Jun 08, 2026
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Drenthe’s Ancient, Hidden Soul
Discover megalithic tombs, Van Gogh’s muse, and the Netherlands’ most enchanting countryside.
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Love Netherlands
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Dear Netherlands,
It’s easy to miss the thing that makes the Netherlands special. It isn’t the windmills or the tulips or the canals, though all of those are real and beautiful. It’s a particular kind of attention — the way a Dutch baker arranges the croissants, the way a Dutch cycle lane goes exactly where you need it, the way a brown café has the same four regulars in the same four seats for forty years. Pay attention to that, and you’ll start to love the Netherlands in a way most visitors never do.
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Dwingelderveld-2. Photo: Herman-Jonkman / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 nl)
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In today’s email:
- The Quiet Kingdom: A Complete Guide to Drenthe
- At The Café — Café De Sluyswacht — The Leaning House Bar by the Lock
- Around The Web — Giethoorn Day Trip from Amsterdam: The Complete Guide, Dutch Surnames of Gelderland: Origins and Meanings, Rotterdam Day Trip from Amsterdam: The Complete 2026 Guide + more
- From Love Netherlands — Dutch Surnames of North Brabant: Origins and Meanings
- Dutch Food You Will Love — Erwtensoep — The Dutch Winter Soup That Made the Country
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The Quiet Kingdom: A Complete Guide to Drenthe
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The Quiet Kingdom: A Complete Guide to Drenthe Megalithic tombs older than the pyramids, Van Gogh’s brooding peat country, and the most ancient soul in the Netherlands An introduction to Drenthe Most visitors to the Netherlands never make it past the Randstad — the great horseshoe of cities that curves from Amsterdam through Utrecht down to Rotterdam and The Hague. That is entirely understandable. The Randstad is magnificent. But it is only one face of a country that is far older and stranger and quieter than the canal-house postcards suggest, and nowhere makes that point more forcefully than Drenthe. Tucked into the north-east of the country, far from the motorway hum and the tourist trails, Drenthe is the Netherlands’ most sparsely populated province. It is also its oldest. While much of the Low Countries was still submerged or smothered in bog, Drenthe’s sandy glacial ridges were…
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Have you been there? Do you have a memory of this corner of the Netherlands? Hit reply and tell us — we’d love to hear your story.
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At The Café
Café De Sluyswacht — The Leaning House Bar by the Lock
De Sluyswacht is a tiny lock-keeper’s house from 1695 that visibly tilts to one side, sitting at the edge of the Oudeschans canal. Inside the floors slope, the beams creak, and there’s a small terrace right at the water with one of the most photographed views in Amsterdam — straight down the canal towards the Montelbaanstoren. It’s been a café since the 1990s, but the building itself is one of the oldest wooden houses in the city. Order a Belgian beer, get one of the four outdoor tables, and watch boats negotiate the lock below.
👉 Visit the café
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Around The Web
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From Love Netherlands
North Brabant is the largest province in the south of the Netherlands. It sits between Belgium, Zeeland, and the river Maas. The province has a culture and history unlike the northern provinces. The surnames of North Brabant tell this story clearly. Many reflect the province’s Catholic faith, its Flemish connections, and its rich farming heritage. If your family name appears in this guide, your roots may lie in this corner of the Netherlands.…
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Photo via Love Netherlands
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Dutch Food You Will Love
Erwtensoep — The Dutch Winter Soup That Made the Country
Erwtensoep is a thick, green, nearly-a-stew soup made from split peas, smoked sausage, pork, celery, leek, and patience. The Dutch have a test for whether it’s ready — if your spoon can stand up in the pot, it’s done. It was the food of the canal skaters in winter, the men repairing dikes, the families waiting out a long January. It’s still served in every good café on cold days, with thick rye bread and butter. Order it once on a rainy afternoon and you’ll understand why the Dutch love their winters more than most countries love their summers.
👉 Read the full story
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