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I will remember the Netherlands for many reasons, primary among them being the delicious stroopwafel, the supremacy of the bike, and the mind-bending fact that two-thirds of the country is below sea-level. It is this final point that I was and continue to be most shocked. Prior to visiting the Netherlands, I generally understood streams to run into rivers, and rivers run into lakes, oceans, and seas. And most importantly, at all times the water runs downhill. The Dutch have managed to manipulate this narrative, and two-thirds of their land owes its existence to this manipulation. Here, water moves up hill! It first seeps up from the earth. It is then pumped into canals of ever increasing height, and eventually deposited over an earthen wall into the lake or ocean beyond and above. One of my favorite memories from this trip was taking a sailboat through a lock and dam system that lowered us from the higher waters of the Markermeer to the sheltered water of the Lepelaarsplassen five meters below.

Back in the United States, as I continue my education, I hope to take with me the Dutch audacity to create landscapes traditionally deemed impossible. Water is such an important element of our profession, and the playfulness and creativity with which the Dutch approach it will continue to inspire me.

-Andrew Beck

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The first experience when exiting the Utrecht Central train station was full of bewilderment. The High tech clean design of the interior of the station was a stark contrast from where I was previously in Germany. The Exterior of the station was just as futuristic with a large non-human scale structure that resembled any other rhino model. The walk to the station continued the theme of chaos. The effort needed to navigate using my phones slow internet was almost overwhelming when mixed in with the constant line of bicycle traffic.

Two weeks later the Futuristic train station was a delightfully well illuminated space. The motion of the bicycle traffic became more manageable as you learned to just time out when you cross and learning the flow of traffic. The Netherlands for me began to make me question my own position on the idea of what is natural. The relationship that the Netherlands have with water is unique in the way they use water and the movement of water to shape and reveal land. The ability to create land from the absence of water takes a lot of intention. That intention is further translated to the orientation of the vegetation surrounding these new lands. The row plantings of trees that are all the same height can be a powerful space making tool but the way that it is done in the Netherlands seems like an attempt to make a pseudo nature. To me this attempt falls short only in that my own belief system of what nature is does not match theirs. The level of manipulation and control of the landscape suffocates it of having any sense of authenticity. In the same way that many people enjoy historic structures for the feeling of authenticity to me nature should evoke that same feeling of being genuine. The Dutch enjoy that they can replicate nature and so it is important to have that element in their designs that show human intervention such as row planting a forest. The importance of a long and open horizon was another important takeaway from the Dutch. I really enjoyed that multiple times a day in the Netherlands I would notice various things in the built environment and could tell a designer had a large part in the production.

This several week introduction to the Netherlands has been inspiring, and I will make another visit sooner rather than later.

-Dakota Carlson

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I was shocked by how many bikes there are in the Netherlands, It is truly unbelievable the effort and infrastructure that has been implemented making it easier to commute without a vehicle. No mater the city there are bicycle lanes down practically every street. It is clear that the cities we have visited here are making a concerted effort towards a cleaner and better environment from the vehicles to the coastal projects that are underway.

We have visited a fair amount of places, Rotterdam, Eindhoven, Amsterdam, Maastricht and Den Haag. These cities all had unique parks and architecture that didn’t fail to impress. The newer parts of Eindhoven came as a shock after having spent most of the time in Utrecht and making day trips to Amsterdam where the majority of buildings are older. Eindhoven on the contrary is newer, It was clear the WWII had devastated the city and rebuilding was needed. The bike rides and walks through the cities were exciting. The transportation and planning is very clever especially in Den Haag because of how complex the infrastructure is in the city. Projects such as the large dike project in the Markermeer gave me a new appreciation for engineering on a large scale which I hadn’t previously witnessed first hand.

My experiences in the cities we visited were enlightening and positive in many ways, but what struck me the most was the vast open landscapes and flat land that appeared to extend far beyond the horizon. Looking over Marker Wadden and Oostvaardersplassen brought feelings of joy and solitude. It isn’t often that I get to look onto an ephemeral landscape. it pleases me greatly to know these spaces are preserved areas; they are here now and will be here long after I’m gone. The sailing journey and fast design charrettes were inspirational to me because of their short timeframe and moreover the unique settings of each place that facilitated the creation of fresh ideas.  These experiences demonstrated a different side to the design process that I hadn’t previously envisioned. It showed me that not all design ideas are labored over for weeks but hours that gave urgency to iterate upon design ideas knowing time was of the essence. The talks and discussions with experts in the design field were also inspirational and eye-opening, along with the days packed with sight seeing tours, design projects and time spent exploring cities and natural parks. All have made me very aware that designing for longevity is most often the intention, but is only achieved when others can respect and strive for a united goal.

