The Dutch town of Leiden in a university city full of activities, culture, music and street life. Its small size makes it ideal for walking, especially in its historic center crossed in all directions by its canals. Channels that, beyond the best known in Amsterdam, are the sign of identity of many towns in the Netherlands.

Leiden is one of those cities that, if you go to the Netherlands, you can leave aside when prioritizing other destinations better known by the traveler. But nonetheless, it’s worth a visit, and it’s only 40 minutes by train from Amsterdam, making it very accessible.

Its historic center is a monumental complex, mainly from the 16th and 17th centuries, which bears witness to its commercial and academic past. The Town Hall stands out for its Renaissance façade, the longest in the Netherlands. The House of Weights and Measures, in Waag, where the public balance was located, is also a remarkable monument, as is the Common House of the Water Authority, which managed all the hydraulic works in the region since the 13th century.

Remains of the castle -of Burcht- and of the fortifications and gates of the city tell us about the defensive needs of that time, as well as the mills that allowed the drainage of the waters. Various university facilities now occupy some of the fortresses, as well as museums, such as the Natural History Museum located in the old house of the Plague, outside the walls, which was used to accommodate patients with this plague, and which was also a mental hospital, barracks and prison. .

Like every Dutch city built around commerce and the wealth derived from it, the canals were – and are – an important nexus of communications and social relations. In the golden age they welcomed ships loaded with all kinds of merchandise to sell and buy. Now they are the scene of fun routes on boats of various sizes and purposes. And, when the university exams are over, they become one big outdoor party.

Some of the bridges that cross the canals are true monuments, like the Koornbrug with a beautiful Renaissance roof. Also noteworthy is the Visbrug, from the 12th century, where fish was sold.

University and research activity is breathed in the environment. To understand this importance you have to go back in history. Leiden played a leading role in the 80 years’ war against the Spanish occupation. It suffered a harsh siege in 1574 from which the city freed itself by destroying the dikes that allowed the access of ships with provisions to feed the besieged inhabitants.

Guillermo de Orange showed his gratitude to those who resisted in the battle, granting them –according to tradition- or a university or a tax exemption. The citizens chose the university. Even today they celebrate the date of liberation, October 3, with great parties. For this reason, the university, the students and the student residences are the greatest symbol of the city.

The oldest building and the heart of Leiden University is the Academy building, at the foot of the Rapenburg canal. In the 16th and 17th centuries it was one of the largest universities in Europe, where the most important scientists of the time and artists like Rembrandt, whose hometown was Leiden, attended. Already in the 20th century, Albert Einstein and Marie Curie were cited among those who investigated in their laboratories.

Quality museums throughout the city and leading research centers bring us to the present with constant publications and international academic references. Among the museums, the newest stands out, the Corpus, a gigantic building in the shape of a human that allows an interactive tour of the interior of the human body.

University cultural activity is also reflected in singular initiatives. Among these, the project Poemas en la pared stands out. In more than 120 facades of the center there are writings, in giant size, poems from all over the world.

The initiative, promoted by the Museum of Languages, has grown over the years. Scattered throughout the city there are poems in Spanish by authors such as García Lorca, Quevedo, Borges, Neruda, Paz, Eielson, in Basque by Ibon Sarasola, in Catalan by Salvador Espriu, and in many other languages, such as Hebrew, Russian, Japanese, Turkish, Indonesian, Sanskrit, Farsi, Tamazight, Papiamento, Urdu or Javanese….

Beside each one, a plaque contains the English and Dutch translations. A website allows you to read all of them in their original and translated versions, locate them on the city map, and even add the reader’s personal experience related to the poem.

In Leiden, located in the heart of the bulb region, there is also the oldest botanical garden in the Netherlands, the Hortus Botanicus, with more than four centuries of history.

The first large collection of tulips in Europe was cultivated in this garden at the end of the 16th century. The garden’s director, Carolus Clusius, was a great admirer of this flower from the Ottoman Empire, which became a symbol of social and economic status in the 17th century. That is why he started a project, which has survived to this day, that of planting and collecting tulips to preserve and learn more about this botanical species. Siebold also worked here, introducing into Europe more than 700 species -at that time unknown- of flowers and plants from Japan and China.

In addition to the tulips, the Hortus Botanicus houses jewels such as the giant Victoria Amazónica water lilies, with the largest flower in the world and inside which a child could navigate, or the Jade flower of the Philippines, which can reach 18 meters in height. height.

Throughout the year, the garden opens its doors to visitors and also to researchers working on one of the many scientific projects underway.