0:00:03 > 0:00:06I'm embarking on a new railway adventure
0:00:06 > 0:00:09that will take me across the heart of Europe.
0:00:11 > 0:00:15I will be using this, my Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide
0:00:15 > 0:00:20dated 1913, which opened up an exotic world of foreign travel
0:00:20 > 0:00:22for the British tourist.
0:00:22 > 0:00:27It told travellers where to go, what to see and how to navigate
0:00:27 > 0:00:31the thousands of miles of tracks crisscrossing the continent.
0:00:31 > 0:00:32Now, a century later,
0:00:32 > 0:00:37I'm using my copy to reveal an era of great optimism and energy,
0:00:37 > 0:00:42where technology, industry, science and the arts were flourishing.
0:00:42 > 0:00:48I want to rediscover that lost Europe that in 1913 couldn't know
0:00:48 > 0:00:52that its way of life would shortly be swept aside by the advent of war.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10My guidebook has brought me to the Netherlands.
0:01:11 > 0:01:17In 1913, tourists travelled here to admire the art and architecture
0:01:17 > 0:01:19of the 17th century Dutch Golden Age.
0:01:23 > 0:01:27The appeal of this self-made nation's heritage was now felt
0:01:27 > 0:01:32not just by aristocrats, but by the newly mobile middle class.
0:01:33 > 0:01:38"Holland," says Bradshaw's, "was once an extended swamp.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42"The people owe not only their wealthy and high commercial
0:01:42 > 0:01:48"position, but even the very land, to their own labour and enterprise."
0:01:48 > 0:01:53A century ago, the tourists came to marvel at what had been
0:01:53 > 0:01:56the world's unlikeliest great power -
0:01:56 > 0:02:00a tiny country, substantially reclaimed from the sea,
0:02:00 > 0:02:05had acquired a mighty navy and a global empire.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07It was fiercely independent,
0:02:07 > 0:02:11having once expelled the Spanish who had colonised it.
0:02:11 > 0:02:15But in 1913, as world war threatened,
0:02:15 > 0:02:18the Dutch wondered whether they could keep foreign armies
0:02:18 > 0:02:22at bay as successfully as they held back the waters.
0:02:26 > 0:02:30On this journey, I'll travel through three of the 12 provinces
0:02:30 > 0:02:33that now make up the Netherlands, along the route
0:02:33 > 0:02:35of the country's first railway line.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45Beginning in the largest container port in Europe, Rotterdam,
0:02:45 > 0:02:49my route turns southeast to the windmills of Kinderdijk,
0:02:49 > 0:02:53and then on to the Dutch city of ceramics, Delft.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57From there I'll make for the nation's political capital,
0:02:57 > 0:03:01The Hague, before heading north-east to call at the historic cities
0:03:01 > 0:03:03of Haarlem and Amsterdam.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07I'll finish my journey in Utrecht.
0:03:10 > 0:03:13'Along the way...' This is absolutely terrifying.
0:03:13 > 0:03:15'..I'll get some training in crane driving...'
0:03:19 > 0:03:21I didn't expect that.
0:03:21 > 0:03:22We got a hole in one.
0:03:22 > 0:03:27'..discover a nation that harnessed the wind to conquer the waters...'
0:03:27 > 0:03:3130,000 kilos and I haven't even broken sweat.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34'..and experience gastronomy on the go.'
0:03:34 > 0:03:37I never ate on a tram before
0:03:37 > 0:03:39and I don't think I ever had food like this before.
0:03:39 > 0:03:40Me neither.
0:03:46 > 0:03:51I'm starting my trip in the province of South Holland.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53My first port of call will be Rotterdam,
0:03:53 > 0:03:57which the guidebook tells me is situated on both banks
0:03:57 > 0:04:01of the River Maas about 15 miles from the sea.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05The principal seaport of Holland - half the important trade
0:04:05 > 0:04:08of the country is received here.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12Recent civil engineering work had vastly improved
0:04:12 > 0:04:14the harbour's access to the sea.
