Archive for August, 2010

The most important international airport of Netherlands, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, has taken the complete ownership of the Terminal 4 at the John F. Kennedy International Airport, which is situated in New York.

It is the first time a foreign company has managed to take control of a terminal at the airport in the United States. Already possessing 40% of the shares of the terminal, the Amsterdam Schiphol airport has bought the remaining 60% of the shares, for an added 13 million dollars.

This new terminal with 16 international gates is comprised of all the facilities like check-in lobby areas, automated checked baggage screening, Customer and Border Protection and more.

The other airline companies which are aspiring to make the use of the terminal are charged with the fees by Schiphol and the terminal will be further expanded from 16 to 25 gates in the upcoming years. Delta Air Lines, a partner of the Air France-KLM company, will be the biggest customer of all.

The CEO of Schiphol airport, Jos Nijhuis has told that “It will very much strengthen the Amsterdam’s position as a European hub for the United States and will also lead to the increase in the Amsterdam’s flight traffic.”

“It is not only financially profitable but also deliberately important”, said the Dutch caretaker transport minister, Camiel Eurlings. “Only few European airports of global importance are left and the rest of them are vanishing to the regional level while handling only European flights,” he added.

What are your first associations when you hear something about Netherlands? Your imagination must go out of the borders because it’s a country, which is very hard to describe only by words. To feel the depth of Holland you should definitely go there…

“If you don’t like our weather, just wait for 5minutes,”- the citizens usually answer at complains about the climate details. Even during the most stable period of year, from June till September, it can start raining without any predictions, so it’s just stupid to believe in the synoptic’ promises.

What about Amsterdam, it’s symbolically called the “museum under the open air”. There are many reasons for that. First of all, it’s a little country for bicycles. Everything here is made for bicycles, so be attentive while crossing the road. Secondly, there is no tradition to close their big windows, they are always open, without any curtains, it’s like a way to show your good financial position; the main rule is no secrets from society. By the way, don’t forget to visit the best places of shopping in the world, like Blotmenmark, the most famous flower mall in the world, and Amsterdam Diamond Center, the store department, where every woman can spend a lot of money and it will be quite essential.

Besides, don’t forget to taste night life here. You can visit three centers there: Leidseplein with its theatres and jazz cafes, Red quarter with its good and bad reputation and Rembrandtplein, a place, where there is enormous number of pubs for non-traditionally oriented persons. In Holland, there is a special system of identification of clubbers.  You have to buy something like passport in form of electronic card, which will fix all your violations in case of problems. Every tourist will be happy here to find something for himself, the variety of clubs will surprise every, even the most cynical person.  Only at night it is possible to see beautiful Holland’ girls, which are really tall, you won’t see them at afternoon, they have a tight schedule, as they are financially independent.

Of course, Holland is famous for its cheese and flower fields… But the most attractive thing for every tourist in Netherlands is freedom spirit, which is unique there… Don’t waste the opportunity to feel freedom in the most beautiful, blowing country in the world, called Holland!

Car rental services in Amsterdam are available from Avis, Europcar, Hertz, Budget and Thrifty

Koninginnedag

Maybe the biggest holiday in the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba is Car Rental Queen’s Day. It takes place on the 30^th April. It commemorates the birth of the queen of the Netherlands and is considered a day of national unity and togetherness.

The tradition was started in 1885 with the birth of Princess Wilhelmina. She later became Queen Wilhelmina. Then, it was celebrated on the 31^st August. Later, with the ascension of the next queen- Queen Juliana the holiday was shifted to the 30^th April. During the reign of the next queen from 1980 it was decided that the holiday must remain on the same date because her birthday was on the 31^st January.

During the celebrations there are the free markets. During this day only everybody is allowed to sell in the streets. Music concerts, performances, street bands, and children activities are organized everywhere.

Queen’s Night

In recent year the pinnacle of the holiday has become the Queen’s night. On Friday night (the evening before the celebration) the streets of every major city in the country turn into street parades and outdoor concerts. Numerous stages are built in parks, squares and city centers. There are bands in every café, bar and street corner. The country is taken by the oranjegekte- the orange craze. Everybody dresses and wears hats, scarves, and accessories in orange. The biggest parties are held in Amsterdam, Hague and Rotterdam.

The Apeldoorn Incident

Queen Beatrix visits and greets the people every year in a different city. In 2009 there was the Apeldoorn attack. Karst Tates tried to ram the open bus of the royal family on their way to the palace with his car. His attempt was unsuccessful but he run seven people and wounded eight more. His car crashed in a monument and he died shortly after.

Car Hire

Good car rental companies in Amsterdam are  Avis, Alamo, Dollar, Europcar, Thrifty, Hertz and Budget.

Amsterdam has a long standing history as a city of tolerance and freedom. This is all the result of the historic foundations of the state as freedom of speech, religion and expression. The capital of the Netherlands provides a lot of pleasures forbidden elsewhere. There is legalized and controlled prostitution, light drugs and gay marriages.

Pride Parade

The Amsterdam Pride Parade is one of the biggest in the world. It is an event celebrating the culture of the people with alternative sex orientation- lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexuals. It is also a platform for the popularization of same sex marriages. The Netherlands and Amsterdam in particular has a very tolerant and open policy in regards to this issue. Same sex marriages are legalized in the country as registered partnerships since 1998.

The parade has taken place since 1996 and has been among the best accepted such events in the world. The event lasts for a weekend and involves concerts, sports competitions, street parties and the famous Canal Pride- a parade in the canals of the city. In Amsterdam it takes place during the first Saturday and Sunday of August.

The Amsterdam Pride Parade has received a lot of public attention and support. During the last couple of years government and municipality officials were present during it. In 2008 three cabinet ministers and the mayor of the city were there to take part of the celebration and show their open support. Moreover, the occasion was sponsored by big corporations such as ING Group and TNT TV.

The Pride Parade is a big tourist attraction as well. It was estimated that during the last one there were more than half a million people who came to see the carnival.

If you are interested a more spicy and different entertainment for the weekend you might consider seeing the Amsterdam Pride Parade. A good idea would be to hire a car. Best Car Rental Amsterdam companies that operate in Amsterdam are Avis, Alamo, Dollar, Europcar, Thrifty, Hertz and Budget.