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Amsterdam

Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands. The name is a derivative from Amstel dam, pointing to the city's origin: a dam in the river Amstel. The city is known for its historic port, the Rijksmuseum, the red-light district (de Wallen), the liberal coffeeshops, and the canals which have led to Amsterdam being termed the "Venice of the North".

During the Dutch Golden Age, Amsterdam was one of the most important ports in the world, with innovative developments in trade, and became the leading centre for finance and diamonds.

The city, founded in the late 12th century as a small fishing village, has grown to become the largest city in the Netherlands with a population of 743,104 inhabitants, spread over at least 172 nationalities.

The metropolitan area with Amsterdam at its center has a population of 2,2 million inhabitants and is part of the conurbation Randstad, with a population of 6,659,300 inhabitants.


Did you know ....?
Amsterdam is the financial and business capital of the Netherlands and one of the most important cities in Europe in which to do business. Many large Dutch corporations and banks have their headquarters in Amsterdam, including ABN Amro, Akzo Nobel, Heineken International, ING Group, Ahold, TomTom, Delta Lloyd Group and Philips. KPMG International's global headquarters is located in nearby Amstelveen, as is the European headquarters of Cisco Systems.

Though many subsidiaries are located along the old canals, companies are increasingly relocating outside the city centre. The South Axis is increasingly a financial and legal center, and is intended to become the new business-face of the Netherlands. There the recently expanded World trade centre also has its location.

The Amsterdam Stock Exchange (AEX) is part of Euronext, and is the world's oldest stock exchange. It still is one of the most important in Europe.

 

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The Netherlands

 is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba in the Caribbean. The Netherlands is a constitutional monarchy, located in Western Europe. It is bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east.

The Netherlands is often called Holland. This is formally incorrect as North and South Holland in the western Netherlands are only two of the country's twelve provinces.

The Netherlands is a geographically low-lying and densely populated country. It is popularly known for its windmills, cheese, clogs (wooden shoes), delftware and gouda pottery, dikes, tulips, bicycles, and social tolerance. A Parliamentary democracy, the country is also known for its rather liberal policies toward recreational drugs, prostitution, LGBT rights, abortion, and euthanasia.
 

Europe`s 10 biggest cities (incl. Russia)

1. MOSKVA / Russia
2. LONDON / UK
3. St Petersburg / Russia
4. BERLIN / Germany
5. MADRID / Spain
6. ROMA / Italy
7. KIEV / Ukraine
8. PARIS / France
9. BUCHAREST / Romania
10. BUDAPEST / Hungary