Cities free day - Zaanse Schans

For my cities free day blog post, I decided to write about my free day in Amsterdam, when we went to Zaanse Schans! This was one of my favorite days, so I was really excited to get the chance to write about it! Zaanse Schans is a neighborhood in the Netherlands, known for its historic windmills and houses. It serves as an open air museum showcasing Dutch heritage from the 18th and 19th centuries (Wikipedia). There was a lot to do there! We explored the windmills and walking paths, there were different crafts and snacks, and even a few museums. The neighborhood gives visitors a glimpse into the past of the Zaan region, which was a large hub for wind-powered industries (De Zaanse Schans).  


I believe Zaanse Schans is important both historically and culturally for a few reasons. First, it preserves and showcases traditional Dutch heritage. It highlights the Netherlands’ rich industrial past, specifically focusing on wind-powered production. This site educates its visitors about traditional crafts and foods, which creates a sense of appreciation for Dutch culture! In addition, with the large number of people this area attracts, it creates great support to continue preserving Dutch history and identity. Another reason it’s important is because through its preservation, it offers a glimpse into the Netherlands’ socio-economic development during the Golden Age. 


In my opinion, Zaanse Schans contributes to Amsterdam’s status as a cultural capital in many different ways. First, like I mentioned before, it showcases traditional Dutch heritage through its windmills, wooden houses, and craft workshops. This area allows you to feel like you’re in the industrial past, which is something I thought was really interesting! There is also a lot to learn about in this neighborhood, so the education aspect adds a lot to the city’s status. When people can learn more about the city’s history and artistic heritage, that makes for a great cultural capital!


Yay Amsterdam! 

Sophie 



Comments

  1. Betsy JonesJune 12, 2024 at 12:45 PM

    Great post Sophie! I love how you talk about how its like walking through the past, I felt the same way there. The Zaanse Schans definitely contributes to the city as a cultural capital because there is so much heritage there and its a great place to learn about the past, while also enjoying the beautiful buildings and scenery.

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  2. Theresa BellJune 13, 2024 at 2:23 PM

    This is a lovely post, Sophie! I loved learning about Zaanse Schans from this. Preservation of heritage really allows people to connect to their culture and history, which in turn helps them to keep it alive. I agree with what you said about how people learning from a city's history and artistic heritage making for a great cultural capital! There's something so special about seeing what it might've been like in the past.

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  3. EleaseJune 17, 2024 at 4:42 AM

    I love this blog post Sophie!!! I love that you talk about how this city helps us to understand Amsterdam because of these iconic windmills. This place helps to show Amsterdam as a cultural capital because it shows the fun different things you can do that has history like the windmills in Amsterdam.

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