Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: houses

The Zaanse Schans is a historic neighbourhood in the Zaanstad municipality, which was established by relocating wooden buildings and industrial mills from the Zaan district. To preserve as much as possible original of these timber buildings, in 1949 a special neighbourhood was set up to relocate the houses. From the middle of the 20th century the plans were elaborated. From 1963 many wooden buildings were moved to the Kalverpolder , where the Zaanse Schans was created. Although set up as a 'normal' residential neighbourhood, the area attracted more and more tourists. Between 1970 and 1974, the plan was expanded to include historic buildings and several replicas suitable for catering and tourism. Some of the buildings are now housing museums, small craft businesses and shops. In 1976, the Zaanse Schans became a tourist destination. Nowadays, it is one of the most visited tourist places in the Netherlands with more than two million visitors per year. The Zaanse Schans comprises approx. 30 inhabited houses, 15 commercial buildings/shops and 12 windmills . The neighbourhood has about 75 inhabitants. In 2010 the Zaanse Schans was designated as a protected village sight. The neighbourhood was named after the sconce, which “Diederik Sonoy”, governor in the service of “Willem van Oranje”, had built in the Eighty Years’ War to stop the Spanish troops.

Panorama of Zaandijk, seen from the Zaanse Schans Zaandijk is one of the most beautiful villages in the Zaan region. It is located on the banks of the river Zaan, opposite the famous Zaanse Schans . The village has a number of working windmills, but is known for its typical green-painted wooden houses, which are mainly located along the Lagedijk (main image) and in the vicinity Domineestuin (PiPs). The history of Zaandijk goes back to the year 1494 when "Hendrik Pietersz" got a permit to build a house on the lage dijk (low dike) along the Zaan. In 1570 the town consisted of 19 houses. These dwellings were burned by the Spaniards in 1572, during the Eighty Years' War. Zaandijk was an independent municipality until 1974, when it became a part of Zaanstad.

The Zaanse Schans is a historic neighbourhood in the Zaanstad municipality, which was established by relocating wooden buildings and industrial mills from the Zaan district. To preserve as much as possible original of these timber buildings, in 1949 a special neighbourhood was set up to relocate the houses. From the middle of the 20th century the plans were elaborated. From 1963 many wooden buildings from the Zaanstreek were moved to the Kalverpolder , where the Zaanse Schans was created. Although set up as a 'normal' residential neighbourhood, the area attracted more and more tourists. Between 1970 and 1974, the plan was expanded to include historic buildings and several replicas suitable for catering and tourism. Some of the buildings are now housing museums, small craft businesses and shops. In 1976, the Zaanse Schans became a tourist destination. Nowadays, it is one of the most visited tourist places in the Netherlands with more than two million visitors per year. The Zaanse Schans comprises approx. 30 inhabited houses, 15 commercial buildings/shops and 12 windmills. The neighbourhood has about 75 inhabitants. In 2010 the Zaanse Schans was designated as a protected village sight. The neighbourhood was named after the sconce, which “Diederik Sonoy”, governor in the service of “Willem van Oranje”, had built in the Eighty Years’ War to stop the Spanish troops.

Spaarndam is a small quaint village, which was was created around a dam where the river Spaarne flows into the IJ. This dam was built by count Floris V van Holland in 1285 (he was also responsible for the construction of castle Muiderslot . The oldest part of the village lies around the Westkolk . There you will also find the Kolksluis , the oldest working lock in Europe dating back to the year 1280. The village collected toll at the dam and people made their living from fishing. From 1812 to 1927, the western (oldest) part of Spaarndam was an independent municipality. Nowadays it belongs to the municipality of Haarlem. Spaarndam has always been strongly connected to water. It is also famous because of a story within the 1865 American novel, Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates . The story within the book is about a Dutch boy, "The Hero of Haarlem," who stuck his finger in a dike to prevent the town from flooding. The story became a popular legend in America. In 1950 the local tourist bureau put a statue of this character on the dam in Spaarndam (PiP5).

Schärding - located along the river Inn - is known as a Baroque town with its numerous Baroque mansions and historic squares. The town was first mentioned in a document in 804 as an agricultural settlement "Scardinga". Shipping and trade - first only salt, then grain, wine, ores, glass, cattle, wood and textiles - made Schärding a wealthy city in the Middle Ages. During several wars Schärding had to suffer from looting and destruction. In the last days of the Second World War in 1945 the Americans bombed the city from the Bavarian side of the Inn, destroying and damaging many houses. In 1966, fifty restored town houses were declared a protected cityscape. The best example of this can be seen on the north-eastern side of the Oberer Stadtplatz (Upper Town Square) with mansions from the 16th to the 19th century. This row of buildings is called Silberzeile (Silver Lane), probably because of the rich merchants who settled here when the Inn was still an important trade route. The pastel-coloured facades date back to the late medieval guild colours, some of which are still valid to this day: Red for the Butchers’ Guild, Blue for the Bakers’ Guild, Green for the Wine Merchants’ Guild, and Yellow for the Brewers’ Guild.

Werdenberg - located in the canton of St. Gallen in northeastern Switzerland - was first mentioned in a document dated 1289. Originally it was a fortified town and one of only a few to be granted market rights. It is the only wooden medieval settlement in Switzerland to have retained its town-like character. Werdenberg has around forty houses which have remained unharmed by major fires. The medieval timber-frame settlement exhibits an extraordinary variety of building designs. Vertical timbered and half-timbered buildings, along with squared log cabins can be found there. Walking in the ‘city’ it looks more like an open air museum, although it is still inhabited and most of the houses are privately owned. With less than hundred inhabitants it is most probably the smallest city in Switzerland. The town is dominated by Castle Werdenberg on a top of a hill (PiP1), which has a museum. A second regional museum is housed in the so called Schlangenhaus (Snake House) in the settlement itself (PiP2).

This was my first picture of Innsbruck after arriving by bus from Igls in the Old Town Area. Took the picture from the Marktplatz . Was there at the right moment in the morning, having the sun in my back and the beautiful light on the houses. The colourful row of houses in the Mariahilf area lies directly on the river Inn. They are typical for Innsbruck. The impressive Nordkette (North Chain) in the Karwendel range enthroned behind it with the beautiful houses must be a classic one among the city motifs. The buildings near the river Inn developed since the 12/13th century and preserve a true treasure of original Gothic spaces, even if some houses were largely rebuilt in the 17th and 18th centuries or their facades were renovated in the Baroque style. The relatively strong, varied colouring of the individual houses dates back to the 1950s.