0:04:14 > 0:04:18The Dutch, threatened over the centuries by tidal flooding,
0:04:18 > 0:04:22had turned the tables - they had tamed the waters and become
0:04:22 > 0:04:24masters of the high seas.
0:04:29 > 0:04:30As the old saying goes,
0:04:30 > 0:04:35God created the world but the Dutch created the Netherlands.
0:04:38 > 0:04:43And nowhere is that conscientious creativity more evident
0:04:43 > 0:04:45than in the Netherlands' second city.
0:04:46 > 0:04:48After a decade of works,
0:04:48 > 0:04:52the redevelopment of this station was completed two years ago.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02The Rotterdam that would have greeted Edwardian tourists
0:05:02 > 0:05:04has long since vanished.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12After its near total destruction in the Second World War,
0:05:12 > 0:05:15a mere handful of buildings stand today which travellers
0:05:15 > 0:05:18following my guidebook might recognise.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29This, according to my guidebook, is the Grote Kerk,
0:05:29 > 0:05:32or Church Of St Laurence, close to the railway,
0:05:32 > 0:05:39a Gothic brick church dating from 1412 with a tower 210 feet high.
0:05:39 > 0:05:44"After the bombing, it alone stood tall amongst the rubble,
0:05:44 > 0:05:46"a symbol of Dutch defiance."
0:05:52 > 0:05:57My guidebook tells me of Rotterdam harbour's great commercial activity,
0:05:57 > 0:06:00and it seems that some things haven't changed.
0:06:03 > 0:06:05Since the 17th century,
0:06:05 > 0:06:09thanks to its connection to the river Rhine, Rotterdam's docks
0:06:09 > 0:06:15had provided the infrastructure for the vast Dutch maritime empire.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18And, in 1913, the docks were expanding.
0:06:22 > 0:06:26The port of Rotterdam has come a long way since then - literally.
0:06:28 > 0:06:34It now stretches 25 miles from the city centre to the North Sea.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40Hello, Rob, I'm Michael.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43Rob works at the port.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48What an extraordinary scene this is.
0:06:48 > 0:06:52With no human beings - I can't see a human being in the entire scene.
0:06:52 > 0:06:54That's correct, there are no human beings here -
0:06:54 > 0:06:55it's an automated terminal.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58It works with transponders in the ground.
0:06:58 > 0:07:02The AGVs have antennas and they send a signal to the transponder
0:07:02 > 0:07:05and the transponder reacts with its coordinates and the AGV knows
0:07:05 > 0:07:09exactly where it is and where it's going to, so they never collide.
0:07:09 > 0:07:11So it's a very smooth system.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13Even politer than a Dutch motorist.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16Absolutely politer than a Dutchman.
0:07:16 > 0:07:21Every year, an astounding 465 million tonnes of cargo
0:07:21 > 0:07:24pass through these docks,
0:07:24 > 0:07:27making Rotterdam the largest container port in Europe.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32Now, containers - what do they contain?
0:07:32 > 0:07:33Everything.
0:07:33 > 0:07:38Everything you wear, fruit and vegetables, meat, poultry,
0:07:38 > 0:07:41but also iPads, iMacs, smartphones, everything.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44The container is everywhere.
0:07:48 > 0:07:53Nearly 900,000 containers a year are brought to and from
0:07:53 > 0:07:54this port by rail.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57And despite the march of the machines,
0:07:57 > 0:08:01look carefully and you will find a person.
0:08:01 > 0:08:02Nearly 30 metres up,
0:08:02 > 0:08:06I'm getting a chance to test my skills with Ben.
0:08:06 > 0:08:08- Ben.- Hello.
0:08:08 > 0:08:10How do you do?
0:08:12 > 0:08:15Oh, it's a long way down.
0:08:15 > 0:08:17I'd been in a crane before,
0:08:17 > 0:08:20but in practical things, I'm a slow learner.
0:08:20 > 0:08:21Ben, what do we do?
