I moved from the United States to the Netherlands about 5 years ago, and in this video I talk about some cute Dutch habits, Dutch customs, and cultural norms in the Netherlands that I love as an American. I feel like some of these things are truly unique to the Netherlands!
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I like to share my experiences of an American expat in the Netherlands. I describe both the unique and everyday aspects of Dutch culture, and life in Holland while enjoying every bit of it!
Blog website: https://www.dutchamericano.com
Instagram: DutchAmericano
Get in touch: dutchamericanonl@gmail.com
Suggested videos:
How the Dutch are efficient in everything they do: https://youtu.be/g2NDteLi-9c
10 Things that are NORMAL in the Netherlands but are LUXURIES in America!: https://youtu.be/dCFbgeD-iQc
Everyday Dutch things that stand out to me as an American living in the Netherlands!: https://youtu.be/gBuchNCnfnM
How the Dutch do RELATIONSHIPS: https://youtu.be/1-2CiMQiWEs
--
I like to share my experiences of an American expat in the Netherlands. I describe both the unique and everyday aspects of Dutch culture, and life in Holland while enjoying every bit of it!
Blog website: https://www.dutchamericano.com
Instagram: DutchAmericano
Get in touch: dutchamericanonl@gmail.com
Suggested videos:
How the Dutch are efficient in everything they do: https://youtu.be/g2NDteLi-9c
10 Things that are NORMAL in the Netherlands but are LUXURIES in America!: https://youtu.be/dCFbgeD-iQc
Everyday Dutch things that stand out to me as an American living in the Netherlands!: https://youtu.be/gBuchNCnfnM
How the Dutch do RELATIONSHIPS: https://youtu.be/1-2CiMQiWEs
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CelebridadesTranscripción
00:00Oh, hey, sorry. I didn't see you there. I was just here writing some cards, but more
00:08on that later. Finished up my coffee.
00:15And hi everyone. My name is Eva and I'm an American living in the Netherlands. And today
00:19I wanted to talk to you about some cute habits and cultural phenomena that I've seen in the
00:26Netherlands that I just had to share with you today. Because in America, some of these
00:31things would definitely absolutely not fly. But here in the Netherlands, they are cute
00:36and expected of you. And I can't wait to tell you about them. Now let us start with the
00:41first thing, which is what people kind of expect when they come to the Netherlands.
00:45And that is biking. People have these images of Dutch people riding their bicycles around
00:49with windmills in the background. And that's absolutely the case. But that is not the cute
00:55habit that I wanted to talk about. So the thing is, when I moved to the Netherlands,
00:59I first of all could not bike to the dismay of my Dutch girlfriend, my wife. I've gotten
01:06used to saying wife in the last couple of years that we've been married, but that took
01:10me weirdly long. Anyway, my Dutch partner and I met in the US and when she met me there,
01:15she was just surprised that I couldn't ride a bicycle. I mean, she knew in theory that
01:19there were people out there who couldn't ride a bicycle, but she kind of didn't expect to
01:23be dating one of them. Oh well. So then she met me and we started dating and I of course
01:28started learning how to bike. In the US, I sort of learned how to bike, but I couldn't
01:33really bike properly. Then I moved to the Netherlands and I kind of forced myself to
01:37learn how to bike as quickly as possible. I succeeded, sort of. Let me explain. So the
01:43thing is, how you bike in the Netherlands is not the same as how you would bike in America.
01:48Now there are many, many differences when it comes to how you could ride a bike in the
01:51Netherlands versus in America, and I'm not going to go into all of them now. I'm just
01:56going to talk about the one cute thing that Dutch people do, but I didn't think that was
02:01so cute when it was expected and required of me. So the thing is, when I started biking
02:05in the Netherlands, it was not a very elegant picture. I want you to imagine me on this
02:12Oma feets that does not have any front brakes and kind of like I'm wobbling around the city.
02:19It's not going great. You know, I'm bumping into things. I am a danger mostly to myself.
