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| *Travel Tips>>>Netherlands Travel Tips |
Who cut and built Amsterdam's canals ? |
Travel Info What a fantastic city. I love it as my playground and find it fascinating, relaxing, sociable,organised and very accomodating. Who was there for the Dutch Queensday weekend ? Fabulous time? Travel Tips About a quarter of the city's territory consists of canals, waterways and lakes. Amsterdam is situated on the IJ, an inlet of the IJsselmeer lake that forms the oldest part of the harbour. The urban area of Amsterdam consists of 14 polders (areas of land reclaimed from the swamps) with 110 different levels, and is kept dry by 84 pumping stations. On the extreme eastern rim of the city territory, an artificial archipelago is being created that will form the future residential district of IJburg. Parts of the old city are some 60 cm above N.A.P., while outer suburbs are sometimes below sea-level. The lowest point (6.20 m below N.A.P.) is located in the north-eastern corner of the reclaimed Watergraafsmeer lake. Locks and (old) dykes protect Amsterdam against flooding from the IJsselmeer lake, the North SeaCanal or the Amstelland lowlands that lie to the south-east of the city. The canals The majority of the canals were dug by hand after 1612 and were initially intended to open up swampy land for city expansion beyond the medieval, walled moat. Only later were they used as waterways. It took 60 years for the concentric ring of canals - the Herengracht, Keizersgracht and Prinsengracht - to be completed. Although the last canal was not excavated until the 18th century, canals and waterways were already being backfilled in the 19th century to improve hygienic conditions in some of the dwelling quarters. Some 70 canals - many of them in the picturesque Jordaan district - have been filled in over the years and converted to conventional streets to cope with increasing traffic. The place once occupied by water has in many instances been turned into parking space. However, some canals may now be re-dug and returned to their original state. A recent survey showed that more than 60 per cent of Amsterdammers would be in favour of this improvement in the appearance of some of the most historic parts of town. Until 1872 the canals were linked up with the IJ and the Zuiderzee via locks. At low tide the city polder emptied and the AmstelRiver injected fresh water, while at high tide brackish water entered the waterway system of Amsterdam. This natural rinsing system no longer operated when the open link between the IJ and the Zuiderzee was cut off in 1866 by the Oranje Locks following the construction of the North SeaCanal. From that point onwards the Zeeburg pumping station performed the work of the tides. In order to rinse out the canals an average of 600,000 cubic metres of water per run are pumped into the city from the IJsselmeer. Until 1992 the canal water was replaced every night. This is no longer necessary; now the water is replaced four times a week in summer and twice a week in winter. Rock-bass, bream, carp and pike are back in the canals. The houses within the canal belt and nearly all of the two thousand-plus registered house-boats are also connected to the city sewerage system. The discharge of the soiled canal water via the North SeaCanal and the IJmuiden Locks can be blocked if the water in the North Sea rises too high in a westerly storm. If a westerly storm is combined with heavy rainfall, the locks around Amsterdam are all closed, just as in times of old. The normal water level of the canals is around 0.4 metres below Amsterdam Ordnance Datum, and is marked on the 16th century Montelbaanstoren on the Oudeschans canal. Since 1 January 1700 the water levels in Amsterdam have been recorded every hour by the former City Water Office (since 1997 the Amstel, Gooi and Vecht Water Board) - probably the oldest waterlevel measurements in the world. The IJ inlet The inland arm of the IJsselmeer lake (the former Zuiderzee sea) is sealed off on the eastern side by the Oranje Locks and on the western side links up with the North SeaCanal. The southern and northern banks of the city are linked by ferries, the IJ, Piet Hein and Coen Tunnels, and the SchellingwoudeBridge. Early 2000, preparations started for the North/South metro line that will connect Amsterdam North with Amsterdam South by 2007. On the northern side of the IJ is the Amsterdam Noord borough and the neighbouring Waterland, one of the most picturesque landscapes of Old Holland. To the southeast of the IJ the AmsterdamRhineCanal flows into the Amsterdam harbour basins between two flanking roads. Land was reclaimed from the IJ for centuries by pumping and piling up sand. Many prominent features of the old city are built on artificial islands constructed in this way, such as the Central Station and the Prinseneiland, Realeneiland, Kattenburg and Wittenburg neighbourhoods. Oosterdokseiland, the artificial island