-Evan Furr

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The days we spent in Netherland create different ways of reading another country. I am often told that Netherland is famous for its design atmosphere. During the trip, we went to several cities. We read them from many perspectives. I have some impressions of them in general.

Firstly, the way they create their lands really shock me. The make the most use of their material. When they realized they need more lands, instead of using land area, they thought about borrowed the land from sea. Then they built dike and pump the sea out of the area and got the land to develop their county. I am really curious when someone raised this crazy idea, what did they feel about. During the process, did they hesitate some time about whether this idea could succeed.

Secondly, Netherland has different definition for nature. It kept reminding of the question we had in ecology class. What is nature? Obviously, in Netherland people mimic nature to create nature. All those national parks we have been to are all human made and controlled. To be honest, when I was there, it is hard for me to convince that the landscape was built by human. They share almost similar features. They all provide similar experience both for people and other creatures. I am wondering how seriously human can intervene nature?

The last thing is about design atmosphere in Netherland. They have strong design desire here. For example, we have been to many public places during the trip for example, open public square, city park, national parks etc. The benches are totally different. Not only do they have function and aesthetic features, they fit where they stay. I think those benches can only be put here. They are carefully thought by the designers. Also, in Netherland, they focus more on functionality. It feels like when something is created here, it definitely can be used to solve some problems. After that people will consider the authentic feature and others. Everything can be designed in this country.

-Yuingui Cai

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My first impressions of the Netherlands were that everything seemed so charming, so quaint: the sleepy canals, the 3 story homes, the bicycles. But as soon as one tries to walk across the street those impressions begin to fade. The quick and endless bike traffic, the cars that don’t slow down, the cooler temperatures and of course the lack of windmills. This last observation was actually very interesting. Windmills were once the main method of pumping water but nowadays we learned that it is mostly done with gas or electric pumps. This loss of a visual cue perhaps plays into an impression of tranquility. There are endless ditches, canals, gutters and the like and they mostly look calm, rarely giving off the sound of flowing water. They criss-cross the horizon in the country-side and in cities; a vast network that somehow empties into the higher in elevation sea. It’s all managed. It’s all controlled. It’s all be altered. The Dutch have been mastering their landscape for centuries. With the advent of climate change, the Dutch attempt to plan for the future. They embrace uncertainty and plan for the impossible. They learn from the past, what was good and move towards what could be better. So while the landscape may appear be bucolic and relaxed, there is actually a lot intentionality, management and anticipation going on as well.

-Matthew Kunnari

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The Netherlands is a game of perception: What can you see, What can’t you see? What seems off? What do you want to see?  

In a land where 50% of the land is below sea-level and topography barely shifts, except for the higher areas of the south, the stage is set for a large-scale dance between human and nature.  The polders, land reclaimed by the sea, make it feasible for The Netherlands to be the agricultural powerhouse that it is, but through a complicated series of dikes, locks, and canals that keep the North Sea at bay.  

Through this, opportunities arise to create even more than just land.  The Oostvaardersplassen is an experiment in large herbivore grazing as a way of bringing nature back to the area. But since everything inherently has to be so tightly controlled by humans, The Netherlands is able to address the complicated, conflicting, and emotional needs of humans within their grand land-schemes.

Our time here in the Netherlands was truly a crash course in the intricacies of humans and their environment, in a way where both are highly dependent on each other that is different from so many other places on earth. As future landscape architects, it is here where we can see how the extremes of our practice play out: the need to combine engineering, culture, innovation, and incorporating a keen sense of what it means to be human in a world whose climate is rapidly changing.

-Mattie Wong

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Our time in The Netherlands was just enough to scratch the surface of the complex landscape there. Prior to getting to the Netherlands, I didn’t know much about how the Dutch managed water or land. It was fascinating to learn about just how heavily managed and engineered every square foot is. Seeing the creative ways in which relationships between land and water were negotiated, inspires and challenges me to push my thinking in the future. This was especially evident when we went to visit the Marker Wadden, the islands that were recently constructed in the Markermeer.

From an urban planning perspective, the Dutch have invested heavily into their bike and public transportation infrastructure as well. We were easily able to reach any city by train and then typically explored each new place by bike as well. Although it was sometimes stressful trying to cross a stream of bicycles during rush hour, it was interesting to see the level of investment in bike lanes and bike parking garages, and how this related to the biking culture throughout the country as well.

-Anya Moucha

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During our first week in the Netherlands we traversed the edges of the Markermeer by bus. This tour was our introduction to the history and philosophy of water in the Dutch landscape, a primer to the dikes, pumping statins, and canals we would become very familiar with in the following weeks. Before our stay in Utrecht and our bus excursion, I had little concept of the magnitude of water infrastructure and control throughout the country. Cruising around the Markermeer, I was amazed by the clean lines and stark transitions in the landscape. The sharp geometry of sod covered dikes tracked our entire journey, the constant side slopes reached down to the water on one side and to a paved road on the other. Expansive vistas across the lake drew our eyes to unobstructed horizon lines and pillow-like white clouds.

