Kinderdijk

Whoosh. Can you feel the wind tickle your nose? Look up at the big blue sky. I have long arms that spin and spin in the breeze. I am not just one, but a whole family of tall friends standing together in a flat, green land. The land is full of water, like a big, splashy painting. We wear pointy hats and love to wave our arms all day long. Can you guess what we are? We are the windmills of Kinderdijk, and we live in a country called the Netherlands.

My story started a long, long time ago. Around the year 1740, the land where I stand was too wet. It was like a giant puddle, and people needed a dry place to build their homes and grow yummy vegetables in their gardens. So, they built me and my friends to help. My job was to use the wind. When the big wind blew, my sails would spin around and around. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. The spinning helped me scoop up the extra water and move it into a big river. This made the land safe and dry for everyone. Many families even lived inside my round brick walls. It was cozy and warm inside while I worked hard outside.

Today, new machines help keep the land dry, but I am still very important. I am like a wonderful storybook that you can see and touch. In the year 1997, people from all over the world said I was a special treasure that needed to be protected. Now, friends just like you come to visit me. You can watch my big arms spin in the wind and learn how people long ago worked with nature to solve a big, splashy problem. I love to see you smile. I will always be here to wave hello and remind you that even the wind can be a wonderful helper.