stretching east of Amsterdam's Central Station, is to become a cultural focal point in the Dutch capital, including a new public library that will be eight storeys high and will offer sufficient space for an anticipated 2.5 million visitors per year. Alongside the usual bookshelves, visitors will find 50 multimedia workstations, hundreds of PCs with Internet connections, and a foyer that is suitable for lectures, conferences and even theatre. The opening is planned for late 2006. Plans for what is fast becoming the Netherlands' biggest inner-city development project also include a new home for the Sweelinck Conservatory, the country's premier music academy. Meanwhile, the first pile in the foundations of a Centre for Modern Music has been sunk on Oostelijke Handelskade. The centre will provide a new home for Amsterdam's leading jazz venue the BIMhuis, and for the contemporary music venue De IJsbreker. Other plans for the development include the construction of office and shopping facilities. In the meantime, Amsterdam City Council is asking for suggestions for a striking new landmark in the old harbour area. The chosen location for the landmark - JavaIsland in the Eastern Docks - offers extensive views over the water and city, and is a focal point for anyone arriving in Amsterdam by boat via the North SeaCanal. Once, sailing ships moored along the edges of this artificial island. Over the past few years, JavaIsland has seen extensive residential development, with new apartment blocks designed by some of the country's leading architects. Plans already exist for a futuristic hotel and office complex on part of the remaining land. At the head of Oostelijke Handelskade, a hundred splendid cruise ships moor up each year at the new PTA Passenger Terminal Amsterdam. IJburg Archipelago The docklands of Oosterdok and Westerdok were reclaimed from the IJ in 1832 and 1834, respectively. In 1997, the City of Amsterdam decided to reclaim some more islands from the waters of the IJmeer lake, on the eastern rim of the local territory, off the coast at Diemerzeedijk and near the A10 ring road. This artificial archipelago of eight islands will form the future IJburg: a borough with 18,000 dwellings for 45,000 residents and a new IJtram line (tram 26) to Central Station. IJburg has been designed as a compact aquatic city with a complete range of public facilities and some 12,000 jobs close to home. The project did however encounter some resistance, especially from nature conservationists. A referendum held in the spring of 1997 produced a democratic 'Yes' for IJburg. In 1999, the shaping of the first new islands for 8,400 dwellings began. In the first half of 2005 about 1,000 houses and 2,500 residents already live on the new land. Approx. EUR 45 million is to be invested in promoting nature conservation around the new IJburg housing development. The first project was presented in May 2005. Called the 'Hoeckelingsdam', this is a one mile man-made dam like land mass that rises just above the water line, north of IJburg off the coast of Amsterdam Noord. The structure was made to support bird and fish breeding. It also supports many species of shellfish. Plans are being drawn up for ten more nature projects, including more special wetland biotopes and a nature park on the southern banks of the IJmeer lake. Together, the projects will create a 'circle of nature' around the islands of IJburg. The IJburg visitor's centre includes information on the City of Amsterdam as well as information on housing in the area. Tours of IJburg are also available on request. Address: IJburglaan 648. IJburg bridges The first bridges to the new islands were opened in 2001. Most of the bridges have been designed by Nicholas Grimshaw & Partner of London. All 60 bridges have numbers, except for three major entry bridges which have also been given names, starting with the first entry bridge (number 2001) on the west side of the islands. It is called the 'Enneus Heermabridge' after a former Dutch Secretary of State. The eastern entry bridge is named after a famous Dutch designer, Benno Premsala. The third major entry bridge is just for pedestrians and bicycle and is called the 'Nesciobridge' after a famous Dutch writer who lived in this area. This beautiful slender bridge crosses the Amsterdam Rhine channel from East Amsterdam to the Diemerpark. The IJburg project is scheduled for completion around 2015. IJsselmeer/ Zuiderzee The IJsselmeer is a freshwater basin which takes its name from the northernmost branch of the Rhine formerly running to the sea, the IJssel. Until 1.02 pm on 28 May 1932, the present inland lake formed an inland arm of the North Sea, known as the Zuiderzee. At that point the Afsluitdijk or Barrier Dam between Den Oever (Province of Noord-Holland) and Zurich (Province of Friesland) was completed. This had dramatic consequences for the former seafaring and fishing villages north of Amsterdam. The ZuiderzeeMuseum in Enkhuizen