0:00:02 > 0:00:06I'm embarking on a new railway adventure
0:00:06 > 0:00:09that will take me across the heart of Europe.
0:00:10 > 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 > 0:00:21for the British tourist.
0:00:21 > 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 wealth 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 > 0:02:23at 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 > 0:02:36of 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 south-east to the windmills of Kinderdijk,
0:02:49 > 0:02:53and then on to the Dutch city of ceramics, Delft.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56From there I'll make for the nation's political capital,
0:02:56 > 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.
0:03:09 > 0:03:12'Along the way...' This is absolutely terrifying.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15'..I'll get some training in crane driving...'
0:03:17 > 0:03:19LAUGHTER
0:03:19 > 0:03:21I didn't expect that.
0:03:21 > 0:03:22We got a hole in one.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25'..and root around the world's largest flower auction.'
0:03:25 > 0:03:29Tell me there are some rules here, right? There are some rules of the road, are there?
0:03:29 > 0:03:32They say they have traffic rules.
0:03:32 > 0:03:37'Discovering a nation that harnessed the wind to conquer the waters...'
0:03:37 > 0:03:4130,000 kilos and I haven't even broken sweat.
0:03:41 > 0:03:46'..establishing a vast maritime empire which brought
0:03:46 > 0:03:47'all manner of trade...'
0:03:47 > 0:03:50Amsterdam was the Dubai of the 17th century.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53'..ushering in the Dutch Golden Age.'
0:03:59 > 0:04:03I'm starting my trip in the province of South Holland.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05My first port of call will be Rotterdam,
0:04:05 > 0:04:09which the guidebook tells me is situated on both banks
0:04:09 > 0:04:13of the River Maas about 15 miles from the sea.
0:04:13 > 0:04:17The principal seaport of Holland - half the important trade
0:04:17 > 0:04:20of the country is received here.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23Recent civil engineering work had vastly improved
0:04:23 > 0:04:26the harbour's access to the sea.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29The Dutch, threatened over the centuries by tidal flooding,
0:04:29 > 0:04:34had turned the tables - they had tamed the waters and become
0:04:34 > 0:04:37masters of the high seas.
0:04:41 > 0:04:43As the old saying goes,
0:04:43 > 0:04:47God created the world but the Dutch created the Netherlands.
0:04:50 > 0:04:55And nowhere is that conscientious creativity more evident
0:04:55 > 0:04:57than in the Netherlands' second city.
0:04:59 > 0:05:00After a decade of works,
0:05:00 > 0:05:04the redevelopment of this station was completed two years ago.
0:05:11 > 0:05:14The Rotterdam that would have greeted Edwardian tourists
0:05:14 > 0:05:16has long since vanished.
0:05:20 > 0:05:24After its near total destruction in the Second World War,
0:05:24 > 0:05:27a mere handful of buildings stand today which travellers
0:05:27 > 0:05:30following my guidebook might recognise.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41This, according to my guidebook, is the Grote Kerk,
0:05:41 > 0:05:44or Church Of St Laurence, close to the railway...
0:05:44 > 0:05:51A Gothic brick church dating from 1412 with a tower 210 feet high.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55"After the bombing, it alone stood tall amongst the rubble,
0:05:55 > 0:05:58"a symbol of Dutch defiance."
0:06:07 > 0:06:12Since then, the city has become a playground for modern architects.
0:06:14 > 0:06:16Looks like I wore the right colours.
0:06:21 > 0:06:25I wonder how Bradshaw's would describe Rotterdam today.
0:06:31 > 0:06:36My guidebook tells me of Rotterdam harbour's great commercial activity,
0:06:36 > 0:06:39and it seems that some things haven't changed.
0:06:42 > 0:06:44Since the 17th century,
0:06:44 > 0:06:48thanks to its connection to the river Rhine, Rotterdam's docks
0:06:48 > 0:06:52had provided the infrastructure for the vast Dutch maritime empire.
0:06:54 > 0:06:57And, in 1913, the docks were expanding.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05The port of Rotterdam has come a long way since then - literally.
0:07:07 > 0:07:12It now stretches 25 miles from the city centre to the North Sea.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19Hello, Rob, I'm Michael.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22Rob Bagchus works at the port.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27What an extraordinary scene this is.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30With no human beings - I can't see a human being in the entire scene.
0:07:30 > 0:07:33That's correct, there are no human beings here -
0:07:33 > 0:07:34it's an automated terminal.
0:07:34 > 0:07:36It works with transponders in the ground.
0:07:36 > 0:07:41The AGVs have antennas and they send a signal to the transponder
0:07:41 > 0:07:44and the transponder reacts with its coordinates and the AGV knows
0:07:44 > 0:07:48exactly where he is and where he's going to, so they never collide.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50So it's a very smooth system.
0:07:50 > 0:07:52Even politer than a Dutch motorist.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55Absolutely politer than a Dutchman.
0:07:55 > 0:08:00Every year, an astounding 465 million tonnes of cargo
0:08:00 > 0:08:03pass through these docks,
0:08:03 > 0:08:06making Rotterdam the largest container port in Europe.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11Now, containers - what do they contain?
0:08:11 > 0:08:12Everything.
0:08:12 > 0:08:16Everything you wear, fruit and vegetables, meat, poultry,
0:08:16 > 0:08:21but also iPads, iMacs, smartphones, everything.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23The container is everywhere.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31Nearly 900,000 containers a year are brought to and from
0:08:31 > 0:08:33this port by rail.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36And despite the march of the machines,
0:08:36 > 0:08:40look carefully and you will find a person.
0:08:40 > 0:08:41Nearly 30 metres up,
0:08:41 > 0:08:45I'm getting a chance to test my skills with Ben.
0:08:45 > 0:08:47- Ben.- Hello.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49How do you do?
0:08:50 > 0:08:54Oh, it's a long way down! It's a long way down...
0:08:54 > 0:08:56I'd been in a crane before,
0:08:56 > 0:08:59but in practical things, I'm a slow learner.
0:08:59 > 0:09:00Ben, what do we do?
0:09:00 > 0:09:02- You drive.- That's right.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05I'm driving to the right,
0:09:05 > 0:09:07at high speed.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11My God, this is absolutely terrifying.
0:09:12 > 0:09:15You tell me when to stop, Ben.
0:09:15 > 0:09:19I don't speak a word of Dutch - let's hope that's not
0:09:19 > 0:09:20going to be a problem.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22Where are we going now, Ben?
0:09:25 > 0:09:26- Now?- Downstairs.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28- Down?- Yes.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32- Down goes the grab.- Yes.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35- Down it goes...- Downstairs.
0:09:35 > 0:09:37Downstairs, as you put it.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42There we go.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45LAUGHTER
0:09:45 > 0:09:47We got...
0:09:49 > 0:09:51I didn't expect that.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54We got a hole in one. OK.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57- This one here?- No, upstairs.
0:09:57 > 0:09:59Yeah, upstairs.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02Upstairs, sorry, here we go.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06We've got hold of the container... and up it comes!
