walked ten minutes up to a beautiful little vineyard. We were about to gather with Emiel’s family, the Huijben clan, to pick the annual crop of green grapes. [continued…]

On a recent afternoon while waiting at a bank in Maastricht, I noticed a couple seated next to me. The man was looking through a Dutch newspaper and suddenly turned to his partner: “It looks like there is some kind of jazz event going on”. I realised that he could not read the paper except for the word “jazz”. [continued…]

Swedish fashion retailer Hennes and Mauritz recently opened a new outlet in Maastricht’s renovated Entre-Deux shopping centre. It held a spectacular fashion show last Saturday afternoon to celebrate the event.

I was lucky enough to arrive just before the end of the free open air show and quickly grabbed my camera! [more photographs…]

Google Earth received a major database update at the end of last week, introducing 15-centimetre resolution for the first time to areas such as the Netherlands and Japan. People can now see the clearest and most detailed aerial imagery of the Netherlands yet.

So here is the latest view of Maastricht via Google Earth. The old fortified city walls can clearly be identified at the bottom right corner of the picture. [continued…]

This article is the second part of “Do you know “A Dog of Flanders“?” by Masaki Takakura published on June 3rd.

I had a strange sense of déjà vu as I entered the cathedral of Antwerp. Although it was my first visit, the subtle gothic decorations on the walls and high ceilings seemed quite familiar. Standing speechless in front of Rubens’ paintings, I felt solemn and yet comfortable. Nello must have felt just the same, I imagined.
The climactic scene of the animation series “A Dog of Flanders” is almost like a common memory to all Japanese. No wonder many Japanese tourists weep for Nello as they think how he must have felt on that fateful Christmas Eve.
But I was surprised to learn that the Japanese are almost the only ones who get so emotional. Why do Belgians or Americans or British tourists not cry in the cathedral of Antwerp? [continued…]

If you ask Japanese people what they know about Belgium, they will probably reply: “Oh yes, beers and chocolates”. But you would notice their somewhat quizzical look, indicating they do not really have a clear image of the country.
Then try this:
“Do you know about Flanders?”
This time their reaction would be different. Their eyes would light up, and nodding strongly, they may start talking about Antwerp, not realising that the city is actually located in Belgium. They may start praising the beauty of its cathedral and to your astonishment, even embark on a precise description of the famous paintings by Peter Paul Rubens which can be admired inside.
Some of them might even begin to cry. By now you would feel totally confused, having no idea what caused them to become so emotional. [continued…]

An oasis of tranquillity on the centuries-old walls overlooking Maastricht’s Stadspark.