provides vivid testimony to the lost culture of the area. With the excavation of a new waterway for shipping in the last century - the North Sea Canal - Amsterdam had already freed itself from its dependence on the Zuiderzee, which was in the process of silting up. In 1986 the Province of Flevoland was created out of three reclaimed polders in the IJsselmeer. The green contours of the province are within the eastern range of vision of Amsterdam. For a time many residents of Amsterdam - especially from the older neighbourhoods - moved to the new towns on the former sea-bed, especially Almere, the fastest growing city in the Netherlands. Amsterdam also looked with interest at the last land reclamation project in the IJsselmeer, the Markerwaard polder, work on which had to be stopped in the 1980s because residents and nature conservation groups of the littoral towns were opposed to 'horizon pollution' by new land. Near the capital of Flevoland, Lelystad, the Amsterdam-based Central Bank of the Netherlands (DNB) has erected its 'FortKnox' to safeguard its euro-billions. The North SeaCanal In 1865 the Netherlands set to work to pierce the 'neck' of North Holland at its narrowest point, at Kennemerduinen near Velsen, thereby creating a direct east-west link between the IJ basin and the North Sea. The result was the 27 km-long North SeaCanal. Before then (1818-1824), a by-pass from south to north from the IJ to the Den Helder naval base was constructed: the 80 km-long NorthHollandCanal, starting opposite the Central Station. This hand-excavated waterway was, however, unable to cope with the increasing size of steamships, so that a more effective solution had to be found. In 1876 King William III opened the North SeaCanal and the two locks at the mouth of the Canal near IJmuiden, including the 'Zuider' Locks which are still in existence today. The larger 'Midden' Locks, with steel gates and electro-mechanically operated closing gear, were commissioned 20 years later and, until the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914, were the world's largest sealocks. The 400-metre-long 'Noorder' Locks returned that record to the Netherlands in 1930, but in 1989 the Beren-drechts Lock, which is 100 metres longer, was opened near Antwerp in Belgium. The locks complex has been under renovation since 1980. The city council is studying whether there is a need to construct a second large lock to increase accessibility for larger sea-going vessels and reduce the time it takes for them to enter the North SeaCanal at IJmuiden. Some 10.000 pleasure boats, 13,000 ocean-going vessels and 22,000 inland vessels pass through the locks at IJmuiden each year. When the canal was cut a new port was created at the mouth at IJmuiden (Municipality of Velsen), and this is now the largest fishing port in the Netherlands. In response to the shortage of steel following the First World War, the Koninklijke Nederlandse Hoogovens en Staalfabrieken blast furnaces and steel mills were established in 1918 - the sole ore-processing plant in Europe with deep-water access. Hoogovens - which has merged with British Steel to form the new company Corus - produces and processes some 6 million tonnes of steel a year. A large marina for ocean-going yachts has been built on the widened beach. Scandinavian Seaways operates scheduled services from IJmuiden to Newcastle-upon-Tyne. In the spring of 1998 the Dutch Minister of Transport opened a fast-ferry connection between Velsen and the Amsterdam Central Station that covers the length of the canal within half an hour. The Amsterdam-RhineCanal The canal was opened in 1952, providing a 72 km link between the port of Amsterdam and the River Waal at Tiel, crossing the lowlands of Utrecht and the Betuwe region. The canal shortens the journey by water to Rotterdam and the German hinterland and is suitable for heavy push-barge traffic. As a link with the Ruhr and Rhineland in Germany the canal is the successor to the Keulsche Vaart (1822) and the MerwedeCanal (1881-95). The canal is the busiest waterway in Europe. A 'bicycle highway' between Utrecht and Amsterdam-Zeeburg, which should also be suitable for use by skaters, is planned alongside the canal. Source(s): http://www.iamsterdam.com/introducing/na... Other Travel Tips i wasn't there but your question made me think of my time in amstersdam last year. best place i've ever visited, a very clean and organised city with hospitable locals. and for being such a cosmopolitan city they've managed to hold on to their identity as well. anyway, the canals were built during the dutch golden age in the 17th century and were built to solve housing problems and to make amsterdam a market leader in shipping cargo and freight to the rest of europe. The Dutch would have made the canals round Amsterdam, however it is probably that the canals are the result of draining the land rather than made for transport. Turks did. |
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