0:10:08 > 0:10:10And jolly fast. And now we've got the container
0:10:10 > 0:10:12above the level of the train...
0:10:12 > 0:10:15- and we're going to drop it onto that wagon there, Ben, yes?- Yeah.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18Concentrating like mad here.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21- Is that right, Ben?- Yes, downstairs.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23- Yeah, do you think?- Yeah.
0:10:23 > 0:10:25- A bit this way.- Yes.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30Aiming to get those pins exactly in the right place.
0:10:30 > 0:10:32- How are we doing, Ben? - A little bit right.
0:10:32 > 0:10:33A little bit right.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36- Back a bit?- Left.
0:10:36 > 0:10:38A little bit to the left.
0:10:38 > 0:10:39- Downstairs?- Downstairs, yeah.
0:10:43 > 0:10:45Ah...
0:10:49 > 0:10:53Another hole in one! BEN LAUGHS
0:10:53 > 0:10:55MICHAEL LAUGHS
0:10:55 > 0:10:56Hole in one.
0:10:58 > 0:11:00You're a good teacher, Ben.
0:11:25 > 0:11:29If you think that Rotterdam looks good from the land,
0:11:29 > 0:11:34put 500 horsepower under you and take to the water.
0:11:39 > 0:11:44This water taxi is taking me east along the Nieuwe Maas River,
0:11:44 > 0:11:46towards some icons of Dutch innovation
0:11:46 > 0:11:49which the Bradshaw traveller would have been keen to see.
0:11:56 > 0:12:00My guidebook promises, "Thousands of windmills,
0:12:00 > 0:12:02"everywhere in use for drainage."
0:12:03 > 0:12:08Today some of the finest preserved examples are at Kinderdijk.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20Here it feels like I've walked into a postcard of the Netherlands -
0:12:20 > 0:12:25this is everybody's childhood image of this country.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27I suppose it's worth remembering that these are the machines
0:12:27 > 0:12:30that enabled the Dutch to conquer the water,
0:12:30 > 0:12:34and the people who can do that are capable of almost anything.
0:12:37 > 0:12:39Hello, Peter-Paul, it's good to see you.
0:12:39 > 0:12:43Former millwright Peter-Paul helps to maintain
0:12:43 > 0:12:46this UNESCO World Heritage Site.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55After the skyscrapers of Rotterdam, this is really quite a contrast.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58Yes, well, skyscrapers don't have sails.
0:12:58 > 0:13:00Indeed they don't.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03These windmills at Kinderdijk -
0:13:03 > 0:13:05- how many are there?- 19.- 19.
0:13:05 > 0:13:07And these are for drainage?
0:13:07 > 0:13:11Just drainage, yes, just to pump water in different stages
0:13:11 > 0:13:13from the polders out to the river.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15The polder is?
0:13:15 > 0:13:18Is a stretch of land surrounded by a dyke which is lower
0:13:18 > 0:13:22than sea-level, and when it rains we have to pump out the rainwater.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29Thank you very much.
0:13:29 > 0:13:34With half of the Netherlands lying at or below sea level,
0:13:34 > 0:13:37the Dutch first began working together to keep their feet dry
0:13:37 > 0:13:39more than 1,000 years ago.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42What do you have to do to get it started?
0:13:42 > 0:13:45As you can see, the head of the windmill with the sails is pointing
0:13:45 > 0:13:48in that direction but the wind is coming from that direction.
0:13:48 > 0:13:53So we have to turn the head round to the right - 30,000 kilos.
0:13:53 > 0:13:54Wow.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56Well, I'm your man.
0:13:59 > 0:14:00Here we go then.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05Winding the chain.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10This windmill dates from the mid-16th century.
0:14:10 > 0:14:12It's the oldest machine at Kinderdijk
0:14:12 > 0:14:14and has been carefully restored.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20And now we're beginning to move the windmill in the direction
0:14:20 > 0:14:22of the wind.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25And tough work it is too.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27The first part is always the hardest.
0:14:29 > 0:14:32- Ah-ha!- This way you use your weight.
0:14:38 > 0:14:4130,000 kilos,
0:14:41 > 0:14:42and I haven't even broken a sweat.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44That's it.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46But my work's not done yet.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48Here's the sail.
0:14:48 > 0:14:52We untie this and then we'll climb up and put the sail on.
0:14:52 > 0:14:53Sorry, who climbs up?
0:14:53 > 0:14:55- You climb up?- Yeah.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57Off you go.
0:15:00 > 0:15:04With all four sails at top speed, this windmill generates
0:15:04 > 0:15:08enough power to move 50,000 litres of water a minute.
0:15:12 > 0:15:13The brace is off.
0:15:17 > 0:15:19Off she starts.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23What a beautiful sight.
0:15:49 > 0:15:52As they conquered the waters with windmills,
0:15:52 > 0:15:57the Dutch put wind in the sails of their ships and extended
0:15:57 > 0:15:59their influence far beyond their own borders.
0:16:01 > 0:16:06The Dutch East India Company was founded in 1602.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09I'm on my way to one of the six cities which raised
0:16:09 > 0:16:13the start-up capital for what might be considered the first
0:16:13 > 0:16:16global corporation in history.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21My next stop will be Delft, which the guidebook describes as,
0:16:21 > 0:16:26"An old-fashioned town with clean canals bordered by lime trees.
0:16:26 > 0:16:31"The pottery was renowned in the 17th and 18th century."
0:16:31 > 0:16:34Now that involves very intricate work.
0:16:34 > 0:16:37I wonder what made the craftsmen of Delft so deft.
0:16:49 > 0:16:53Throughout the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company
0:16:53 > 0:16:57brought back all manner of goods from the far reaches of the globe
0:16:57 > 0:17:02and generated the vast wealth of the Dutch Golden Age.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05This square in Delft is really a very charming place -
0:17:05 > 0:17:08everywhere little gabled houses,
0:17:08 > 0:17:11higgledy-piggledy, leaning this way and that.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14And all around these soaring towers telling me
0:17:14 > 0:17:19that this city of ceramics must once have been very rich.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27Edwardian tourists would have been familiar with the city's
0:17:27 > 0:17:30most famous product, also known as Delft Blue.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35Blue and white patterned china filled British homes,
0:17:35 > 0:17:38although much of that so-called delftware
0:17:38 > 0:17:41was an imitation made in Britain.
0:17:41 > 0:17:46By 1913, this place was the only pottery left in the city
0:17:46 > 0:17:50where this iconic earthenware was fired and hand-painted,
0:17:50 > 0:17:52and it remains so today.
0:17:53 > 0:17:56Helen Taylor is showing me around.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00Bradshaw's talks about Delft being renowned for pottery
0:18:00 > 0:18:02in the 17th and 18th century.
0:18:02 > 0:18:03Why Delft?
