Groningen is the capital of the Province Groningen in the Netherlands. The city is also called the metropolis of the north. The city has 182.000 inhabitants and is therefore one of the 10 biggest cities in the Netherlands. The city is famous for it's variety in trade and industry. Groningen also has 40.000 students and that makes it a very young city. The nickname of the city is mollebonen and I have no idea what it means and I am a Dutchman. Groningen is probably founded in 4000 B.C. In the Medieval the city was a part of Friesland but because of its big influence it became a its own city called Groningen. The first university of Groningen was build in 1614 and its primary goal was to teach preachers.

There are also a lot of things to see in Groningen. In the second World War the city was heavily bombed especially the Big market that was liberated in April 1945. To remember this the people from Groningen build the Martinitower and the Martinichurch. It is a beautiful tower that is worthwhile to visit. On the east side of the Big Market there is the Martinigraveyard and the Princegarden, these are both very nice to visit in the Martinigraveyard you can find a lot of famous people.

On the west side of the Big market lays the fish market and on the south side of the market there are a lot of beautiful buildings. There is also another beautiful church there called the Der AA church on the northern side of the harbour. Groningen is also famous for its statues that you can find in many public places.

There are also a lot of museums and the most famous of all is probably the Groninger museum that is build on a artificial island and in the old building of this museum there is now another museum called the nature museum. A few other examples of nice museums are the Comic museum, the Western harbour museum, the shipyard museum and last but not least the smokers museum.

Groningen has many bars and caf's near the Big Market, the Fish Market and the Peperstreet. Groningen also has 2 red light districts. But it is more famous for his cultural world. It is nice to pay a visit to the Citytheater on the Turfsingel or the Oosterpoort on the Trompsingel.

Every January Groningen is the host for the Noorderslag-festival were the most important pop prize of Holland is handed out. This is a very big festival where you can find the biggest artists of Holland and a lot of drunk people of course. I have been there last year and I really had a great time and I'm probably going again next year.

To make a very long story short there are a lot of things to do and see in this magnificent city with a very rich history. I am sure that most people would appreciate this city when they visit it.