Did you already go Dutch?
How do you know that you are too long in the Netherlands? According to this list, there are up to a hundred reasons. EM asked international students if they took over some of the Dutch habits. In other words, did they already go Dutch?
Alina Shevchenko, exchange student Sociology (From Ukraine, in the Netherlands since 1 month)
“I love it here, I am even thinking of changing my six months exchange into a full year exchange. The people here are very nice and there is always something to do. I never visited so many museums in such a short time. One thing that was really shocking for me is café ‘de Smitse’: the fact that they serve alcohol at university is new for me.
Another thing I am not used to is to pay everything with pin. Yesterday I brought my sister to the airport and I wanted to buy her a ticket for the metro. However, I only had €20,- in cash, so I couldn’t buy the ticket. In the end we had to both use my card, which is of course not allowed. Furthermore there is the expression: ‘to go Dutch’, which refers to splitting the bill on a date. In Ukraine my date would always pay.”
Stephan Trapp, Premaster IBA (From Germany, in the Netherlands since 2.5 year)
“Of course Germany and the Netherlands are not that different. My first impression of the Netherlands was that it’s really rainy. I’m from Hamburg so I’m used to rain, but here it’s more extreme. What I took over so far is that I bike a lot and I drink milk at every occasion. Furthermore I love the concept of ‘borrels’(drinks) and ‘bitterganituur’(fried snacks).
In addition, I really like that the professional life here is less formal than in Germany. There you have to say ‘mister’ and there is a larger distance between you and your superior. I worked for ING this summer and it is much more relaxed. People make jokes all the time. One thing I don’t like is that all Dutch people think that Germans are boring. We can have fun as well!”
Elizaveta Shulyndinam, First year student IBCOM (Half Vietnamese and half Russian, in the Netherlands since a few days)
“I haven’t been in the Netherlands that long, only for a few days. However, I do eat a lot of bread now. And I am definitely going to drive a bike. I am used to walking, but nobody does that here. What I do see as quite extreme, is that all the girls bike with dresses and high heels. How do they do that? I guess I’ll have to get used to that as well.
Moreover, it is new for me that everything is so close. There are students who travel daily from their city to the university. The idea that it is only half an hour to get to Amsterdam is weird. However, I do like it. Right now I live in Delft with acquaintances and I have to travel as well. Another thing is that the people here are so friendly. As I said I live with acquaintances. They hardly know me, but help me with everything.”JV
