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Friday, 23 March 2012

Haarlem

Haarlem, formerly referred to as Harlem in the English language) is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic. Haarlem lies in the northern part of the Randstad, one of the largest metropolitan areas in Europe.
By the end of 2011 Haarlem had a total population of 151,853. The municipality of Haarlem also comprises part of the village of Spaarndam, a newer housing estate of this village forms part of the neighboring municipality of Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude.


Festivals
Every year in April the bloemencorso (flower parade) takes place. Floats decorated with flowers drive from Noordwijk to Haarlem, where they are exhibited for one day. In the same month there is also a funfair organized on the Grote Markt and the Zaanenlaan in Haarlem-Noord.
Bevrijdingspop is a music festival to celebrate the Dutch liberation from the Nazis after World War II. It is held every year on 5 May, the day that the Netherlands were liberated in 1945, at the Haarlemmerhout. At the same location, the Haarlemmerhoutfestival is also held every year, which is a music and theatre festival.
Other yearly events on the Grote Markt are "Haarlem Jazzstad" (a jazz festival), "Haarlem Culinair" (a culinary event) and the "Haarlemse Stripdagen" (Haarlem comic days).


Sports


There are several amateur association football clubs. Haarlem also had a professional football club, HFC Haarlem, which went bankrupt in January 2010. Another Haarlem based football club still in existence is Koninklijke HFC (Royal Haarlemsche Football Club). It was founded by Pim Mulier in 1879 as the first football club in the Netherlands, making it the oldest club in Dutch history.
Tennis club HLTC Haarlem, founded in 1884, and judo association Kenamju, founded in 1948, are also the oldest Dutch clubs in their sports.
Haarlem is known for hosting several international sports tournaments as well: the Haarlemse Honkbalweek (Haarlem Baseball Week), a baseball event held every two years at the Pim Mulier Stadium (named after Pim Mulier), and the Haarlem Basketball Classic, a basketball event.
The first international bandy match was played between Haarlem and Bury Fen Bandy Club.


Cultural references
Folk singer Al Stewart mentions Haarlem in his song "Amsterdam".
The train station of Haarlem was part of a set during the movie Ocean's Twelve.
The book Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire is set in Haarlem.
The book The Black Tulip by Alexandre Dumas, père has several scenes in Haarlem, most notably the ending, and it is the Horticultural Society of Haarlem that offers a reward for a black tulip.
In 1628 a chemist in Haarlem goes broke, and decides to join the VOC to sail to the East. His name, Jeronimus Cornelisz, will always be connected with the Batavia ship.

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