Re: Obviously the solution is....
"The Netherlands seems to be rather warm in winter... being a marine climate probably helps."
Really?!?!
How come then that when I had a 6 month contract in Amsterdam including the Christmas period, the canals started icing over. Not completely, admittedly, but any ice forming in the main city canals would seem to indicate a temperature below zero.
I can also vouch for the temperature as I cycled from the Jordaan district out to near Schipol/Amstelveen most days.
Icon, because I needed a bit of this after my journeys to and from.....