The Dutch government currently considers certain types of exercise like yoga and meditation ‘luxuries’, and a petition was started to have the VAT on these activities lowered from 21% to 6% in order to make them more accessible.

Many mental activities and types of exercise lower stress and have other proven health benefits. They’ve also been known to lower health costs and lead to more work productivity. If that’s a good thing, then why not make these activities a bit cheaper and in doing so, less posh. Good health should be for everyone, just like in our New Year’s wishes.

The petition needs 25,000 signatures to go to Parliament, so if you want to help, sign the petition. The site seems a bit busy, but that’s surely a good thing.

(Link: nieuws.nl, Photo of Getting fit by Fit Approach. Used under the terms of GNU FDL)

A trampoline centre in The Hague is the latest in a long list of businesses in the Netherlands to open in a former church building.

Planet Jump opened in the Martelaren van Gorcum church in The Hague earlier this month. Cheekily dubbed a ‘trampoline paradise’ by Den Haag Direct, they are open seven days a week. Have a look at the photos on their website.

Repurposing a ‘holy’ building may seem a little irreverent, but as we wrote earlier, it seems that people prefer repurposing over tearing down. These buildings have memories of baptisms, weddings and funerals attached to them, after all.

Also, in what other church could you achieve so many instant ascensions in an hour?

The name Martelaren van Gorcum means martyrs of Gorcum and refers to 19 catholic officials who were killed in 1572 by Dutch Protestant freedom fighters.

See also: The man who sells church interiors

(Photo of a trampoline park in Memphis by Memphis CVB, some rights reserved)