IceFloes, Afluitdijk,Netherlands

Land of Water I took this picture the week of February 12th 2021. After a week of snow and ice, the thaw had started and the ice started to move and the ice floes were blown against the ‘Afsluitdijk’ Holland and water are inextricably linked. There is of course the famous coast, but behind it lies a fascinating landscape of ditches, waterways, canals, lakes and rivers. Our windmills, pumping stations, polders and dikes are world-famous. Nearly a third of our country lies below sea level. If Holland didn’t protect itself against the waters, half of Holland would be submerged. Making Holland a safe country was not easy: the Dutch had to fight for almost every square metre of land. Sometimes the people won, sometimes it was the sea. The large water engineering works of the past centuries, culminating in the Delta Works, are examples of our victories over the sea. How we manage our water and enjoy it can be seen and experienced in various places for example at the Afsluitdijk.