Leisure activities of the Dutch

People work on average no more than 40 hours a week and they get at least five-weeks of holiday each year. They value their spare time and it seems that the historical Calvinistic values of the Dutch are almost forgotten. People tend to spend more time with their friends and family, engaging in sports, travelling and enjoying good food and drinks. Gezellig is a unique Dutch noun used to describe quality time with one’s family or intimate friends in a cosy environment.

Sports

The Netherlands is one sport-happy country. About 7 million Dutch engage in some form of sport activity so much so that there are thousands of sports club in the Netherlands with a total membership of about 5.7million. The Dutch love to participate in football, ice skating, cycling, tennis, swimming, gymnastics, volleyball, hockey, golf and handball. But the more popular sports are as follows:

Football Football is the Dutch national game and the Dutch are football fanatics. The National football team competes in the World Cup and produces world class players such as Ruud Gullit and Dennis Bergkamp. Passion for football is immensely high, the national football association KNVB, counts a million members making it the country's largest sporting organization. 

The Dutch Football Team

Thousands of Dutch soccer fans rooting for their soccer team before the Euro 2008

Skating

Ice Skating is another popular sport in the Netherlands. Thousands of people hit the ice skating rink when the country's lakes freezes over. However when the lakes are not frozen, there are dozens of ice rinks with Olympic size tracks and areas for figure skating. The most famous skating event is the Friesland's 220km long Elfstedentocht or Eleven town tour. It is not just a favourite past time of both the young and old but also a professional sport in the Netherlands. The Dutch has won nine medals of three were gold in the 2006 winter Olympics in speed skating. 

At the Kinderdijk canal in the Nederlands with thousands of joyous ice skaters who descended on the frozen canal

Cycling

The Dutch love to cycle, for leisure and pleasure as well as get from A to B. Around 70% of the Dutch take their bicycle on a recreational day trip.

Tennis

Tennis is also another popular sport in the Netherlands. With 700 000 members in their tennis association, it is the second largest sporting organization in the country.

Arantxa Rus, Dutch Women's tennis player

Festivals & Events in Netherlands 

There are many festivals in Netherlands ranging from music to dance to film to bizarre festivals such as the Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam. However, I have chosen several festivals that were more interesting.

Amsterdam roots festival: This festival targets music enthusiasts as it seeks out and presents new forms and new acts within the massive range that world music offers. Fans can sample the great variety and richness of music from around the globe, absorbing and learning from other cultures.

Amsterdam Stilleto Run: The stilleto run is a bizarre race whereby racers compete in a race over a distance of 100 metres. The catch is that racers have to wear at least 9cm in height heels.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-LXwb-Le0A

Holland Dance festival: It is the largest Dance festival that is hosted in Hague every two years since 1987. In every Holland dance festival it strives to showcase the development of modern contemporary dance.

Holland Festival: The country's oldest and biggest extravaganza for theatre, dance, film and pop music and takes place every June. 

North Sea Jazz Festival: A festival in Mid July, in Rotterdam. It is the World largest jazz festival that attracts names from around the planet and a huge crowd.

Smashing Valentine: The Smashing Valentine tournament is an indoor tennis tournament with alliance with the International Gay and Lesbian Tennis Alliance tour. More than 250 gay men, lesbians, heterosexuals, bisexuals and transgender people from the Netherlands, Europe and beyond are taking part. 

Gay Pride Canal Parade: On the first Saturday of August, one of the world's most popular and visually incredible gay parades in the world. It is the only water borne gay parade in the world, with lots of pride showing on the outlandish floats and colorful boats.

Watch this video to have an insight of what the parade really is about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAS7Ia06VqM

Trance Energy: This is a dance event featuring DJs from around the world such as Armin Van Buuren, Tiesto, Above and beyond and etc... It is held once annually at the Jaarbeurs Convention center in Utrecht, Netherlands. It is so popular with the Dutch that the event is usually sold out.

FFWD Dance Parade or Fast Forward Dance Parade happens in Downtown Rotterdam whereby Rotterdam lets down its hair in a big way and turns into one big open air techno club in Early August.

Websites used: 

http://www.2camels.com/festivals/netherlands.php
http://nieuws.nijmegenonline.nl/ffwd-dance-parade-rotterdam/