0:08:21 > 0:08:24- You drive.- That's right.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27I'm driving to the right,
0:08:27 > 0:08:28at high speed.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32My God, this is absolutely terrifying.
0:08:34 > 0:08:36You tell me when to stop, Ben.
0:08:36 > 0:08:40I don't speak a word of Dutch - let's hope that's not
0:08:40 > 0:08:42going to be a problem.
0:08:42 > 0:08:43Where are we going now, Ben?
0:08:46 > 0:08:48- Now?- Downstairs.
0:08:48 > 0:08:49- Down?- Yes.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53- Down goes the grab.- Yes.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56- Down it goes.- Downstairs.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58Downstairs, as you put it.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03There we go.
0:09:04 > 0:09:06LAUGHTER
0:09:10 > 0:09:13I didn't expect that.
0:09:13 > 0:09:15We got a hole-in-one. OK.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18- This one here?- No, upstairs.
0:09:18 > 0:09:20Yeah, upstairs.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23Upstairs, sorry, here we go.
0:09:23 > 0:09:27We've got hold of the container and up it comes...
0:09:29 > 0:09:32..and jolly fast. And now we've got the container
0:09:32 > 0:09:34above the level of the train
0:09:34 > 0:09:38and we're going to drop it onto that wagon there, Ben, yes?
0:09:38 > 0:09:40Concentrating like mad here.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42- Is that right, Ben? - Yes, downstairs.
0:09:42 > 0:09:43Yeah, do you think?
0:09:45 > 0:09:46- A bit this way.- Yes.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52Aiming to get those pins exactly in the right place.
0:09:52 > 0:09:54- How are we doing, Ben? - A little bit right.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56A little bit right.
0:09:56 > 0:09:57- Back a bit.- Left.
0:09:57 > 0:09:59A little bit to the left.
0:09:59 > 0:10:01- Downstairs?- Downstairs.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13Another hole-in-one!
0:10:16 > 0:10:18Hole-in-one.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22You're a good teacher, Ben.
0:10:46 > 0:10:50If you think that Rotterdam looks good from the land,
0:10:50 > 0:10:54put 500 horsepower under you and take to the water.
0:11:01 > 0:11:05This water taxi is taking me east along the Nieuwe Maas River
0:11:05 > 0:11:08towards some icons of Dutch innovation
0:11:08 > 0:11:11which the Bradshaw traveller would have been keen to see.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21My guidebook promises, "Thousands of windmills,
0:11:21 > 0:11:23"everywhere in use for drainage."
0:11:24 > 0:11:29Today, some of the finest preserved examples are at Kinderdijk.
0:11:38 > 0:11:42Here it feels like I've walked into a postcard of the Netherlands -
0:11:42 > 0:11:46this is everybody's childhood image of this country.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48I suppose it's worth remembering that these are the machines
0:11:48 > 0:11:51that enabled the Dutch to conquer the water,
0:11:51 > 0:11:55and the people who can do that are capable of almost anything.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Hello, Peter-Paul, it's good to see you.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05Former millwright Peter-Paul helps to maintain
0:12:05 > 0:12:07this UNESCO World Heritage Site.
0:12:12 > 0:12:16After the skyscrapers of Rotterdam, this is really quite a contrast.
0:12:16 > 0:12:20Yes, well, skyscrapers don't have sails.
0:12:20 > 0:12:21Indeed they don't.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24These windmills at Kinderdijk -
0:12:24 > 0:12:26- how many are there?- 19.- 19.
0:12:26 > 0:12:29And these are for drainage?
0:12:29 > 0:12:33Just drainage, yes, just to pump water in different stages
0:12:33 > 0:12:34from the polders out to the river.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36The polder is?
0:12:36 > 0:12:39Is a stretch of land surrounded by a dyke which is lower
0:12:39 > 0:12:43than sea-level, and when it rains we have to pump out the rainwater.
0:12:48 > 0:12:49Thank you very much.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55With half of the Netherlands lying at or below sea level,
0:12:55 > 0:12:58the Dutch first began working together to keep their feet dry
0:12:58 > 0:13:00more than 1,000 years ago.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03What do you have to do to get it started?