0:18:03 > 0:18:07When the Dutch seamen brought the Chinese porcelain back from China
0:18:07 > 0:18:10and it became very popular in the Netherlands,
0:18:10 > 0:18:13after a couple of decades there was Chinese Civil War,
0:18:13 > 0:18:16so we couldn't import the Chinese porcelain any more.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19In Delft there was an ailing brewery industry -
0:18:19 > 0:18:22there were lots of factories empty,
0:18:22 > 0:18:25so there was space to make pottery.
0:18:25 > 0:18:27So that's what they started to do.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31And was what the Dutch made here actually porcelain?
0:18:31 > 0:18:34No. As soon as they started to make it here,
0:18:34 > 0:18:35it changed into earthenware.
0:18:35 > 0:18:37And how do you make it?
0:18:37 > 0:18:41This is fluid clay and we pour it into a plaster mould as such.
0:18:41 > 0:18:43If you want to try?
0:18:43 > 0:18:45You have to pour carefully.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48Up to the rim.
0:18:48 > 0:18:51When we leave it for a couple of minutes like a thimble like this,
0:18:51 > 0:18:53a thin crust appears in the mould.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56Pour the remaining clay back into the jug.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59Good?
0:18:59 > 0:19:01And now we just need to leave it to dry.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05I have one I made earlier down here.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08This is just dried clay, and as you can see, you can just
0:19:08 > 0:19:12lift the thimbles out because it's shrunk in the mould.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15You see an example of a vase over there which is dried clay.
0:19:15 > 0:19:18And that came out of a mould like this?
0:19:18 > 0:19:19Exactly, yes.
0:19:20 > 0:19:24Each piece is then fired for the first time before it's ready
0:19:24 > 0:19:25to be decorated.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29But this apparently is decorated in black?
0:19:29 > 0:19:33Yes. The black paint consists of pigment cobalt oxide
0:19:33 > 0:19:36and that undergoes a chemical reaction in the oven
0:19:36 > 0:19:38and turns it from black into blue.
0:19:38 > 0:19:39Beautiful.
0:19:41 > 0:19:43A favourite with the Dutch monarchy,
0:19:43 > 0:19:47the factory received its royal warrant in 1919.
0:19:48 > 0:19:52Royal Delft factories' special pieces are hand-painted
0:19:52 > 0:19:55by highly skilled master painters.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57Hello.
0:19:57 > 0:19:59Are you Leo? I'm Michael.
0:19:59 > 0:20:04Leo De Groot has been honing his craft for 38 years,
0:20:04 > 0:20:07and he's going to show me how it's done.
0:20:07 > 0:20:10You place the stencil on the tile.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14We have a bag of charcoal powder here.
0:20:14 > 0:20:19You rub over and it's perforated,
0:20:19 > 0:20:24and those tiny little holes leave a mark like a sketch.
0:20:24 > 0:20:25Press firmly.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28OK. That will do.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31Then we take it off and if we're lucky, we see the picture.
0:20:31 > 0:20:33Ah! That's lovely.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36We start with a very fine brush.
0:20:36 > 0:20:41Now you're going to... trace the lines on the tile.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47HE CHUCKLES
0:20:48 > 0:20:50Don't push too hard on the brush.
0:20:51 > 0:20:56If you mix the paint with water, you can make some light shades of grey.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00Leo, I have a great sympathy with my subject, so this is really
0:21:00 > 0:21:01a great pleasure.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04But I'm making a bit of a mess, as you can see.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06- I know how difficult it is. - Thank you.
0:21:08 > 0:21:10- It's going to look like a train now. - MICHAEL LAUGHS
0:21:10 > 0:21:12Well, that's a coincidence, I think.
0:21:12 > 0:21:17Do you think that the Dutch royal family would like to make
0:21:17 > 0:21:20a present of that tile to foreign dignitaries?
0:21:20 > 0:21:21I'm not sure.
0:21:23 > 0:21:24I doubt.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31I think I might be better at riding trains than painting them.
0:21:45 > 0:21:48I'm leaving Delft bound northwards.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52In 1913, this area was at the cutting edge of Dutch rail travel.
0:21:56 > 0:22:00Just five years earlier, the first electrified railway
0:22:00 > 0:22:04in the country connected Rotterdam with Scheveningen via The Hague.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08I'll leave this train at The Hague, which Bradshaw's tells me
0:22:08 > 0:22:10is the political capital of Holland,
0:22:10 > 0:22:14the residence of the Queen and the seat of the Government.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17"A town of broad and handsome thoroughfares,
0:22:17 > 0:22:20"with stately public buildings and houses."
0:22:20 > 0:22:24Already the sweet smell of power fills my nostrils.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32Bradshaw's tells me that its Dutch name, 's-Gravenhage,
0:22:32 > 0:22:34means "the Count's enclosure".
0:22:39 > 0:22:43Once a hamlet close to the castle of the Counts of Holland,
0:22:43 > 0:22:46it grew to become the political centre of the Netherlands.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54Its heart is the Binnenhof.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56Set on the beautiful Hofvijver Lake,
0:22:56 > 0:22:59this complex of buildings contains the Senate,
0:22:59 > 0:23:03the oldest house of parliament still in use in the world.
0:23:09 > 0:23:10- Eddy, hello.- Good morning.
0:23:10 > 0:23:15Eddy Habben Jansen educates citizens about democracy.
0:23:15 > 0:23:18I'm just thrilled to be amongst this beautiful collection
0:23:18 > 0:23:19of government buildings.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23My Bradshaw's says the Binnenhof is an extensive range of buildings
0:23:23 > 0:23:25dating from 1250.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28That's correct. It was originally built as the castle
0:23:28 > 0:23:31of the Counts of Holland in the middle of the 13th century.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34So how does it go from being the castle to being what it is now,
0:23:34 > 0:23:37and particularly associated with parliament?
0:23:37 > 0:23:40When the Republic of the Netherlands was established
0:23:40 > 0:23:44in the 16th century, they needed a neutral place to gather, to meet.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49Having thrown off their colonial masters, the Spanish Habsburgs,
0:23:49 > 0:23:52the Dutch formed a new country that was a loose federation
0:23:52 > 0:23:57of provinces, and each one zealously guarded its autonomy.
0:23:58 > 0:24:01The Hague was the ideal place to meet
0:24:01 > 0:24:03because it was not one of the cities.
0:24:03 > 0:24:06So none of the cities had the advantage of becoming
0:24:06 > 0:24:09the capital city, so it was a perfect, neutral ground to meet.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13But the Dutch provinces did recognise the benefit
0:24:13 > 0:24:16of banding together when it came to foreign affairs.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20And on important occasions, political leaders would meet here
0:24:20 > 0:24:24at the Ridderzaal or Knights' Hall.
0:24:24 > 0:24:28Nowadays it hosts the annual state opening of the Dutch Parliament.
0:24:32 > 0:24:34What a glorious building, absolutely stunning.
0:24:36 > 0:24:39This is where the Dutch political system was born actually.
0:24:39 > 0:24:44We have established a tradition of seeking compromise.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47It still plays an important role today in our politics.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50We always have coalition governments of two,
0:24:50 > 0:24:53three or sometimes even more political parties.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56That sounds to me very, very awkward, I'm not sure I'd like that.
