Nijmegen is the Alternativ (hippy) capital of holland.

rainbows of color,
shadows of the past,
better left behind....

as lady time gently,
whispers.....

spiraling minds ascending,
ever seeking quiet and,
empty gains.....

awaiting heavens breath.

do do de do bop.......
do do de do bop.......deeeeee do do do
do do de do bop.......
do do de do bop....... do do do do
do do de do bop.......
do do de do bop.......deeeeee do do do

spiraling minds ascending,
ever seeking quiet and,
empty gains.....

rainbows of color,
shadows of the past,
rainbows of color

 

what does it mean? Nijmegen is the most WHAT of netherlands?

 

I know it now, I just read the therad's posting, I was into your argument about americanism and cultural identities, well I think it's impossible to deny that the "american way of life "is concept which has benn outspread throughout Europe since the last months(or years) of the world war II, that kind of Propaganda was issued step by step when the allied forces were liberating Italy, and then it outspread itself through the control of the global economy.So wait, it not just an imitation..
as well as..

 

...dutch business men were amongst the most effective in the commercial and financial fields(along with the english) since the 17th and 18th century and earlier too, if you think that all the tons of gold and silver the spanish and portugueish were stealing in the south america were finally handled by the dutch.pretty much the same of the more recent diamonds(including belgium now).So the two pattern are quite similar by the commercial point of view, whereas the differnce stands on the cultural and political(which was overwhelming during the cold war) impact. That's quite resumed my point.

 

It says:"oldest pink city in the Netherlands"

and pink is worldwide synonymous for gay I think.

 

sorry to dredge this to the top again, i got here late ...

dutch culture is becoming more and more like american culture, and i don't like it, and i'm from america. i only moved here about 2.5 years ago but i've been visiting amsterdam pretty steadily since 1975 and i've watched the change. i can see why americans get a little touchy about the term "americanization", after all we don't all individually want to feel "blamed" for the trend. but even if it's not politically correct, realistically it's hard to think of a more apt term. maybe it's not about blame. maybe it's about mourning. maybe 100 years from now everything will be the same everywhere. but right now, amsterdam still isn't omaha. i hope we can enjoy that and preserve it.

amsterdam looks old to americans, but it's really only been here for about 800 years. there's no guarantee this thing we love will last -- especially with the increasing pace of change and the epidemic of opportunism. to me, amsterdam is a beautiful jewel, part of the world's legacy. i would be sad to see its demise. whenever somebody asks "what do you want, an open-air museum?" i show them a photo of osdorp/de aker and say hell yeah.

is change unavoidable? yes. are some forms of change predatory and shortsighted? yes.

amsterdam as we know it *is* in jeopardy. i'm sorry, but it's true. if you don't believe me, just look at some old pictures of the area around waterlooplein sometime. and then look at waterlooplein today.
with that i now descend from the high horse ... sorry for ranting.

love
s g collins

 

Totally agree.. I think it's nearly impossible for a city to want to have that old historical vibe and be modern at the same time. Just look at what they are doing to the city with the 'NoordZuid-lijn' (the new metro line).. a lot of old houses have already gotten some serious damage, it costs tons of money and I really wonder if that new metro will bring that much more to the city. I dunno.. like you said.. change can't be avoided, but it can be directed in a way that is more true to the city I think. However, the 'open air museum' thing might not be the solution either.. just look at Venice.. that place really is losing character because it's so touristy and there are not too many natives there that keep the city vibrant on his own. I think tourists should always be an addition, not the main group of people. Hm, kinda hard to explain how I feel about this, but I hope you understand. There should at least be some balance..

I lived in Nijmegen for about 5 years, great city as well.. totally loved it and do miss it sometimes.. but the vibe is still pretty different from Amsterdam. For me, Amsterdam has more possibilities and challenges, that's why I moved here and still don't regret it. However, if I would have to live in Nijmegen again, I wouldn't mind it either.

 

yeah, move back! I miss you..

 

Owh... that's sweet. I have a better idea.. you move back to Amsterdam