Netherlands Overijssel

Deventer is a municipality and city in the Salland region of the Dutch province of Overijssel. Deventer is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, but also has a small part of its territory on the west bank. In 2005 the municipality of Bathmen (pop. 5,000) was merged with Deventer as part of a national effort to reduce bureaucracy in the country.Deventer is home to incredible architecture, with parts dating back as far as 12C. The city has many churches, museums, markets, and several medieval buildings.

Giethoorn used to be a carfree town known in the Netherlands as "Venice of the North" or "Venice of the Netherlands". Giethoorn has over 180 bridges. It became locally famous, especially after 1958, when the Dutch film maker Bert Haanstra made his famous comedy "Fanfare" there. In the old part of the village, there were no roads (nowadays there is a cycling path), and all transport was done by water over one of the many canals. The lakes in Giethoorn were formed by peat unearthing.

Kampen has one of the best preserved old town centres of the Netherlands, including remains of the ancient city wall (of which three gates are still standing) and numerous churches. Also notable are the three bridges over the IJssel which connect Kampen with IJsselmuiden and Kampereiland. A number of better or lesser known people with a certain connection with Kampen is honoured with a commemorative stone bearing their name and a single-sentence characterization of their personality or achievements, incorporated into the pavement of the Oude Raadhuisplein, the square in between the old town hall, the former Post Office and Nieuwe Toren.

Ootmarsum is a town in the Dutch province of Overijssel. It is a part of the municipality of Dinkelland. It received city rights in 1325. The town was then converted into a fortress with ditches and earthworks. It was then occupied by the Spanish during the Eighty Years War but in 1597 was captured by Maurice, Prince of Orange. A cannonball from the siege can be seen today still embedded in the church. Ootmarsum was a separate municipality until 2001, when it became a part of Dinkelland.

A lengthy row of farms was built, becoming the 7 miles long village of Staphorst-Rouveen. This phenomenon is called in Dutch: lintbebouwing (ribbon urbanization). In many parts of the Netherlands this type of village is quite common. A specialty for Staphorst is, that after a farmer's death, his land was often divided between his sons. The son who didn't inherit his father's farm built a farm-house for his own behind the other. Therefore, many pieces of farmland are very lengthy, yet narrow. The farms are of the traditional Low Saxon type. They have green doors and window shutters. Most farms existing now were built between 1850 and 1910.