02:24Thankfully, not as much to other people. At least I was self-aware enough to not make
02:28that happen. But you know, I'm like wobbling. I'm on these bike lanes wobbling and just
02:34trying to bike and on top of having to navigate a new city and on top of having to navigate
02:40a new way of biking and on top of just everything that was going on. Something I discovered
02:46that my Dutch partner wanted me to do was bike next to her. Listen, the bike lanes in
02:50the Netherlands are terrific, but there are very many people biking on those bike lanes.
02:56Now, especially when I got started biking, I really wanted to bike behind my Dutch partner
03:00because I was like, you are going to be fine. I just want to feel protected behind you.
03:05And I also don't know where I'm going. Like I'm terrible at directions. So I just kind
03:09of wanted to, you know, form a nice line, a file and then just bike that way. But my
03:16Dutch wife did not think that was cool. She was like, this is so ongezellig. You need
03:20to bike next to me. And that's when I realized Dutch people do this thing like a flock of
03:25birds where they will all bike together in sync, just biking. It doesn't matter where
03:30they are. They could be in the middle of the road with like cars, you know, going past
03:35them and they will still see Dutch people like biking together because they do not
03:40want to be ongezellig. They're chatting, they're biking slower. And I think that's also a hurdle
03:46to people trying to bike and get past them. But that is so culturally expected and culturally
03:51common that people do it anyway. And this is so funny because I've nearly got into very
03:57many arguments with my Dutch wife over this, like back in the day. Now, this is not a problem.
04:02Back then, it kind of was for me because I had to keep up with the pace. And also just,
04:08you know, you have to keep like moving from one side to the other. So to make way for
04:13people passing you because these bike lanes are not wide enough to necessarily accommodate
04:17all of you if you're not making way for people coming through. And my Dutch partner was like
04:22aware of all of this. So she was like, you know, just bike behind me. That's fine. But
04:27we almost got into very many arguments because by the end of that trip, wherever we were
04:31going, if it was like 15 minutes or so, we would arrive at our destination and then she
04:36would be visibly upset. And I would be like, Oh my God, babe, what's wrong? And then she
04:40would say, I just feel like you don't like me because you were biking behind me the whole
04:46time. And I felt ignored. And as if you didn't want to be with me, folks, let me tell you
04:51after a couple of times, I was like, okay, I need to get myself together and make this
04:56happen. Because I did not want my Dutchie thinking that I did not like her. You would
05:01think moving to the Netherlands for her was enough. But no, if you are dating a Dutch
05:05person, true love is biking next to them on the bike lane. Take note. Now the next thing
05:11I wanted to share with you is just, it's so cute. It's adorable. It's one of the things
05:17I love about Dutch people. It's so endearing. And it's a small thing that says a lot. And
05:22that is that Dutch people love sending cards. Now, when I had just moved to the Netherlands
05:27and it was my birthday, I came back to the apartment to find a full mailbox. And as an
05:32American, my first thought obviously was, Oh my God, those credit card companies have
05:37found me in the Netherlands. They are giving me this not so free money that they're pretending
05:42is free. And now I'm going to have to just throw all of that in the trash. What a waste
05:46of paper. But Oh no, instead I got mail from actual people. Actual people living in the
05:53Netherlands sent me birthday cards. And okay, I know some of you watching this are thinking,
05:58Oh my God, Americans must be so cold for not doing that. That's not the case. In America,
06:03we send each other nice birthday wishes and messages. Like, you know, it's all very quick
06:07because we're all on the go. It's busy. And it's not even that it just seems very 21st
06:12century to just send a message or like back in the day, we would write stuff on each other's
06:17Facebook and make a whole little posts and you know, something cutesy like that. So it's
06:22not that Americans don't show affection and wish you on your birthdays. Absolutely not
06:27the case. But here in the Netherlands, they actually sit down and write you a card. And
06:32it's not just birthdays. I mean, did you see the size of my card box? Like I said my card
06:37box, but it's my wife's card box. Like now that I live in the Netherlands with a Dutchie,
06:42we just have a stack of cards in our house at all times. Because Dutch people don't just
06:48send cards for birthdays. Oh, no, they send cards for basically any occasion, or even
06:53non occasion. It doesn't matter. They just love sending cards to show you that they're
06:57thinking about you and that you are important to them. So like, let's say you got a new
07:02job, they're gonna send you a card saying congratulations on your new job and you leave
07:07your other job and people are going to give you cards for leaving that job and like wishing
07:11you good luck. Then when you are at your new job, they're gonna send you a card saying
07:15hope all is well like Dutch people will just send you lots and lots of cards. And I think
07:21that is so cute. Okay, now this next one really stood out to me after some time because I
07:26kept seeing it happening when I moved here. It didn't stand out to me in the beginning.
