Holland

The country is called orange and the people seem more or less nice. In a country which amounts to just nearly half of the state I am from in India, with a population of 17 million ( thats what people tell me), with trains running from the east west end of the country in 4 hours, I find myself after a quarter of a century in my life. At best I will try to describe whatever i could learn from the first 7 days i have been in this country. I plan to be in here for 4 years.
1: Common notion is Dutch people are tall . Not exactly , you have people my size too in here . And that is heartening.
2: The dutch language is very robust. Every word comes like a Boom ! when you hear it.
3: Dutch people are friendly. Even if you meet a stranger while cycling on the road, whom you don't even know, he/she will smile at you and say Hello
4: The country is actually quite beautiful. It is quite green though i am yet to see flowers .
5: Instead of cows grazing in pastures you have horses grazing. Some places i have found sheep too. There are cows too but their size would give Indian cows a complex !!!
6: The land is actually under sea level. However if you look at the endless canals around the place , the water and land seem to be of the same height. This is because the Dutch have actually shut out the sea using dykes.
7: Dtuch shops close at 5 PM every day and the entire day on sundays. Even shop keepers adhere to the timings of indian office goers.
8:The weather is quite dark and gloomy, with a light drizzle all around. On days it is sunny , it is a party for people. They gather around lakes and have a nice time.
9: Dutch people have sturdy legs. They ride bicycles at speeds i cant imagine. I am trying hard to cope up with them.
10. The traffic system is opposite, you drive on the right side of the street. There are separate lanes for bicycles. Unlike India, cars in here stop at junctions allowing cycles to pass first.
11. Apart from the obvious reasons amsterdam and entire holland can be famous for their chocolates also
12: The Dutch really like their football. And they know how to play it
13: Entire European youth love to party. Dutch people are no exception.
14: The centre of a dutch city is always the highest point. This always has a church. This is because when in earlier days the land used to get flooded, the church would always be dry and the people would take refuge there.
15: At night it is mandatory for bicycles to have lights.

More or less this is what i found out
Rest soon to follow