Dutch Canals

Why are Dutch canals beautiful? - My personal take on where I think the beauty comes from.

Here are 4 reasons:

First: Let's talk about history for a split second. Because this canal here in Haarlem (de Nieuwe Gracht) has been here since the 17th century. You could say that just the scale of such a construction, and definitely the time when it was built, and the fact that it's still here, explains why we consider waterways like this one to be beautiful.

But I would argue that there is a second reason: contrast. Let me explain: it's the resource that flows through the canals itself. Water is in contrast to the brick structure, a natural thing. Water is something we are used to seeing in rivers and in the sea, so this combination of something natural, and unpredictable like water, flowing through this human-created, straight, cold, brick waterway is what also adds to the beauty.

Not just that, but there is a third reason why these canals are so beautiful. They are of course part of the city and the city layout. And by that, I mean the massive old buildings that were carefully constructed on the side to add to the beauty of the Dutch canals. They are of course inhabited by the richest residents and companies of the city and are in a way part of the canal itself. 

The fourth and last reason is a little bit more philosophical, but I like to look at it in this way as well: Water is literally and constantly adjusting to whatever shape it needs to take to manoeuvre itself through a landscape. Rocks and bricks represent strength and firmness. You might think that the bricks are stronger, but the water is in fact just as strong, because of a different power that the bricks don't possess: it can constantly move to a new place. 

This also applies to our own way of thinking and acting in the world. So please allow me to end this post with a metaphor. We can be firm and rigid in our opinions and stances on how to act, and sometimes you need to be like that (like bricks). But we can learn an important lesson from water. It is to flow and leave things behind and go around things so we can reach new places (like water).