That's because northern Europe is in the midst of an historic cold spell. In The Netherlands temperatures are low -- down to -10°C or 14°F --, as the Meteorological Institute KNMI issued code yellow warnings for every province last night.
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| 2012 skaters on canal in Amsterdam photo courtesy of Zack Newmark |
The last time skaters were allowed on the canals in Amsterdam was 2012.
About a century ago the Dutch regularly participated in an event called Elfstedentocht, which means something like "eleven cities tour."
This is a 120 mile long speed skating competition running through eleven cities in Friesland, a northern province facing the North Sea. Due to global warming the Dutch have not been able to hold the Elfstedentocht since the 1990s but now with this current cold snap there are whispers that it might come back for 2018.
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| Hendrick Avercamp Winter Landscape with Ice Skaters c. 1608 Oil on panel, 87.5 x 132 cm Rijksmuseum |
Hendrick Avercamp provides the viewer with one of the earliest winter landscape scenes, dating to about 1608.
It should be noted, however, that most art historians believe Avercamp painted these scenes from the comfort of his workshop rather than on the street, a technique best understood from the vantage point of the viewer, which is above the town's rooftops.
Here it seems like the whole village is out on the ice, working and playing on a cold winter's day. 
By taking a closer look, the viewer gets a sense of daily life: from the humor to be found in the bare butt of a man leaving the outhouse, to the poignancy of the beggar -- is that a man or a woman? -- pursing for coins wherever she can find them.
Whether then or now, Dutchies are a hardy bunch who live, work and play with a stoic vigor for the land which is their inheritance.
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