Although the Netherlands has many things going for it, one of those things is not -- at least in its cities -- great vistas. We've got scenery, of course, and much of it is wonderful, with modern buildings nestled together with buildings from the 16th century, and canals and boats and all that, but if what you're looking for is a "long distance view," they are few and far between unless you happen to live by the seaside.
Long distance views are important to us as human beings. We go to the Grand Canyon and gaze out at the view and we get high as a kite. Or we sit by the seaside and similarly get high and happy. I once read a fun fact about why that is. It turns out that the human eye is most relaxed when it is focused on infinity. Meaning not that spiritual kind of infinity, but vistas that are far away. Focus any closer -- as you have to do when indoors, or even in cities, and the muscles of your eyes have to tighten, and become constricted. The brain interprets this tightening of the eye muscles as tension, and reacts accordingly. But allow the eyes to finally relax by focusing on a distant view, and the muscles relax, and the brain interprets that as relaxation, and it starts to generate "happy endorphins." That's why vistas are perceived by most humans as relaxing and inspiring. Anyway, Leiden, like most Dutch cities, is flat. And all of the buildings are pretty much the same height, so it's not easy to *find* a vista or a view that allows your eyes to relax. That's why I laughed when I was sitting on a bench beside a canal today and looked up at one of the houseboats and saw, on a rooftop just visible behind it, two Dutch people who had climbed to the roof of their house and brought lawn chairs with them. It's not as if there is a real "deck" or patio up there or anything; it's just the top of their roof. But there they were, happy as clams, literally above it all, relaxing and taking in the view. Seeing them smile made me smile, so I thought I'd share a photo of it. In the main photo, you can hardly see them at all, but in the inset I've zoomed in a little bit to allow you to see them. [http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8435/7764615740_0e9997fac7.jpg] http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8435/7764615740_0e9997fac7.jpg <http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8435/7764615740_0e9997fac7.jpg>