As our time in the Netherlands continued, I discovered much about the subtleties of water dynamics beyond the incredible views and engineered lines that immediately caught my eye. I learned that the difference between a couple centimeters of water can be completely monitored and does, in fact, matter greatly. I also learned that the Dutch concept of nature and control of water is not hesitant or fearful of human intervention. We were able to see and learn not just from the edges of the water, but on the water as well. On one of my favorite days in the Netherlands we sailed to the Marker Wadden. Walking on the human constructed island was an incredible experience that provided an entirely new perspective of the surrounding water.

Almost every day of our stay in the Netherlands we were able to travel to a different city. I was thrilled to explore Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Eindhoven, and Den Haag to name a few. Some of the best days were those we were able to cycle through these cities. The separated bicycle lanes, floating roundabouts, trails, and cycling community may be what I miss most about our time here. There is something about watching herds of cyclists weave down a street- babies on board and packages in hand, that continues to fascinate and excite and will hopefully lead me back to the Netherlands in the future.

-Sydney Shea

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The Netherlands is a country in which the perspective of the human relationship with nature is fundamentally different from that of the U.S. Every square centimeter of this country has been designed with a functional intent, and the resulting effects of ecosystems that seem to benefit both human and non-human life. The concept of “novel ecosystems” is a hot topic in the U.S. currently, but the Netherlands has been embracing this as a simple truth and way of life for centuries.

Perhaps the most extreme example of such human intervention occurred roughly one century ago as the enormous estuary of the Rhine River as it flowed to the North Sea was cut off, turning an immense brackish, transitional ecosystem into a freshwater lake on one side, and the sea on the other.

One more lasting impression from the Netherlands that will bury itself into my design consciousness is the way in which cyclists and the rest of the transit modes interact. I bought a bike on my first day in Utrecht and rode it somewhere nearly every day that we were there. Being a part of the bike infrastructure was something I will never forget. It is likely impossible that the U.S. will be able to promote bike infrastructure similar to that of the Dutch in my lifetime, or in the lifetime of my great grandchildren for that matter, but it is something I would like to urge in my work as a landscape architect. Nothing good ever started by someone saying “that will never happen.”

-Will Linscott

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The Netherlands is a difficult country to wrap one’s head around. It is entirely curated, meaning every square centimeter of land has been created or managed by human hands. There is a saying, “God created the Dutch, but the Dutch created the Netherlands.” That attitude that reflects a matter-of-factness rather than hubris. Rather than move land, the Dutch have simply determined to move and live with water. More often than not, the typical Dutch person is relatively unaware of the precarious position in which their country lies: somewhere between sea and land.

The foundation of Dutch culture stands on peat and marsh. Their hands constantly churn the earth and divide waters. Gardeners on a massive scale, the Dutch have come to view water as waiting land. They are continuously captivated by the horizons which they have created.

It isn’t difficult to imagine that one day this could all wash away, whether taken by slowly creeping seas or in an instant of technological failure. But as a visitor examining these issues, I learned that the Dutch always have a plan.

-Will Metcalf

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Dutch are the master of moving water. As one third of the country is below sea level and half of the country above 1 meter, they have to build very complex water infrastructure to pump, block, transfer water. Also visionary, I remember Jan Wouter said Netherland will build infrastructure for the next 100 to prevent climate change. I think this is one of the reasons why Dutch can win the constant battle between nature and people.

The connection between different transport in Netherland is astonishing. Two examples: first experience is the trip from Roma to Utrecht, I did not need to step out of the building, as the Amsterdam airport is at the same building as the train station. Second experience, throughout Netherland, I only need one card to take all the buses, trams, trains, we been to at least six cities in the country.

In many counties, autonomous vehicle is considered the next step for car’s future, but fundamentally they are still cars on the street in next 20-30 years, and today, many people riding bikes in Netherland, this is a different way to approach “car’s future”. After seeing how the bike system could be in Netherland, I have to rethink and reimagine what a “car’s future” looks like.

-Jiangchen Zhu

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Coming from Barcelona Spain to the Netherlands was quite the culture shock. From the difference in climate to the people and interactions, it felt worldly different.  It took me a week or two to adapt to the flow of Utrecht and the cold weather. Getting to know Utrecht and the surrounding cities made me realize they all had their own unique, subtle characteristics and everything was not completely monoculture. That being said, I want to compare cities based on the different types of circulation infrastructure, water infrastructure and the way each city felt to me based on the surrounding architecture.