0:13:03 > 0:13:06As you can see, the head of the windmill with the sails is pointing
0:13:06 > 0:13:09in that direction but the wind is coming from that direction.
0:13:09 > 0:13:14So we have to turn the head round to the right - 30,000 kilos.
0:13:14 > 0:13:15Wow.
0:13:15 > 0:13:17Well, I'm your man.
0:13:20 > 0:13:22Here we go then.
0:13:25 > 0:13:26Winding the chain.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31This windmill dates from the mid-16th century.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33It's the oldest machine at Kinderdijk
0:13:33 > 0:13:36and has been carefully restored.
0:13:37 > 0:13:42And now we're beginning to move the windmill in the direction
0:13:42 > 0:13:43of the wind.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46And tough work it is too.
0:13:46 > 0:13:48The first part is always the hardest.
0:13:51 > 0:13:53This way you use your weight.
0:13:59 > 0:14:0230,000 kilos,
0:14:02 > 0:14:04and I haven't even broken a sweat.
0:14:04 > 0:14:05That's it.
0:14:05 > 0:14:08But my work's not done yet.
0:14:08 > 0:14:09Here's the sail.
0:14:09 > 0:14:13We untie this and then we'll climb up and put the sail on.
0:14:13 > 0:14:15Sorry, who climbs up?
0:14:15 > 0:14:17You climb up?
0:14:17 > 0:14:18Off you go.
0:14:21 > 0:14:25With all four sails at top speed, this windmill generates
0:14:25 > 0:14:30enough power to move 50,000 litres of water a minute.
0:14:33 > 0:14:35The brace is off.
0:14:39 > 0:14:40Off she starts.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44What a beautiful sight.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14As they conquered the waters with windmills,
0:15:14 > 0:15:18the Dutch put wind in the sails of their ships and extended
0:15:18 > 0:15:22their influence far beyond their own borders.
0:15:22 > 0:15:27The Dutch East India Company was founded in 1602.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30I'm on my way to one of the six cities which raised
0:15:30 > 0:15:35the start-up capital for what might be considered the first
0:15:35 > 0:15:37global corporation in history.
0:15:38 > 0:15:42My next stop will be Delft, which the guidebook describes as,
0:15:42 > 0:15:47"An old-fashioned town with clean canals bordered by lime trees.
0:15:47 > 0:15:52"The pottery was renowned in the 17th and 18th-century."
0:15:52 > 0:15:55Now that involves very intricate work.
0:15:55 > 0:15:59I wonder what made the craftsmen of Delft so deft.
0:16:10 > 0:16:14Throughout the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company
0:16:14 > 0:16:19brought back all manner of goods from the far reaches of the globe
0:16:19 > 0:16:23and generated the vast wealth of the Dutch Golden Age.
0:16:24 > 0:16:26This square in Delft is really a very charming place -
0:16:26 > 0:16:29everywhere little gabled houses,
0:16:29 > 0:16:32higgledy-piggledy, leaning this way and that.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35And all around these soaring towers telling me
0:16:35 > 0:16:39that this city of ceramics must once have been very rich.
0:16:44 > 0:16:48Edwardian tourists would have been familiar with the city's
0:16:48 > 0:16:51most famous product, also known as Delft Blue.
0:16:53 > 0:16:57Blue and white patterned china filled British homes,
0:16:57 > 0:17:00although much of that so-called delftware
0:17:00 > 0:17:03was an imitation made in Britain.
0:17:03 > 0:17:07By 1913, this place was the only pottery left in the city
0:17:07 > 0:17:11where this iconic earthenware was fired and hand-painted,
0:17:11 > 0:17:13and it remains so today.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17Helen Taylor is showing me around.
0:17:17 > 0:17:21Bradshaw's talks about Delft being renowned for pottery
0:17:21 > 0:17:23in the 17th and 18th century.
0:17:23 > 0:17:25Why Delft?