07:30But now it does. And when I tell you this, I think you're also going to notice it everywhere.
07:35So Dutch people have the need to say when they're having a good time or when something
07:40is gezellig as it is happening. So for Dutch people, it's not enough to have something
07:45be gezellig. You have to exclaim that it is gezellig in that moment. And it can be a lot
07:50of gezelligheid and a lot of saying that things are gezellig. So let's say that you're going
07:56to meet up for dinner with a friend, right? So while you're making plans, you'll be like,
08:01Oh, would you like to get dinner? And the person would respond and say, gezellig. Yes,
08:06let's do that. And then as the date approaches, you'll message each other, you know, to finalize
08:11your plans. And then you might say tot morgen gezellig. So then you've already said things
08:17are gezellig quite a bit. Okay, but this is all in the future, right? And then you actually
08:23go to the place. And while you were at the event, while you are with each other having
08:28this dinner, you need to mention during this dinner that something is gezellig at some point.
08:34Otherwise, like, why are you even there? And it's not gezellig if you don't say that it's
08:38gezellig. So you catch my drift. So while you were there, you have to make a comment that something
08:43is gezellig. So let's say like the cafe or the restaurant you're at for this dinner is nice.
08:49So then you will say, Oh, this is gezellig. Or you're having a conversation at some point,
08:54you need to smile and be like, Oh, this is gezellig. Like, at some point, someone needs
08:58to say that it's gezellig. Okay. And then when you're done, you need to before you go home,
09:04you need to make sure that you say that it was gezellig. And let's do it again. Otherwise,
09:09people will not believe you. It's not implicit, you have to make it explicit. This is very Dutch.
09:15So in America, you really don't do this. I mean, not to this extent, anyway. And also not in this
09:25way. The only situation in which I can think that it's actually very common to say I had a nice time
09:30is after a date. But if you are hanging out with your friend who you know, you like, and you enjoy
09:38spending time with, like these things are already, you know, implicit, they're given, that's why
09:42you're friends. So then if you go for dinner, and you tell them, so this is nice. They're,
09:50they're gonna be like, I mean, what else did you expect? Did you expect it to not be nice? Like,
09:54why did you come? And if that was the case, because you see, it's very different from when you meet
10:00strangers. And when you meet with friends, and you know, if you still don't get this,
10:04like think about it. If I went to my boss at the end of the day, and was like, Oh, boss,
10:10I got some work done today. She's, she's gonna look at me and be like, I mean, duh, that's what
10:15I pay you for. You need to get work done every day. I hope like, what is this comment? So this
10:21is how things are interpreted in America. But here in the Netherlands, it's just very common to say
10:26that it's very cute, a very nice habit that I actually enjoy because it makes the implicit,
10:33explicit and you don't take anything for granted. Now the next cute habit has to do with when you
10:37go to a Dutch cafe or a restaurant, and you order a warm drink. First of all, how cozy and
10:44gezellig is this? Like in the Netherlands, the cafes are especially cute. You know, Dutch people
10:50are all about their gezelligheid. And then when it's cold, rainy, gray outside, and you're sitting
10:55at a cafe with a drink, it's just such a great, warm, cozy, fuzzy feeling. And Dutch people have
11:00found a little a little trick to make all of this even cuter. And that is if you order a warm drink,
11:07you will most likely get a little treat next to your cup. So this could be a really small cookie,
11:13like the tiniest cookie you've ever seen. Like they probably only make them in the Netherlands
