Maastricht is the capital city of the Netherlands province of Limburg. It is located on both sides of the Meuse river (Dutch: Maas).

Maastricht developed from a Roman settlement to a religious centre, a garrison city and an early industrial city. Nowadays, it is known as a city of history, culture, local folklore and education, and has the second highest amount of national heritage sites (Rijksmonumenten) in the Netherlands after Amsterdam, numbering 1677. Furthermore, it has become known, by way of the Maastricht Treaty, as the birthplace of the European Union, European citizenship, and the single European currency, the euro. The town is popular with tourists for shopping and recreation, and has a large growing international student population. Maastricht is a member of the Most Ancient European Towns Network and is part of the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion, which includes nearby cities Aachen, Eupen, Hasselt, Liège and Tongeren. (info=Wikipedia)