Starting with Utrecht, the city we called our home base. Our first day felt hectic, as it was so different from Spain. Right away we were faced with a wave of commuters on bikes, whom do not slow down if you are in the way. We had to learn quickly what all the marks and signals on the ground meant, for example the triangles that were painted and facing towards you meant that you were the one who had to yield to the cross traffic.  Although Utrecht had a hectic city center, the gradient in between city, suburbs and rural area was a fast transition. Within a ten-minute bike ride, you will find the edge of the city, as the city itself is not so large. In Utrecht there are many canals that cut and divide the city into the compact neighborhoods. Water literally surrounded the city and gave Utrecht an interesting network.

The first city we traveled to outside of Utrecht was Amsterdam. In some ways it felt similar to Utrecht with the canals along side the roads and housing structures that gave no wiggle room. In other ways, Amsterdam felt very crowded with a constant flow of people, bikes and cars. A neat project we checked out that week was the Noord 4 co-op area. This area was forward thinking and progressive due to the effort to use repurposed materials. The co-op collaborative work units were built from old boat houses that were not in the water, rather they sat above polluted soil as this area used to be a shipyard. With some thought on phytoremediation, using plants that can soak up heavy metals, and using a board walk to separate us from the ground with minimal disturbance to the plants that are at work. Similar to Utrecht, Amsterdam had is neighborhoods that resembled the Center of Utrecht, old, compact and divided by canals.

In the following few days, we traveled around the perimeter of the Markermeer on our Pollard Tour. We stopped in many cities around the lake, most of them seemed like small towns. It was interesting to see how connected people were with the lake, from the many boats and house boats in each harbor to the daunting reminder of the dyke walls which is what keeps everyone and their properties dry.  It was fascinating to learn that most of the cities in the pollard were below sea level and water was constantly being pumped out to make it a livable land. Aside from water infrastructure, bicycle paths also road the perimeter of the Markermeer but the vast distances thinned out the amount of people using them. The only people we saw using these paths were people who looked like they were training for the next Tour de France. A lot of the landscape around the Markermeer was rural plots of land, with cattle, horses or sheep on them and very separated from urban areas.

Traveling North on a ferry from Den Helder, we find ourselves in the direction of Texel. Much like the surrounding landscape near the Markermeer, it’s an open, vast and rural landscape. On a different mode of transportation from the pollard tour, we were pedaling bikes across the windy undulating hills.  Even as rural as Texel was, they were fairly progressive with the amount of bicycle infrastructure around the town. Further on our bike ride we arrive to the entrance of the National Park Duinen Van Texel. This national park was nothing like I have seen before, beautiful sand dunes, naturally formed by the wind, precipitation and time.  Eventually the path lead out to a large beach on the North Seacoast, and gave a sort of compression and release experience. This area resembles what the Netherlands would have looked like on the coast if these lands were never colonized and modified.

Contrasting the naturalistic sandy dune landscape with a progressive city, Eindhoven sets a great example of how to repurpose unused buildings.  On our tour around the area, we came across an old factory from the Philips Company, which was converted into co-op office space. The main floor had different types of venders from an ice cream shop to a miniature flea market. Right next to the converted factory was an indoor skate park called Area 51, which was the biggest indoor skate park I have ever been to. Aside from the skate park, again, we can say the Dutch have an excellent bicycle infrastructure system. On our bike tour with Mayke, we rode to two very different bicycle roundabouts. The first one was an elevated path that completely eliminated the possibility of car on bike collisions as the path was above the street. The second location was an infamous roundabout named Berenkuil. It was not so popular for its bicycle infrastructure, but rather the walls around it as this is a spot where graffiti is legalized.

The last city that really stuck out to me was Den Haag for its environment and infrastructure. To me Den Haag felt like a combination of many different cities, from the sand dune landscape in Texel, to the futuristic elevated bicycle path in Eindhoven, and an old city center like Utrecht. One big difference that Den Haag had from each one of these cities was that there were not designated bicycle paths; it was kind of a free for all. Being a local probably would have help getting used to the chaos of the many different paths everyone takes. People seem to embrace the chaos of their surroundings and go with the flow, weaving in and out of people who are walking rather than biking.

In conclusion the Netherlands has a far more advanced bicycle infrastructure system in all of their cities compared to the United States. We are far behind them in this sense as we still relay primarily on vehicles. Equally behind in the game, the way the Dutch control water, as well, blows my mind.  Having to constantly pump water out to keep the pollards dry takes a heavy amount of engineering. Although the Dutch almost annihilated their ecology in the Markermeer, they are moving forward to try and correct their mistakes.

-Nikolai Fjelstad DeSantiago