[Ep. 1102] The strange border in Kerkrade/Herzogenrath runs though the middle of a street called Nieuwstraat in the Netherlands and Neustraße in Germany. How did this border end up at such a strange location and how do people treat the border now?
More information in the blog post: https://bicycledutch.wordpress.com/?p=27450
See also the ride video: https://youtu.be/fQaQ1IsNoBU
34 Comments
In North America there is also such a town that lies both in Canada and the USA but unlike here you are NOT allowed to just cross the road and walk to the other country!
God I love to live in Europe!
There used to be a tram 😭
What you witness here is the pervisity of post WW2 bureacratic decision making. Neighbors across the street pre-war all of a sudden were labeled victor and loser post war.
That Belgium, Germany, and the European Netherlands are all in the Schengen Area and European Union ( 1:14 ) makes travel across those borders generally frictionless. Driving between two points on the island of Ireland also generally does not involve border controls, with the post-Brexit customs border between Great Britain and the island of Ireland in the middle of the Irish Sea.
Lived in Aachen for a while, it was awesome to be "between" Germany, Netherlands and Belgium. The regional connections there are better than some eastern European countries have between internal cities. It is still so weird however how just a few meters and people speak a different language, a few meters the other direction and it is an entirely different language group.
The only other city that gave me such vibes is Basel, but it is still so cool that such places can exist
Two countries, one road. Also known as Hungry Bicyclists.
😀 😀
Mark, you are a true promoter of cycling!
I bet the petrol station is on the right side.
Was the town of Dinxperlo a bit similar to this? I remember seeing that on a isit there.
Dinxperlo-Suderwick is precies hetzelfde.
Not unique… Look at Heelweg / Hellstrasse in Dinperlo (NL) – Suderwick (DE). The road is dutch, the pavement on one side German.
Lived there close by, for a little while.😊
I’m from Australia and I can’t tell the difference between Dutch and German words.
Bring back the tram!
Dinxperlo and Suderwick have a common street, be it that the road is Dutch and one of the sidewalks is German.
Iam a local there
Putte in the Netherlands and Belgium is like this too. The street called Grensstraat divides the town. But the language is the same, though I wonder if you hear a different accent when you cross the street lol.
Most importantly there is one thing we really do not need: Fences, walls or anything that separates us from each other.
One street is 4 times World Champion and the other street is not! 😂
When I lived in Germany, I noticed a striking difference in service culture just 3 km across the border. I used to visit the German McDonald's where the staff were often rude and unpleasant (to me, as a British guy), but then I would cross over into the Dutch town of Heerlen and find the service at their McDonald's to be lovely, smiley, and wonderfully polite. It truly astonished me that two neighbouring countries with such similar languages could have such vastly different approaches to hospitality and temperament.
In Dinxperlo/Suderwick you have the Heelweg which is the same situation
I'm really glad to live in Germany and Europe and not there.
😀 https://youtu.be/W4SYoWapSdA?is=Wo3XdaxQ8rIC7j3M
So funny this happens xD
This is the most visible sign of the TRUST that the European Union helped to build between countries which were involved in wars for centuries. Just compare this situation with the CANADA/US border under the Trump administration !
Baarle: A new foe has appeared!
Where is tram?
Na ja, wie in Berlin. 😉
Ich mag's, wenn es bunt durcheinander hergeht. 😁
It’s always funny to visit the Kaufland in Herzogenrath and more often than not, hear people around me speak Dutch and at other times, walking to the nearby Jumbo and Action and hearing German all arounf me, I’ve always lived near Kerkrade and now actually in Kerkrade.
Hoe zit dat met de grenscontroles van de Duitsers?
I wonder how the procedures work for building something right on the border
Hi, why don't the governments exchange land to make it easier for the people?
This is the most Assinine national border that I ever saw! In America we know exactly where we are!
Well… Total next to, nebeneinander. Gulden or DM, not mandatory – because EUR. For Dummies, Kerkrade not in nord Brabant !
I live near that street