Thursday 22 March 2012

Nijmegen

Nijmegen, is a municipality and a city in the east of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is considered to be the oldest city in the Netherlands and celebrated its 2000th year of existence in 2005. The municipality is part of the "Stadsregio Arnhem-Nijmegen", a metropolitan area with 736,107 inhabitants (January 2011).


Nijmegen has four train stations: Nijmegen, Nijmegen Dukenburg, Nijmegen Heyendaal and Nijmegen Lent. The central station is connected to the national Intercity network. The bus company Breng (a subsidiary of Connexxion) operates the city buses in the Arnhem-Nijmegen metropolitan area.
Like most Dutch cities, bicycles are an important mode of transport. The city is connected to Arnhem, 18 km (11 mi) to the north, by a "fietssnelweg" (fast cycle highway) which crosses the Snelbinder bridge in the city. During 2010-2012 the cycle highway is receiving upgrades to further encourage the use of bicycles for transport between Nijmegen and Arnhem.
The river is a busy freight transport route, with barges to the city as well as passing through on the way between the industrial regions of Germany and the docks at Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Hook of Holland. The Maas-Waal Canal also carries freight through the city.


Africa Museum (African art and culture)
Museum Park Orientalis (ancient middle eastern buildings)
Valkhof museum (Roman and mediaeval history and modern art)
Velorama (bicycle museum)
Bevrijdingsmuseum (about World War II and the airlandings at Nijmegen)
House of t
he History of Nijmegen information centre about the history of Nijmegen; free entrance; expositions about a theme of the town's history; touch screen which leads you to the 50 highlights of the towns'history: 'Canon of Nijmegen'; reading table. The House of the Nijmegen History is situated in a unique mediaeval chapel 'de Mariënburgkapel'; its mission is to let enjoy people of the history of the town and to be a guide for everybody who wants to visit the oldest city of the Netherlands.


The municipality is formed by the city of Nijmegen, incorporating the former villages of Hatert, Hees and Neerbosch, as well as the urban expansion project of Waalsprong, situated north of the river Waal and including the village of Lent and the hamlet of 't Zand, as well as the new suburbs of Nijmegen-Oosterhout and Nijmegen-Ressen.


Sport in the city is principally focussed on its football club N.E.C. Nijmegen or just NEC, short for Nijmegen Eendracht Combinatie, who play at the 12,500 seat McDOS Goffertstadion. The club is in the top division, the Eredivisie, and qualified for the 2008-9 UEFA Cup.
Bandy Vereniging Nijmegen is the biggest bandy club in the country.
The city is also home to one of the country's oldest cricket clubs, Quick 1888, a current member of the KNCB. Formed in 1888, the club is the largest cricket club in the east of the country and was formed 13 years after the first club, Utile Dulci from Deventer. Moreover the Nijmegen Devils, is an Ice hockey club from Nijmegen.

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