From a distance - or the heart of it all
Welkom weer bij Polderland!
Before I begin, I have to apologise for not keeping my promise of updating this CJ daily. My new job got the better part of me, and I guess I will have to move to a more realistically possible weekly update schedule...
Mijn excuses 
Anyhow, you might have been wondering what else I have in store for you. I've decided to bare it all and not keep you deluded any longer... Here it is:
Here it is - not that large, eh? I started it out on the smallest possible tile as a testing ground for the future, "proper-sized", Polderland. As such, this is a mini-Polderland designed to test out some concepts and ideas, as well as implement your suggestions and see whether it takes us closer to recreating the unique feel of Flevoland.
If you want a better oveview, here's a larger composite panorama: http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/416/polderlandbigpanorama.gif
Since I will be taking you to various areas of this small map in this and coming updates, detailing where I was coming from, I will not be boring you with a tour over the large map. I would just like to note I treat the left side of the dijk as "backstage", where I put all the stuff necessary for the town to function and grow (yes, it's naturally grown, except for stuff only available as ploppables). Hence the "magical" garbage-to-energy thingy, as the windmills didn't provide enough electricity. This is also why the canals suddenly disappear (sorry, you weren't expected to look beneath that curtain!)
OK now, today, let me acquaint you with this small town's small heart, i.e. what you would normally call a centre. Since you've already got an overview of the "bay" apartments, library and the pump (I must say I like my idea here 
) , I will focus on the "land part".
So, here it is, as you can see the entire "centre" is barely a block large.
I like this bit the most:
It might only be my impression, but I believe I managed to create a rather Dutch part of town, even if not necessairly very "Polder". Do tell me what you think, I am not afraid of criticism, on the contrary, please be frank and tell me all you think of it.
The buildings to your current left....
...are Polderland's Police Station (which I like a lot - it fits so many modern urban environments, both high- and low-rise, as it can serve both as a dominant and as a side dish) and Ill Tonkso's brilliant Princes House. I am not that sure about the inclusion of the latter one, as it does look 1920s rather than 1960s or later, but it does feel a bit Dutch to me and I need a W2W building. I'd love to hear what you think.
The office building...
...is another Ill Tonkso creation, the East Point. I am having an on-and-off thing about it, so I'd gladly hear your opinion. I might experiment with some other Tonkso/NDEX creations. To the left of the East Point is the Chase Bank Branch. It's missing some props and textures, since I am not a big fan of installing humongous amounts of "essentials" just to get the one thing I need - and I guess thusly it became more convincing as a local Rabo, ABN Amro or Postbank kantoor.
On the side of the library is the PKN building.
PKN stands for "Protestantse Kerk in Nederland", the largest protestant church denomination. Much in line with the BAT's and lot's author's intentions, I envisaged this building to be a loval community centre, with only a part devoted to actual worship, and the rest to other regular civic centre activities, though orchestrated under the auspices of the local PKN congregation.
To complete your tour of public service buildings, let's have a look at the local hospital and elementary school:
The hospital is really small (and, much to my delight, transport-enabled and connected!), as this little town does not really need anything larger. All the more serious cases would be treated further down the dijk in larger, specialist faclities. The building is not especially modern or impressive, so I thought of a backstory of it being one of the first buildings around, as it was needed back when the polder was still under construction, hence it had to be built fast, cheap and simple. This would also dovetail nicely with the motorway location.
The elementary school building is perhaps a bit more German than Dutch - but I will gladly hear what the Dutch readers make of it.
Finally...
What's a Dutch town without Albert Heijn? This supermarket chain is the essence of the Netherlands, bringing you all the groceries and other stuff you might need, Dutch style and this little bit upscale, allowing you to feel better about your daily shopping. I am an avid fan of Heijntje, and I am so glad Oppie provided us with this indispensable lot!
Also in the photo are twin Gobber's Office Buildings, which are meant here as a sort-of park. I didn't use the roundabout (or rotonde, if you please) nearly as much as Dutch urban planners do, but here's a nice sculpture to make up for it
OK, so that's it for today - unfortunately, due to time constraints, no modded pics today, this post will remain more "technical", as this CJ is intended to. Please comment, and do not limit yourself to a few words of usual compliments - I love them, but I really need to hear more from you to help me decide where to take it from there. Which buildings are OK and which should go away? Any suggestions regarding lots, BATs, props and mods I should use? Is the brown brick pavement OK with you? Please write whatever you think!
*** links to STEX uploads used and mentioned in this entry will be added shortly ***
TALKBACK
(I'll devise a neat header later on, excuse me again )
Aro0w - thank you very much! Care to expand on what you like and don't like?
Gecko_2006 - thanks a lot! Did I disappoint you with the ideas I had (not) in store? Anything you expected / hoped to see?
timomaas - Bedankt! Unfortunately, I am not a BATter, and a very poor lot/exemplar editor (I've had some really nice Dutch-style rowhouses I managed to corrupt with my "editing"), so I am only limited to whatever can be found on STEX (and perhaps LEX and SimKurier). Any hints on nice lots you've seen? Your input and opinion would be invaluable in assessing the "Dutchness" of this CJ, please do post extensively!
Gilikov1994 - Dank u wel! I am more familiar with Holland (and obviously, to some extent, Flevoland) than Zeeland, so that's what I am inspired by, and I'd love to hear a Zeelandse perspective on my creations.
mitsos - thank you, I am looking forward to hearing your opinion on this update!
PS. Nederlandse gebruikers, u kunt schrijven naar me in het Nederlands. Unfortunately, I won't reply in your beautiful language, as my entire command of it has been exhausted in this post, I am afraid
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