Zaanse Schans Dutch windmills in green and white Bottle Opener

When you're on holiday or vacation in Holland visit the famous wooden windmills of the Zaanse Schans open air museum. These are real working original windmills of the Golden Age of Holland. The Zaan region derives its name from the river Zaan, a wide and lazy wetland river along which many settlements can be found. Due to the rather poor farmland which really is only fit for some cows, the Zaan people applied themselves to industry. And before the steam age that meant windmills. First they started with whaling and the processing of its parts. Later they added timber from the Baltic. Now the Zaan region is a major producer food items, either in bulk or in finished products like cookies, snacks and chocolate. In the Zaanse Schans you will see a lot of traditional economic activities. For instance a mustard windmill and a saw mill.