0:24:56 > 0:24:58But how does it work here?
0:24:58 > 0:25:01Well, it has been working like this for more than a century
0:25:01 > 0:25:04with a system of proportional representation.
0:25:04 > 0:25:06We're very used to negotiating.
0:25:06 > 0:25:10The Dutch are considered famously tolerant - is there a connection,
0:25:10 > 0:25:12do you think, between the political system and tolerance,
0:25:12 > 0:25:14or tolerance and the system?
0:25:14 > 0:25:18In the system, it's always necessary to find compromise between different
0:25:18 > 0:25:21political parties and between different minorities in the country.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25This brings a tradition of negotiating and looking
0:25:25 > 0:25:26for compromise, of course.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31And what character does that give Holland on the international scene?
0:25:31 > 0:25:33In the 19th century and until the Second World War,
0:25:33 > 0:25:36the Netherlands was always neutral in international politics.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40So this made it an ideal place for International Peace Conferences.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44Here in this hall we had the Peace Conference of 1907.
0:25:45 > 0:25:49As tensions rose between the major European powers before the outbreak
0:25:49 > 0:25:53of the First World War, the Netherlands protected its economy
0:25:53 > 0:25:58and security by remaining resolutely neutral.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01Yet, the Dutch were not mere bystanders -
0:26:01 > 0:26:04in The Hague they twice hosted international negotiations
0:26:04 > 0:26:06on the proper conduct of war.
0:26:08 > 0:26:13But before a third Peace Conference could take place, war broke out.
0:26:14 > 0:26:19And in that total war, those so-called Hague Conventions
0:26:19 > 0:26:21were quickly broken.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26So here we are in The Hague in this really marvellous set of buildings,
0:26:26 > 0:26:32talking about the very ancient origins of your democracy,
0:26:32 > 0:26:35talking about your history of neutrality,
0:26:35 > 0:26:36of moderation -
0:26:36 > 0:26:38do you feel very proud of this?
0:26:38 > 0:26:40I think the Netherlands is proud of it, yes,
0:26:40 > 0:26:43and particularly the city of The Hague, which is the city of
0:26:43 > 0:26:45peace and justice, where lots of international institutions
0:26:45 > 0:26:48are related to peace and negotiations.
0:26:52 > 0:26:56I'm keen to see more of this worthy city of peace,
0:26:56 > 0:26:58and luckily for me, The Hague offers
0:26:58 > 0:27:01an unusual sightseeing experience by rail...
0:27:01 > 0:27:03Watch your step.
0:27:03 > 0:27:05- Hello, fellow lunchers!- Hello.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08'..on board a tram which serves haute cuisine.'
0:27:12 > 0:27:14- Would you mind if I join you? - Yes, of course.
0:27:16 > 0:27:17TRAM BELL DINGS
0:27:17 > 0:27:19- This is lovely, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26OK, let me start with a cupcake.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28Good idea.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35- Lekker.- Lekker?
0:27:37 > 0:27:40Delicious, in Holland.
0:27:40 > 0:27:41- Lekker.- Lekker.
0:27:41 > 0:27:43Yeah, everything is lekker.
0:27:48 > 0:27:50That looks amazing.
0:27:53 > 0:27:55So the longer you add the flavours,
0:27:55 > 0:27:57the more flavour this broth will have.
0:27:57 > 0:28:00- Like a tea?- Yes. Enjoy. - Here we go.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03I never ate on a tram before
0:28:03 > 0:28:05and I don't think I ever had food like this before.
0:28:05 > 0:28:07Me neither.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09- Lekker again?- Yes, again.
0:28:09 > 0:28:11Lekker, yeah.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14The man behind this magical gastronomy
0:28:14 > 0:28:17is executive chef Pierre Wind.
0:28:17 > 0:28:18Chef!
0:28:19 > 0:28:22- Chef.- My great pleasure. You like it?
0:28:22 > 0:28:24I loved the lunch, thank you so much.
0:28:24 > 0:28:26Satisfaction?
0:28:26 > 0:28:28Absolute satisfaction, complete.
0:28:28 > 0:28:31But listen, how do you do it in this tiny kitchen?
0:28:31 > 0:28:35It is really mathematics and a kind of science.
0:28:35 > 0:28:36It's very difficult,
0:28:36 > 0:28:40but the first time is difficult but the second time is easy,
0:28:40 > 0:28:41the same as love.
0:28:41 > 0:28:43MICHAEL CHUCKLES
0:28:43 > 0:28:46- I love it, thank you, Pierre. - Thank you very much.
0:28:46 > 0:28:48- A great lunch.- OK.
0:28:48 > 0:28:49A memorable lunch.
0:28:59 > 0:29:01Three miles from the centre of The Hague
0:29:01 > 0:29:04is the seaside resort of Scheveningen,
0:29:04 > 0:29:07which at the time of my guidebook attracted tourists
0:29:07 > 0:29:09from all over Europe.
0:29:09 > 0:29:13I hadn't expected to find a beach adjacent
0:29:13 > 0:29:15to the Netherlands' political capital.
0:29:15 > 0:29:18But Bradshaw's tells me that, "Scheveningen,
0:29:18 > 0:29:22"during the bathing season, is one of the most frequented, brightest
0:29:22 > 0:29:25"and fashionable resorts on the Continent."
0:29:25 > 0:29:29This book is a constant source of education.
0:29:47 > 0:29:51This morning, I'm journeying from the province of South Holland
0:29:51 > 0:29:54to that of North Holland, and from the political centre
0:29:54 > 0:29:57of the Netherlands to the nation's capital.
0:30:00 > 0:30:05From The Hague, my route continues north-east towards the historic town
0:30:05 > 0:30:09of Haarlem before reaching the metropolis of Amsterdam.
0:30:09 > 0:30:11I'll finish my journey
0:30:11 > 0:30:14in the geographical heart of the country, Utrecht.
0:30:27 > 0:30:30My next stop will be Haarlem.
0:30:30 > 0:30:32The guidebook says that, "It's a pleasant, clean,
0:30:32 > 0:30:37"thriving town, the centre of a famous horticultural district
0:30:37 > 0:30:42"whence bulbs, hyacinths, tulips, crocuses, lilies et cetera,
0:30:42 > 0:30:45"are exported all over Europe."
0:30:45 > 0:30:48The Dutch really are mad about their blooms.
0:30:48 > 0:30:50Flower potty!
0:30:55 > 0:31:00This is Holland's bulb belt, and since the early 20th century
0:31:00 > 0:31:02it's been the hub of the global flower trade.
0:31:05 > 0:31:09This handsome Art Nouveau railway station, decorated with tiles,
0:31:09 > 0:31:11opened in 1908.
0:31:35 > 0:31:38Haarlem, to me, has been a wonderful surprise,
0:31:38 > 0:31:41full of these tiny streets with brick-built gabled houses.
0:31:41 > 0:31:43Really pretty.