0:17:25 > 0:17:28When the Dutch seamen brought the Chinese porcelain back from China
0:17:28 > 0:17:31and it became very popular in the Netherlands,
0:17:31 > 0:17:34after a couple of decades there was Chinese Civil War
0:17:34 > 0:17:38so we couldn't import the Chinese porcelain any more.
0:17:38 > 0:17:40In Delft there was an ailing brewery industry -
0:17:40 > 0:17:43there were lots of factories empty
0:17:43 > 0:17:46so there was space to make pottery.
0:17:46 > 0:17:49So that's what they started to do.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52And was what the Dutch made here actually porcelain?
0:17:52 > 0:17:55No. As soon as they started to make it here,
0:17:55 > 0:17:56it changed into earthenware.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58And how do you make it?
0:17:58 > 0:18:03This is fluid clay and we pour it into a plaster mould as such.
0:18:03 > 0:18:04If you want to try?
0:18:04 > 0:18:06You have to pour carefully.
0:18:08 > 0:18:09Up to the rim.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12When we leave it for a couple of minutes like a thimble like this,
0:18:12 > 0:18:14a thin crust appears in the mould.
0:18:14 > 0:18:17Pour the remaining clay back into the jug.
0:18:19 > 0:18:20Good?
0:18:20 > 0:18:22And now we just need to leave it to dry.
0:18:22 > 0:18:26I have one I made earlier down here.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29This is just dried clay, and as you can see you can just
0:18:29 > 0:18:33lift the thimbles out because it's shrunk in the mould.
0:18:33 > 0:18:37You see an example of a vase over there which is dried clay.
0:18:37 > 0:18:39And that came out of a mould like this?
0:18:39 > 0:18:40Exactly, yes.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45Each piece is then fired for the first time before it's ready
0:18:45 > 0:18:47to be decorated.
0:18:47 > 0:18:51But this apparently is decorated in black?
0:18:51 > 0:18:54Yes. The black paint consists of pigment cobalt oxide
0:18:54 > 0:18:57and that undergoes a chemical reaction in the oven
0:18:57 > 0:18:59and turns it from black into blue.
0:18:59 > 0:19:00Beautiful.
0:19:02 > 0:19:04A favourite with the Dutch monarchy,
0:19:04 > 0:19:08the factory received its royal warrant in 1919.
0:19:09 > 0:19:13Royal Delft factories' special pieces are hand-painted
0:19:13 > 0:19:16by highly skilled master painters.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18Hello.
0:19:18 > 0:19:20Are you Leo? I'm Michael.
0:19:20 > 0:19:25Leo De Groot has been honing his craft for 38 years,
0:19:25 > 0:19:28and he's going to show me how it's done.
0:19:28 > 0:19:31You place the stencil on the tile.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36We have a bag of charcoal powder here.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40You rub over and it's perforated,
0:19:40 > 0:19:45and those tiny little holes leave a mark like a sketch.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47Press firmly.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49OK. That will do.
0:19:49 > 0:19:53Then we take it off and if we're lucky we see the picture.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55That's lovely.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57We start with a very fine brush.
0:19:57 > 0:20:02Now we're going to trace the lines on the tile.
0:20:09 > 0:20:11Don't push too hard on the brush.
0:20:13 > 0:20:17If you mix the paint with water, you can make some light shades of grey.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21Leo, I have a great sympathy with my subject, so this is really
0:20:21 > 0:20:23a great pleasure.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26But I'm making a bit of a mess, as you can see.
0:20:26 > 0:20:27I know how difficult it is.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29Thank you.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32It's going to look like a train now.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34Well, that's a coincidence, I think.
0:20:34 > 0:20:38Do you think that the Dutch royal family would like to make
0:20:38 > 0:20:42a present of that tile to foreign dignitaries?
0:20:42 > 0:20:43I'm not sure.
0:20:44 > 0:20:45I doubt.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52I think I might be better at riding trains than painting them.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09I'm leaving Delft bound northwards.