11:18for this purpose, because in America, we would not eat a cookie this size. But here in the
11:22Netherlands, they have them and they put it next to your cup of coffee or tea. Sometimes you'll
11:28even get like again, the world's tiniest piece of cake or treat and that will go next to your warm
11:35drink. And it's really very common. So it's almost it almost stands out if you don't get this little
11:41treat with your drink, and people love it. It's just so cute. Like I almost instead of serving a
11:46tray of cookies when people come over to my house and I give them coffee, I almost want to do that
11:51too. I want to get a saucer for them and put a little cookie there. Also like this is something
11:55that would be so easy to bring to America. I think people would love it. But then you would need to
11:59have a full size stroopwafel instead of, you know, a tiny cookie because that's just America for you.
12:05People are gonna look at that tiny cookie in the US and be like, what is this? They'll probably give
12:10it to their dog or something. Okay, so now the first few times that I went to a Dutch cafe,
12:15I probably wasn't paying attention to anything happening around me because I was with my Dutch
12:20partner and we had just started dating. So it was all the beginning of our relationship and I wasn't
12:25really paying attention to anything around me. So when that phase had passed, and I was like
12:30properly in the Netherlands, I had just moved here. So not when I was just visiting earlier
12:35in the years prior. And I moved here and I went to a cafe by myself. I noticed that Dutch people
12:42do this thing that I'm pretty sure Americans don't do. Pretty sure. I know Americans don't do. If you
12:48did that in the US, which I did, people looked at me like I had 10 heads. It was very strange.
12:53But here in the Netherlands, if you leave and walk out of a cafe or restaurant,
12:59all of a sudden, everyone working there will turn around and be like, goodbye. And the first time
13:04that happened, I was like, flooded and overwhelmed by all of these goodbyes. Like literally the
13:10waitstaff over there was like, tot ziens. Another one over there is like, doei. And then someone
13:15else was like, fijne dag. And I just like awkwardly walked out and waved like I was royalty like,
13:22goodbye. And I just walked out of the store thinking what just happened. But this is very
13:27common. After some time, I got used to it. And now I am so used to it that I did this when I
13:31was in the US. And that was pretty funny and awkward. I need to now remember not to do that
13:36because it has become so second nature. Like I leave a restaurant or cafe and I'm like turning
13:41my head like oh, where is someone so I say goodbye because I can't just leave without
13:48doing that. I think this gives a nice personal touch without too much effort because this shows
13:53that you know, when you come in somewhere, people take notice of your presence. And then when you
13:58leave, they say goodbye because you're leaving. Like it's very nice and personal. It's what you
14:03would do to a friend in your house or a guest in your house. And you're basically doing that when
14:08you go outside. How nice is that? Now remember a couple of points ago when I said Dutch people
14:13will send you a card for like any kind of occasion or non occasion? Well, they also like to celebrate
14:19any kind of occasion or non occasion. Like here in the Netherlands, if you walk past these cute
14:25Dutch houses that will just have no curtains or their curtains wide open for you to peek into
14:30like I still love peering. I'm walking around those streets like every day taking a look taking
14:36a look. I have no shame. Even after years of living here. It's like I have no shame. I love
14:42just peeking into houses. It's a pastime. But that said, what you will also notice that you don't
14:47have to look very hard to notice is that Dutch people love having stickers and banners for all
14:52kinds of things. So birth of a child, birthday, graduation, they have the backpacks hanging out.