0:31:45 > 0:31:49One of the chief attractions of the Netherlands for tourists in 1913
0:31:49 > 0:31:54was its picture galleries, full of works by old Dutch masters.
0:31:55 > 0:31:58In the Golden Age, it wasn't just the Dutch economy
0:31:58 > 0:32:03that flourished - riches flowed into culture, particularly painting.
0:32:04 > 0:32:07Bradshaw's tells me, "Most of the larger towns possess
0:32:07 > 0:32:14"valuable collections of paintings, including some of world renown."
0:32:14 > 0:32:17Here in Haarlem, there's a painting with a story to tell
0:32:17 > 0:32:20of the pitfalls of rampant capitalism.
0:32:23 > 0:32:28In recent history we experienced the dotcom boom -
0:32:28 > 0:32:32frantic speculation in an item until a bubble was created,
0:32:32 > 0:32:36and when it burst it brought bankruptcy to many.
0:32:36 > 0:32:39Well, in 17th-century Holland,
0:32:39 > 0:32:44a similar thing happened and the commodity involved was tulip bulbs.
0:32:44 > 0:32:49The painter, Jan Brueghel the Younger, satirises the speculators
0:32:49 > 0:32:53as brainless monkeys, and here, in the boom times,
0:32:53 > 0:32:58a tulip appears to be worth as much as a bag of gold.
0:32:58 > 0:33:03But then the crash comes and here is a ruined monkey clutching
0:33:03 > 0:33:07a worthless share certificate, urinating on the tulips
0:33:07 > 0:33:09that brought his downfall.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12From riches to rags -
0:33:12 > 0:33:13a morality tale.
0:33:17 > 0:33:22Despite the crash, the flower industry continued to blossom.
0:33:22 > 0:33:27In the year before my guidebook was published, dedicated auction houses
0:33:27 > 0:33:31were set up in nearby Aalsmeer to cope with the growing trade.
0:33:36 > 0:33:39But today, it's no monkey business.
0:33:47 > 0:33:50HE SPEAKS DUTCH
0:33:58 > 0:34:02I find myself in the middle of a flower auction here.
0:34:02 > 0:34:07They're selling hortensias and viburnums and tulips.
0:34:07 > 0:34:09It's a Dutch auction,
0:34:09 > 0:34:14so the price begins high and falls, and you bid as it falls.
0:34:16 > 0:34:18Speed is of the essence -
0:34:18 > 0:34:24in as little as ten days, these blooms will be worthless.
0:34:24 > 0:34:29Timing is everything - wait too long to bid and you run the risk
0:34:29 > 0:34:31of losing out entirely.
0:34:32 > 0:34:37The whole thing here takes only about a second,
0:34:37 > 0:34:41and I'm sitting here terrified that if I even touch my mouse,
0:34:41 > 0:34:44I'll end up with a whole bunch of flowers.
0:34:49 > 0:34:53The purchased flowers immediately make their way to their new owners
0:34:53 > 0:34:55via the distribution area.
0:35:04 > 0:35:08I think this is the biggest building I've ever been in in my life.
0:35:08 > 0:35:11It's like several huge railway stations put together
0:35:11 > 0:35:17and I say that because I'm looking down on lots of flower trains.
0:35:17 > 0:35:20Whereas in a station they run in parallel lines,
0:35:20 > 0:35:23here they are crossing each other higgledy-piggledy.
0:35:23 > 0:35:27It looks like chaos and it's very impressive.
0:35:32 > 0:35:37Amazingly, this complex has a footprint roughly the size
0:35:37 > 0:35:39of the principality of Monaco.
0:35:41 > 0:35:43- Hello.- Good morning.
0:35:43 > 0:35:45- Good morning. I'm Michael. - Hi, I'm Jose.
0:35:45 > 0:35:49Jose is going to help me to find my way out.
0:35:49 > 0:35:53Tell me there are some rules here, right? There are some rules of the road, are there?
0:35:53 > 0:35:56Well, they say they have rules - sometimes I'm doubtful about that.
0:36:00 > 0:36:01This is such fun.
0:36:04 > 0:36:07Obviously, I am amazed by the size of the building.
0:36:07 > 0:36:09What is the scale of this operation?
0:36:09 > 0:36:13Every day we auction off 21 million stems of flowers
0:36:13 > 0:36:15and two million potted plants.
0:36:15 > 0:36:18And, as you can see, quite a hectic business.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26From here, flowers are exported across the globe.
0:36:26 > 0:36:31Everything you see here - 85% is leaving our border before midnight.
0:36:31 > 0:36:35Meaning that a bunch of roses can go from soil to a sitting room
0:36:35 > 0:36:39as far away as New York City in just 48 hours.
0:36:40 > 0:36:42Whoo! You made it.
0:36:43 > 0:36:45- Thank you.- You're welcome.
0:36:46 > 0:36:50The whole operation is flourishing.
0:36:59 > 0:37:03My journey continues towards Amsterdam, following the route
0:37:03 > 0:37:06of the first railway line in the Netherlands.
0:37:07 > 0:37:09Opened in September 1839,
0:37:09 > 0:37:12this nearly ten-mile stretch of track proved that it was
0:37:12 > 0:37:16possible to construct railways in this marshy terrain.
0:37:18 > 0:37:20Unlike many early railways,
0:37:20 > 0:37:24this line was built specifically for passengers rather than freight.
0:37:24 > 0:37:28For the Dutch, masters of the waters,
0:37:28 > 0:37:32cargo would continue to arrive in Amsterdam by ship.
0:37:32 > 0:37:35I shall soon be in Amsterdam.
0:37:35 > 0:37:38The guidebook tells me that it's situated at the confluence
0:37:38 > 0:37:41of the rivers Amstel and IJ,
0:37:41 > 0:37:43that it's the commercial capital of Holland.
0:37:43 > 0:37:48Most of the Dutch colonial produce is dealt with in Amsterdam.
0:37:48 > 0:37:53With colonial and trading interests that encompassed present-day
0:37:53 > 0:37:56Indonesia, Connecticut and New York City -
0:37:56 > 0:38:01which was once known as New Amsterdam - in a Golden Age,
0:38:01 > 0:38:06the riches that flowed into Old Amsterdam were without compare.
0:38:14 > 0:38:17And the magnificent Amsterdam Central Station
0:38:17 > 0:38:19celebrates that imperial power.
0:38:20 > 0:38:24From the outset, the Dutch railway network was funded
0:38:24 > 0:38:27by the huge revenues generated by the country's empire.
0:38:40 > 0:38:45I've made my way to the city's Canal Ring to meet history professor
0:38:45 > 0:38:48Geert Janssen from the University of Amsterdam.
0:38:50 > 0:38:52- Hello, Geert.- Hi, Michael.
0:38:52 > 0:38:54- Wonderful location. - It's beautiful, yes.
0:38:54 > 0:38:58We're meeting in the very heart of the old city. What was attracting
0:38:58 > 0:39:01tourists to Amsterdam 100 years ago, do you think?
