A picturesque city
Leiden is a picturesque city located in the beautiful tulip area of the Netherlands. The city is home to the oldest university in the Netherlands and also houses other research institutions such as the National Herbarium, with its extensive collections of dried plants, and the Royal Institute for Linguistics and Anthropology. In addition, Leiden is also known as the birthplace of several famous 16th and 17th century painters such as Lucas van Leyden, Rembrandt, Jan Steen, Jan van Goyen and Frans van Mieris.
Leiden has a compact, well-organized and lively city center. One pof the main characterisitcs of Leiden are the lovely canals. The city has nearly 2800 monuments, varying from courtyards to windmills and from churches to city gates. Actually, the entire city center of Leiden is a monumental center.