Buildings of Interest
Because of the economic decline from the 17th to the early 20th century, much of the 16th and 17th century town centre is still intact. It is reportedly the second largest 17th century town centre in the Netherlands, the largest being Amsterdam's town centre.
Many of the buildings in the centre are decorated with large murals of poetry, part of a wall poem project active from 1995 to 2005.
Read more about this topic: Leiden
Famous quotes containing the words buildings and/or interest:
“If the factory people outside the colleges live under the discipline of narrow means, the people inside live under almost every other kind of discipline except that of narrow means—from the fruity austerities of learning, through the iron rations of English gentlemanhood, down to the modest disadvantages of occupying cold stone buildings without central heating and having to cross two or three quadrangles to take a bath.”
—Margaret Halsey (b. 1910)
“Women hock their jewels and their husbands’ insurance policies to acquire an unaccustomed shade in hair or crêpe de chine. Why then is it that when anyone commits anything novel in the arts he should be always greeted by this same peevish howl of pain and surprise? One is led to suspect that the interest people show in these much talked of commodities, painting, music, and writing, cannot be very deep or very genuine when they so wince under an unexpected impact.”
—John Dos Passos (1896–1970)