0:39:01 > 0:39:04I think 100 years ago, people came to Amsterdam to enjoy,
0:39:04 > 0:39:08to appreciate, the Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century.
0:39:08 > 0:39:11Amsterdam didn't get the typical 19th-century face-lift
0:39:11 > 0:39:15that was typical of London and Paris in this period, so in Amsterdam
0:39:15 > 0:39:19you could still see and enjoy a city that had kept
0:39:19 > 0:39:21its 17th-century character.
0:39:21 > 0:39:25What can Amsterdam have been like at the height of the Golden Age?
0:39:25 > 0:39:28It's the Dubai of the 17th century.
0:39:28 > 0:39:31Amsterdam attracted a variety of different people from
0:39:31 > 0:39:35all over Europe, a great number of what we would call labour migrants
0:39:35 > 0:39:38from the German Empire, from France, from the British Isles, as well as
0:39:38 > 0:39:42religious refugees - people who had been persecuted elsewhere in Europe
0:39:42 > 0:39:46who were attracted to the Dutch Republic for its religious tolerance -
0:39:46 > 0:39:49as well as Sephardic and Ashkenazim Jews
0:39:49 > 0:39:53from the Iberian Peninsula and Eastern Europe.
0:39:53 > 0:39:58So it was very much a mixed and cosmopolitan city at the time.
0:39:58 > 0:40:00Same old story.
0:40:00 > 0:40:01Yeah, it is.
0:40:02 > 0:40:06I look forward to exploring this cosmopolitan capital tomorrow,
0:40:06 > 0:40:09using the eyes of yesterday's tourist.
0:40:22 > 0:40:26The canals of Amsterdam are delightfully free from tourists
0:40:26 > 0:40:29at this time of the morning, and indeed the Doelen Hotel
0:40:29 > 0:40:33was advertised in Bradshaw's as being free from tram noise.
0:40:33 > 0:40:38I'm tucking into a Dutch breakfast of poffertjes, little thick pancakes
0:40:38 > 0:40:42served with - wait for it - butter and powdered sugar.
0:40:42 > 0:40:46And here at the Doelen, they're served with sparkling wine...
0:40:46 > 0:40:49Another reason why this place might have been popular 100 years ago.
0:40:58 > 0:41:02By 1913, Amsterdam had been the hub
0:41:02 > 0:41:06of a global trading network for four centuries.
0:41:06 > 0:41:12And this area, De Wallen, is still the centre for age-old transactions.
0:41:12 > 0:41:16The Oude Kerk, or Old Church, according to Bradshaw's,
0:41:16 > 0:41:18dates back to 1300.
0:41:18 > 0:41:22But these are windows not into men's souls,
0:41:22 > 0:41:25but rather to display ladies of the night.
0:41:25 > 0:41:29And I'm interested to know how it is that this bastion,
0:41:29 > 0:41:34first of Catholicism and then of Protestantism, is co-located
0:41:34 > 0:41:37with what is now probably the world's most famous
0:41:37 > 0:41:39red light district.
0:41:45 > 0:41:50De Wallen once straddled Amsterdam's busy shipping port.
0:41:50 > 0:41:54The port has since moved, but prostitution hasn't.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57And today the oldest profession is legal.
0:41:57 > 0:42:02For many modern tourists, Amsterdam's red light district
0:42:02 > 0:42:07confirms its reputation as both Sin City and progressive utopia.
0:42:07 > 0:42:10'I'm having a coffee with Annemarie de Wildt,
0:42:10 > 0:42:12'curator of the Amsterdam Museum...'
0:42:12 > 0:42:15- Hello, Annemarie.- Hello. - I'm Michael.
0:42:15 > 0:42:19'..to find out how this curious state of affairs came about.'
0:42:22 > 0:42:24So here we are - the church,
0:42:24 > 0:42:28red light district and kindergarten.
0:42:28 > 0:42:31Some people would say, "Only in Amsterdam."
0:42:31 > 0:42:34It's a good spot to talk about the famous tolerance of Amsterdam
0:42:34 > 0:42:38and the fact that we're able to have these very different things
0:42:38 > 0:42:40coexist right next to each other.
0:42:40 > 0:42:44Now, the Bradshaw traveller coming here in 1913 - what legal position
0:42:44 > 0:42:45would he have found?
0:42:45 > 0:42:48Prostitution was officially forbidden,
0:42:48 > 0:42:50but, of course, a harbour city like Amsterdam -
0:42:50 > 0:42:54it's very difficult to ban it altogether, so it did exist.
0:42:54 > 0:42:58There were officially no brothels but he would have found maybe women
0:42:58 > 0:43:02standing on the streets soliciting, or brothels that were
0:43:02 > 0:43:05sort of in hiding, like a tobacco shop for instance.
0:43:05 > 0:43:07In the 1960s, this started to change.
0:43:07 > 0:43:11It became as open as it is now,
0:43:11 > 0:43:15with women sitting in the windows.
0:43:15 > 0:43:19In the decades following the sexual revolution of the 1960s,
0:43:19 > 0:43:23the Dutch experimented with a policy known as gedogen, or tolerance.
0:43:23 > 0:43:24While still illegal,
0:43:24 > 0:43:28prostitution, like cannabis, was officially tolerated.
0:43:29 > 0:43:32Apparently, prostitution is legalised today in the Netherlands.
0:43:32 > 0:43:35- Yes.- When did that change occur?
0:43:35 > 0:43:37The change only occurred in 2000,
0:43:37 > 0:43:39and people are always very surprised about it.
0:43:39 > 0:43:42And after years and years and years of discussion,
0:43:42 > 0:43:46the idea was, "Let's make rules, let's make regulations, let's try
0:43:46 > 0:43:51"to ban the criminality and see if we can make it into a normal job".
0:43:51 > 0:43:54Is the legalisation controversial today?
0:43:54 > 0:43:55It is a difficult subject.
0:43:55 > 0:44:00There is still trafficking, there is still forced prostitution,
0:44:00 > 0:44:05so now the city authorities here and in other cities are trying to...
0:44:05 > 0:44:07not to get rid of it altogether,
0:44:07 > 0:44:09but at least to make it smaller.
0:44:12 > 0:44:16I'm leaving the red light district bound for Vondelpark -
0:44:16 > 0:44:21an oasis of calm in the south of the city recommended by my guidebook.
0:44:23 > 0:44:27The biggest risk to life in the Netherlands is crossing the road.
0:44:27 > 0:44:28Whoa!
0:44:30 > 0:44:31HE LAUGHS
0:44:31 > 0:44:34First of all there's a cycle lane...!
0:44:37 > 0:44:40Then there's two tracks of trams...
0:44:43 > 0:44:48Four lanes of regular traffic, and then...
0:44:49 > 0:44:52..don't forget there's another cycle lane.
0:44:55 > 0:44:56Made it.
0:45:02 > 0:45:06One 19th-century invention, the railways, still flourishes today.
0:45:06 > 0:45:10Another 19th-century invention dominates the transport scene
0:45:10 > 0:45:13in the Netherlands even in the 21st century,
0:45:13 > 0:45:16for which I will need some Dutch courage.