14:58It's such a cute little Dutch custom. And this is of course great. But I was surprised to the degree
15:04that Dutch people like deck out their houses. Their houses are just supremely decorated for
15:10these occasions. Like one time I walked past a house and I thought like there was a carnival
15:16going on in their front yard. But no it was you know a child was born and they had I kid you not
15:21this full-size blowout doll and then a huge banner that said welcome it's a girl and balloons
15:28outside. Like I really thought it was a freaking carnival. Like I thought it was a birthday party
15:33not just a birth announcement. Like that's how decked out this house was. And it's not that
15:38uncommon. Also here in the Netherlands when people turn 50 that's a big thing. And then they also have
15:44like full blowout dolls in the backyard. And like these like they see Sarah if they're a woman.
15:51And I think if they're a dude they see some other guy. Oh Abraham. I think it's Abraham. But anyway
15:57they're gonna be dolls. Like blow up dolls. Why is this a thing in the Netherlands? Like I've seen way
16:02too many blow up dolls in people's yards. Like when when did this custom start? I think I think
16:09I like it. But I don't know if I personally would ever have a blown up doll in front of my house or
16:15like my backyard that just seems like too Dutch. I don't know if I'll ever be Dutch enough to do that.
16:22But anyway I just think it's amazing how Dutch people like to like decorate and go all out for
16:28these occasions. And now even like the festivals in the U.S. that where you tend to have such
16:34decorations like Halloween. People here have started doing that too. Like Halloween. Christmas
16:39I think was always a thing in both cultures. But Halloween too. Like here people go wild. They like
16:45let loose for Halloween these days. It's like every year I feel like I'm seeing more and more
16:50interesting and creative decorations. In America besides Halloween and Christmas like when it comes
16:55to decorating your house for an occasion on the outside you don't typically do that for birthdays
17:00and stuff. Like people are private about that. But you do do that to celebrate America. When you're
17:06celebrating America like 4th of July you deck out your house. I think Americans need to celebrate
17:11themselves more too. Like not just their country. Celebrate yourselves and take pride in who you are.
17:18Sometimes I say the lamest things but I'm just gonna leave that in there. Enjoy. Okay and finally
17:24the ultimate Dutch thing that is inevitable. Unavoidable when you move to the Netherlands.
17:33The party circle. If you go to any party here in the Netherlands you will find that Dutch people
17:39like to organize themselves in a circle. It's always quite a pretty good circle. Dutch people
17:45just love the circle arrangement. They feel like it has this cosmic significance. No they don't.
17:51They just like standing in the circle because it's practical. They can see everyone and they can
17:55talk to people next to them. They can talk to people across from them and that is hilarious
18:00because at some point your circle gets pretty big and then you'll have people shouting from one end
18:05of the circle to the other and then trying to have a conversation that way. And at that point
18:11some bold hero has to like take the step to say we're not going to stand in a circle anymore.
18:19No one exclaims that but then if you break the circle that's a moment in the party.
18:23You're gonna stand in smaller circles. Then the party's really started but in this initial
18:29beginning stage or maybe towards the end of the party when you're just talking you will form a
18:34circle. It's really interesting but here's what's cute about it. It's fine that Dutch people
18:40do this. We don't necessarily do it in America. Again to the rigidness that Dutch people do it.
18:47They're like party equals circle like that's their thing but here in the Netherlands I think
18:52the reason they do that is because they don't want people to feel excluded. So they just try
18:56to have this huge circle because everyone's welcome and they want everyone to feel included
19:02in the conversation. So it comes from a really good place and it's super cute that people thought
19:07about this and that's why you always end up with the circle. It's to make everyone feel welcome
19:12and that's especially really nice at a party. So those are some of my personal favorite cute
19:18Dutch habits or cultural things here in the Netherlands. If you have any favorites that
19:23I left out please let me know in the comments down below and as usual tot ziens until next time
19:29doei because is it even a real Dutch goodbye if you didn't say it at least three times