If you haven’t realised it already, it is December – one of my favourite months in the year.  And just what Dutch goodies can you look forward to for the month?  Here’s a small selection.

• Dickens Festival – Visiting Deventer from the 17^th of December until the 18^th of December might make you think you have stepped back in time and understandably so, as the historic city centre will provide the backdrop for the Dickens Festival.
• Holiday Performances – It is always around this time of year that we get extra/special performances of classical concerts and performances like A Christmas Carol.  If you are living in Den Haag, then you might want to take a look at these performances.
• Oliebollen – You may have been able to get them since November but it is December, and in particular New Year’s Eve, that these are eaten.  If you’ve not had one then let me describe them for you.  Oliebollen are a variety of dumpling or doughnut made by dropping dough into a deep fryer filled with hot oil.  They are then usually served with powdered sugar.
• New Year’s Eve Fireworks Rotterdam – It may sound like World War III on the night but it isn’t until midnight on December 31^st 2011 that the national firework display will light up the sky around the Erasmusbrug in Rotterdam.
• New Year’s Dive Scheveningen – Okay, technically this one falls into January but I wanted to make sure that I gave you plenty of warning.  The description on Holland.com’s website is too perfect to change, so here it is in all it’s glory:

“Celebrate the New Year with a typical Dutch tradition: a new year’s dive. There are over 60 locations in the Netherlands where you can jump into the sea or a lake. No matter how cold it is, at least 25.000 people plunge into the freezing water each January.  

The tradition started in 1960 when a swim club decided to start the year fresh with a plunge in the sea. The New Year’s dive received national attention after a big soup brand decided to sponsor it. From that moment on, the amount of participants and locations has increased every year.

The New Year’s dive is cold, bold and the best way to start the year fresh. The largest dive is held at the beach of Scheveningen, where well over 10.000 people plunge into the sea each year. This spectacle is also great to watch from the sideline.”

What are you looking forward to in December?