0:45:22 > 0:45:25In the pancake-flat, compact Netherlands,
0:45:25 > 0:45:29the Dutch quickly embraced this two-wheeled transport revolution.
0:45:30 > 0:45:34By the time of my Bradshaw's, the Dutch owned more bicycles
0:45:34 > 0:45:37per person than any other country in Europe.
0:45:37 > 0:45:41A park, a sunny day, a bicycle -
0:45:41 > 0:45:45I haven't done anything this healthy in years.
0:45:50 > 0:45:53There are more bicycles than people in the Netherlands
0:45:53 > 0:45:57and around a third of all journeys in Amsterdam are made by bike.
0:46:01 > 0:46:05Riding along, I feel that I have my finger on the national pulse
0:46:05 > 0:46:08in this freewheeling city.
0:46:20 > 0:46:24In the Indies neighbourhood in eastern Amsterdam,
0:46:24 > 0:46:26many of the streets are named after the islands of
0:46:26 > 0:46:30the Dutch East Indies - most of the present-day Indonesia.
0:46:31 > 0:46:34That colony generated vast wealth,
0:46:34 > 0:46:37and one of the world's first fusion cuisines.
0:46:37 > 0:46:38Thank you very much.
0:46:41 > 0:46:43This is our special rijsttafel.
0:46:43 > 0:46:46- I'll have the rijsttafel, please. - OK, perfect.
0:46:46 > 0:46:47Thank you very much.
0:46:47 > 0:46:51Literally translated, rijsttafel means "rice table" -
0:46:51 > 0:46:53sounds like a simple enough meal.
0:46:53 > 0:46:56All right, let's go.
0:47:07 > 0:47:08OK.
0:47:08 > 0:47:11- There you go. Please, enjoy it. - Thank you.
0:47:12 > 0:47:17Invented by the Dutch during their 350-year rule over Indonesia,
0:47:17 > 0:47:21this feast combined local cuisine with a taste of home,
0:47:21 > 0:47:26and was designed to showcase the exotic abundance of the empire.
0:47:26 > 0:47:30I have never seen such a variety of food,
0:47:30 > 0:47:33and all of it fresh and delicious and brilliant ingredients.
0:47:33 > 0:47:38I've got rices, I've got noodles, I've got soup.
0:47:38 > 0:47:40I've got an omelette, I've got fish,
0:47:40 > 0:47:43a banana, beef, beans,
0:47:43 > 0:47:45fresh vegetables,
0:47:45 > 0:47:47a kind of poppadom, nuts...
0:47:47 > 0:47:50Oh, delicious!
0:47:50 > 0:47:55By 1913, Dutch tourists to the colonies had experienced this
0:47:55 > 0:47:59Indo-Dutch cuisine first-hand and had imported it to the Netherlands.
0:47:59 > 0:48:02And so an Edwardian traveller following my guidebook
0:48:02 > 0:48:05might well have enjoyed a rijsttafel too.
0:48:07 > 0:48:09- Ah, chef.- Hello, sir.
0:48:09 > 0:48:11- Congratulations. - Are you enjoying the rijsttafel?
0:48:11 > 0:48:14I am enjoying it very much indeed.
0:48:14 > 0:48:16If you don't finish it, it will be an insult for us...
0:48:16 > 0:48:19Goodness! I'll report back in about two hours.
0:48:19 > 0:48:22OK, we'll see you then with dessert.
0:48:22 > 0:48:24- No, please!- Thank you.
0:48:26 > 0:48:30Please, no-one offer me a "waffer-thin mint".
0:48:43 > 0:48:46'I'm on the final leg of my tour of the Netherlands,
0:48:46 > 0:48:50'making my way south-east to the smallest Dutch province...'
0:48:50 > 0:48:51Thank you.
0:48:51 > 0:48:54'..and the centre of the country.'
0:48:59 > 0:49:03My last stop will be Utrecht.
0:49:03 > 0:49:06The guidebook tells me that the River Rhine here separates
0:49:06 > 0:49:11into two streams, a Roman city and a very old place.
0:49:11 > 0:49:13This brings me to the heart of the country,
0:49:13 > 0:49:17to the hub of the railway network, and due to
0:49:17 > 0:49:22a treaty signed in 1579, maybe to the origin of the Netherlands.
0:49:30 > 0:49:31Thanks to its location,
0:49:31 > 0:49:34Utrecht became the main hub of the Dutch railway network.
0:49:35 > 0:49:39Today its Centraal station is the busiest in the country.
0:49:40 > 0:49:43More than 900 trains depart here every day,
0:49:43 > 0:49:46carrying nearly 200,000 passengers.
0:49:47 > 0:49:50And they're preparing for it to get even busier,
0:49:50 > 0:49:54increasing capacity to cope with a predicted 100 million rail users
0:49:54 > 0:49:56a year by 2020.
0:49:56 > 0:50:00Everywhere around me there's crashing and banging and drilling,
0:50:00 > 0:50:03building works everywhere, and I think just now the finishing touches
0:50:03 > 0:50:04are being put to it.
0:50:07 > 0:50:11In 1913 though, Utrecht was a quiet place.
0:50:11 > 0:50:15Bradshaw's talks of a pleasant city with promenades bordered by streams.
0:50:18 > 0:50:20But over 300 years earlier,
0:50:20 > 0:50:24it had been at the centre of a military alliance formed between
0:50:24 > 0:50:29the very different Dutch provinces to resist their Spanish ruler.
0:50:29 > 0:50:32Called the Union Of Utrecht, it led to the formation
0:50:32 > 0:50:35of the Dutch Republic, with a parliament at The Hague,
0:50:35 > 0:50:37and ushered in the Golden Age.
0:50:41 > 0:50:44'At the Cathedral of St Martin, known as the Dom,
0:50:44 > 0:50:47'I've arranged to meet historian Professor Maarten Prak...'
0:50:47 > 0:50:48Hello, Maarten.
0:50:48 > 0:50:51Michael, how nice to meet you here.
0:50:51 > 0:50:55'..to find out more about that seminal moment in the formation
0:50:55 > 0:50:56'of the modern-day Netherlands.'
0:51:05 > 0:51:08Maarten, what is the significance for Dutch history
0:51:08 > 0:51:10of this medieval chapel?
0:51:10 > 0:51:16It was the place, where in January 1579, a group of people
0:51:16 > 0:51:21put together and subsequently signed a document, the Union of Utrecht,
0:51:21 > 0:51:25that later came to be seen as the first constitution,
0:51:25 > 0:51:28the foundational document of the Netherlands.
0:51:28 > 0:51:31Who participated in signing this document?
0:51:31 > 0:51:35Provinces, individual nobles,
0:51:35 > 0:51:37representatives of various towns,
0:51:37 > 0:51:42a hodgepodge of people who were involved in rebellion
0:51:42 > 0:51:44against the King of Spain
0:51:44 > 0:51:46who was the sovereign of this country at the time.