0:21:09 > 0:21:14In 1913 this area was at the cutting edge of Dutch rail travel.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21Just five years earlier, the first electrified railway
0:21:21 > 0:21:25in the country connected Rotterdam with Scheveningen via The Hague.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29I'll leave this train at The Hague, which Bradshaw's tells me
0:21:29 > 0:21:32is the political capital of Holland,
0:21:32 > 0:21:35the residence of the queen and the seat of the government.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38"A town of broad and handsome thoroughfares,
0:21:38 > 0:21:41"with stately public buildings and houses."
0:21:41 > 0:21:45Already the sweet smell of power fills my nostrils.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53Bradshaw's tells me that its Dutch name, 's-Gravenhage,
0:21:53 > 0:21:55means "the Count's enclosure".
0:22:00 > 0:22:04Once a hamlet close to the castle of the Counts of Holland,
0:22:04 > 0:22:07it grew to become the political centre of the Netherlands.
0:22:12 > 0:22:15Its heart is the Binnenhof.
0:22:15 > 0:22:17Set on the beautiful Hofvijver Lake,
0:22:17 > 0:22:21this complex of buildings contains the Senate,
0:22:21 > 0:22:24the oldest house of parliament still in use in the world.
0:22:30 > 0:22:32- Eddy, hello.- Good morning.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36Eddy Habben Jansen educates citizens about democracy.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39I'm just thrilled to be amongst this beautiful collection
0:22:39 > 0:22:40of government buildings.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44My Bradshaw's says the Binnenhof is an extensive range of buildings
0:22:44 > 0:22:47dating from 1250.
0:22:47 > 0:22:49That's correct. It was originally built as the castle
0:22:49 > 0:22:53of the Counts of Holland in the middle of the 13th century.
0:22:53 > 0:22:55So how does it go from being the castle to being what is now?
0:22:55 > 0:22:58And particularly associated with parliament?
0:22:58 > 0:23:01When the Republic of the Netherlands was established
0:23:01 > 0:23:05in the 16th century, they needed a neutral place to gather, to meet.
0:23:07 > 0:23:10Having thrown off their colonial masters, the Spanish Habsburgs,
0:23:10 > 0:23:13the Dutch formed a new country that was a loose federation
0:23:13 > 0:23:18of provinces, and each one zealously guarded its autonomy.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22The Hague was the ideal place to meet
0:23:22 > 0:23:24because it was not one of the cities.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27So none of the cities had the advantage of becoming
0:23:27 > 0:23:31the capital city, so it was the perfect neutral ground to meet.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34But the Dutch provinces did recognise the benefit
0:23:34 > 0:23:37of banding together when it came to foreign affairs.
0:23:39 > 0:23:42And on important occasions, political leaders would meet here
0:23:42 > 0:23:45at the Ridderzaal or Knights' Hall.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49Nowadays it hosts the annual state opening of the Dutch Parliament.
0:23:53 > 0:23:57What a glorious building, absolutely stunning.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00This is where the Dutch political system was born actually.
0:24:00 > 0:24:05We have established a tradition of seeking compromise.
0:24:05 > 0:24:09It still plays an important role today in our politics.
0:24:09 > 0:24:11We always have coalition governments of two,
0:24:11 > 0:24:14three or sometimes even more political parties.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17That sounds to me very, very awkward, I'm not sure I'd like that.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19But how does it work here?
0:24:19 > 0:24:22Well, it has been working like this for more than a century
0:24:22 > 0:24:25with a system of proportional representation.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28We're very used to negotiating.
0:24:28 > 0:24:32And what character does that give Holland on the international scene?
0:24:32 > 0:24:35In the 19th century and until the Second World War,
0:24:35 > 0:24:38the Netherlands was always neutral in international politics.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42So this made it an ideal place for International Peace Conferences.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45Here in this hall we had the Peace Conference of 1907.
0:24:46 > 0:24:50As tensions rose between the major European powers before the outbreak
0:24:50 > 0:24:55of the First World War, the Netherlands protected its economy
0:24:55 > 0:24:59and security by remaining resolutely neutral.