0:51:48 > 0:51:50To cooperate militarily,
0:51:50 > 0:51:54those disparate rebels had first to agree their differences.
0:51:56 > 0:52:00There are two points in that document that were significant.
0:52:00 > 0:52:04One was that they insisted on continuing their local
0:52:04 > 0:52:06and regional autonomy.
0:52:06 > 0:52:09As a result, the Dutch Republic was
0:52:09 > 0:52:14a very disunited sort of country,
0:52:14 > 0:52:15a federation.
0:52:15 > 0:52:19The other thing was that they decided to set up
0:52:19 > 0:52:24a religious order, but at the same time, ruled that each
0:52:24 > 0:52:29inhabitant privately could believe what he or she wished to believe.
0:52:29 > 0:52:33So religious toleration is virtually in the Dutch DNA,
0:52:33 > 0:52:35is there a connection with the tolerance today
0:52:35 > 0:52:37of drugs and prostitution?
0:52:37 > 0:52:39I think there is,
0:52:39 > 0:52:43in the sense that, from very early days,
0:52:43 > 0:52:47the Dutch learned to live with diversity.
0:52:47 > 0:52:52And the whole idea of the Union of Utrecht and its article
0:52:52 > 0:52:56on religion, was that Catholics were a fact of life,
0:52:56 > 0:52:59you couldn't move them somewhere else.
0:52:59 > 0:53:02And the same is true for prostitution or drugs
0:53:02 > 0:53:05in modern society - you can't do away with it,
0:53:05 > 0:53:07so you have to deal with it.
0:53:07 > 0:53:12This, I think, is what is known as, perhaps, Dutch pragmatism.
0:53:12 > 0:53:16It's not so much a principle, but it is a practice.
0:53:23 > 0:53:27But WHAT does pragmatism in practice look like?
0:53:28 > 0:53:32Bradshaw's had led me to expect a city of handsome houses.
0:53:32 > 0:53:36Following the Union of Utrecht, the Netherlands was a religiously
0:53:36 > 0:53:40tolerant place, but still the Catholics thought it best
0:53:40 > 0:53:44to be discreet and to disguise their churches, and where better
0:53:44 > 0:53:46to hide one than in one of the handsome houses?
0:53:55 > 0:53:59And completely unexpectedly, a gem of a church,
0:53:59 > 0:54:03complete with organ and Virgin and Christ,
0:54:03 > 0:54:06a couple of baroque bishops and a fully licensed bar -
0:54:06 > 0:54:09but I think that was a more recent addition.
0:54:10 > 0:54:12Thank you very much.
0:54:12 > 0:54:13- Cheers.- Cheers to you.
0:54:16 > 0:54:18My Bradshaw's description of the Netherlands draws heavily
0:54:18 > 0:54:21on its long and glorious history.
0:54:23 > 0:54:27A century later, I've arranged to have a drink with some locals
0:54:27 > 0:54:31to gauge how connected modern Dutch identity is to the nation's past.
0:54:32 > 0:54:34Good health to you all.
0:54:34 > 0:54:37- Proost.- Proost, indeed.
0:54:37 > 0:54:38Proost, proost, proost, proost.
0:54:38 > 0:54:40Proost.
0:54:41 > 0:54:44100 years ago, this was written...
0:54:44 > 0:54:47"Holland, which was once an extended swamp,
0:54:47 > 0:54:50"presents the picture of a people owing not only their wealth
0:54:50 > 0:54:53"and high commercial position, but even the very land
0:54:53 > 0:54:56"to their own labour and enterprise."
0:54:56 > 0:54:58Is that a fair assessment of the Dutch?
0:54:58 > 0:55:01I think that's a defining feature of us, yes.
0:55:01 > 0:55:04We don't necessarily have to like each other,
0:55:04 > 0:55:09but you have to cooperate because, in a delta, it's crucial.
0:55:09 > 0:55:12What about this tolerance thing? Is it true that the Dutch are tolerant?
0:55:12 > 0:55:14I think there are a lot of different people living in
0:55:14 > 0:55:19the Netherlands and everyone is just being him or herself
0:55:19 > 0:55:25and it seems normal that there are different people and that you are OK
0:55:25 > 0:55:29with the fact that they have different religions
0:55:29 > 0:55:33or different sexual preferences.
0:55:33 > 0:55:36Tolerant, actually, is not a very nice word -
0:55:36 > 0:55:38tolerant means you put up with people.
0:55:38 > 0:55:41But what about respectful - are the Dutch respectful?
0:55:41 > 0:55:46I'm not really Dutch, but, yes, absolutely.
0:55:46 > 0:55:48I don't see tolerance as a nice word,
0:55:48 > 0:55:52I see it as actually, "You are strange and weird, but OK,
0:55:52 > 0:55:55"I'm going to accept that as long as you don't cross my line".
0:55:55 > 0:55:59Yes, and therefore, as an immigrant, you are expected to respect
0:55:59 > 0:56:00their boundaries too.
0:56:00 > 0:56:03Absolutely, and I think it's just fair.
0:56:03 > 0:56:05Now, marijuana...
0:56:08 > 0:56:10What's going on?
0:56:10 > 0:56:12And is it working?
0:56:12 > 0:56:14That's great, my grandmother is watching!
0:56:16 > 0:56:21Well, it's not legal in Holland, but it isn't illegal either.
0:56:21 > 0:56:24I hope they're going to legalise the whole process because I think it will cut crime rates.
0:56:24 > 0:56:27And it's good for business as well, and that's also typical Dutch.
0:56:28 > 0:56:30- That's exactly...- So true!
0:56:30 > 0:56:34That's the point about marijuana and tolerance -
0:56:34 > 0:56:37we see an economic benefit in it and I think we found out very early,
0:56:37 > 0:56:40in the early stages in the 17th century already,
0:56:40 > 0:56:44that these people coming in... if you accept and be tolerant,
0:56:44 > 0:56:47that brings some economic benefits and we tend to like that.
0:56:47 > 0:56:49And so, ladies and gentlemen,
0:56:49 > 0:56:52I give you a toast to Bradshaw's description of the Netherlands.
0:56:52 > 0:56:54- ALL:- Proost.
0:56:54 > 0:56:56- ALL:- Cheers.
0:56:56 > 0:56:58Proost!
0:57:06 > 0:57:09You have to be impressed by Dutch history.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12Starting with the Union of Utrecht,
0:57:12 > 0:57:15they got rid of the mighty King of Spain.
0:57:15 > 0:57:16With equal grit,
0:57:16 > 0:57:21they built the dykes and windmills and drained the land.
0:57:21 > 0:57:27A global empire flowered and persecuted religious dissidents
0:57:27 > 0:57:31were attracted to cosmopolitan Amsterdam.
0:57:31 > 0:57:35I'm as impressed by the architecture of that Golden Age
0:57:35 > 0:57:40as the traveller was 100 years ago, with the added feeling
0:57:40 > 0:57:43that I'm visiting a national experiment
0:57:43 > 0:57:45in tolerance and moderation.