0:24:59 > 0:25:02Yet the Dutch were not mere bystanders -
0:25:02 > 0:25:06in The Hague they twice hosted international negotiations
0:25:06 > 0:25:08on the proper conduct of war.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14But before a third Peace Conference could take place, war broke out.
0:25:15 > 0:25:20And in that total war, those so-called Hague Conventions
0:25:20 > 0:25:22were quickly broken.
0:25:23 > 0:25:28So here we are in The Hague in this really marvellous set of buildings,
0:25:28 > 0:25:33talking about the very ancient origins of your democracy,
0:25:33 > 0:25:36talking about your history of neutrality,
0:25:36 > 0:25:37of moderation -
0:25:37 > 0:25:39do you feel very proud of this?
0:25:39 > 0:25:41I think the Netherlands is proud of it, yes,
0:25:41 > 0:25:44and particularly the city of The Hague which is the city of
0:25:44 > 0:25:47peace and justice where lots of international institutions
0:25:47 > 0:25:49are related to peace and negotiations.
0:25:53 > 0:25:57I'm keen to see more of this worthy city of peace,
0:25:57 > 0:25:59and luckily for me The Hague offers
0:25:59 > 0:26:03an unusual sightseeing experience by rail...
0:26:03 > 0:26:04Watch your step.
0:26:04 > 0:26:06- Hello, fellow lunchers.- Hello.
0:26:06 > 0:26:10'..on board a tram which serves haute cuisine.'
0:26:13 > 0:26:15Would you mind if I join you?
0:26:15 > 0:26:16Yes, of course.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21- This is lovely, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28OK, let me start with a cupcake.
0:26:28 > 0:26:29Good idea.
0:26:35 > 0:26:37- Lekker.- Lekker?
0:26:39 > 0:26:41Delicious, in Holland.
0:26:41 > 0:26:43- Lekker.- Lekker.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45Yeah, everything is lekker.
0:26:50 > 0:26:51That looks amazing.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56So the longer you add the flavour,
0:26:56 > 0:26:58the more flavour this broth will have.
0:26:58 > 0:27:00- Like a tea?- Yes. Enjoy.
0:27:00 > 0:27:02Here we go.
0:27:02 > 0:27:04I never ate on a tram before
0:27:04 > 0:27:07and I don't think I ever had food like this before.
0:27:07 > 0:27:08Me neither.
0:27:08 > 0:27:10- Lekker again?- Yes, again.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16The man behind this magical gastronomy
0:27:16 > 0:27:19is executive chef Pierre Wind.
0:27:19 > 0:27:20Chef.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23My great pleasure. Did you like it?
0:27:23 > 0:27:26I loved the lunch, thank you so much.
0:27:26 > 0:27:27Satisfaction?
0:27:27 > 0:27:29Absolute satisfaction, complete.
0:27:29 > 0:27:33But listen, how do you do it in this tiny kitchen?
0:27:33 > 0:27:36It is really mathematics and a kind of science.
0:27:36 > 0:27:38It's very difficult,
0:27:38 > 0:27:41but the first time is difficult but the second time is easy,
0:27:41 > 0:27:42the same as love.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47I love it, thank you, Pierre.
0:27:47 > 0:27:48Thank you very much.
0:27:48 > 0:27:49- A great lunch.- OK.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51A memorable lunch.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57Next time my Dutch tour continues
0:27:57 > 0:28:01as I root around the world's largest flower auction.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03Tell me there are some rules here, right?
0:28:03 > 0:28:05There are some rules of the road, are there?
0:28:05 > 0:28:07Well, they say they have traffic rules.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10Discover the story of the Dutch Golden Age.
0:28:10 > 0:28:14Amsterdam was the Dubai of the 17th century.
0:28:14 > 0:28:18And tackle a fusion banquet from the age of Empire.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21- OK! Very good, peace.- Thank you.
0:28:21 > 0:28:22Enjoy!