Why the Dutch are So Thin

When I first arrived in this country, I was in shock and awe at the lack of large people. Well, let me clarify - upwardly, the Dutch are large. Outwardly, they most certainly are not. I've blogged before about the portion size of food. But now, in our new, small "country" town, Dan and I have been realizing there are other reasons for why the Dutch are so thin. Here are our top three.

1. Holidays are not spent shopping or watching movies or evacuating the cities for the beach. On the most recent holiday here (Second Easter a.k.a. Easter Monday), our friends (who are in their 60s), came by and asked us if we would like to go for a walk. "Sure," we said, and then we prepared ourselves for a walk around the town. I should have known better when I heard him mention "finding a route," but it just didn't sink in. We finally knew we were in trouble when Lana asked, "Do you have good shoes? Like these?" And she was holding up a pair of galoshes. So, we spend Second Easter driving out to the forest, and then walking through fields and wetlands, greeting the dozens of other Dutch - young or old - who were out on their holiday walk. The walk was only 6 km, but the galoshes were certainly necessary!

2. Holidays are also spent bicycle riding. Then again, most any day is made for bicycling! Also on Second Easter, one of our co-workers rode his bike to a birthday party. He mentioned it was a bit long - it took him 3 hours to get there, but only 2 hours to get back.

3. It'll take a lot to top this one - another friend said while he was in university, he would ride his bike home for the weekends. Thing is, home was 152 kilometers away. It took him 6 hours to get home. And then he had to get back.

P.S. It was verified by other Dutch that "going for a walk" (on a Sunday or holiday, especially), did indeed mean going to the forest and walking - the longer the better!

What Strikes Me

My recent Memory Stick upload from my camera says something about me, but I’m not sure what. You be the judge. Be nice.

I crack up at the way certain English words are used (rather liberally) here. Here is a flyer for some really tasty pizza, or so they want us to believe.

I have started a new study on the different types of bicycle stands around this country. Here’s a sneak peak! FYI...this type is fairly common.


In Utrecht, a cat snuggled up nice and close to us, staying the entire length of our meal. We asked the waitress if that was normal. She looked at us somewhat blankly and said, “Yes, of course, that is our house cat.” Why, yes, of course…perfectly normal.

50 cents for the use of a port-a-potty. It's either that or pay 50 cents to the lady sitting outside of the McDonald's WC.

You Americans, Take Shorter Showers!

We are temporarily staying in a Dutch lady's home, while she is sojourning in South Africa. She is very sweet and has a fantastic sense of style. However, she is quite particular.

Dan and I still giggle at what is written into our contract. The thermostat must not go above 21 Celsius (which is like 56 Fahrenheit, it seems). The cats must not get into the main part of the house. The window in the bathroom must be opened after each shower to let out the moisture (but since it rains 50% of the time, is that really accomplishing anything?).

But the kicker is...
"I read in the newspaper that Americans take long showers, so please do not take long showers."
I contemplated taking a poll of the length of the average Dutch shower, but so far I've refrained. Instead, I will be glad I have a roof over my head and realize that in many other ways, I'm particular, too.

P.S. For those of you who tend to take me too literally, I'm well aware that 21 Celsius is not 56 Fahrenheit. It's 69.8. Don't fear.

Passivity

I've decided the Dutch are passive about only two things: weather and bureaucracy.

The daily temperatures here are barely reaching 50 degrees (Fahrenheit!!), despite it being mid-APRIL. Dan and I wake up every morning wondering what we can do to stimulate global warming in the short-term, trying, as many Americans do, to control the weather. Yet when we mention (read "complain about") the weather to our Dutch friends, they barely mumble a response. Their attitude: it is what it is. Wearing sweaters in April is normal. Riding 10 kilometers in the rain is nothing to complain about. Getting stuck in the hail on a Sunday walk only means the walk was cut short. I suppose they waste a lot less energy than we Americans do regarding the weather. But I prefer to waste my energy - who else will empathize with the tulips about the injustice of it being tulip season but it not being warm enough to have tulips?

And then the bureaucracy. I know quite well the U.S. government is full of red tape and inconsistencies, but at least not everything is bureaucratized. Here, maybe since there is so much bureaucracy (as in, big brother can even tell you where to live), everybody is resigned to just dealing with it or silently getting around it. But even I prefer NOT to waste my energy on the bureaucracy - that's what husbands are for. But I can empathize with husbands, too!

Milestones

Milestones have been met in this expat life of ours. Seems we often stumbled upon these milestones, jumping over the hurdles in our way only after we bumped into them first. But that is part of the excitement of life - wherever you are - and sometimes those hurdles are just as important as the milestones themselves, despite the scrapes and bumps.

In February, after waiting nearly 13 months, we were granted our residence permits. Nevermind that they've already expired! Dan graduated with his MBA just a few weeks ago, and around the same time, he obtained his work permit (which we just discovered, doesn't allow him to actually work yet). We are beginning to learn about development work (which is why we are here in the first place) from a Dutch organization that will hopefully help us to establish a viable business in Moldova. Without a car, the office was much too far from Rotterdam, so now we are in the process of moving closer to the office. In the process...because waiting lists for "social" housing are 5 YEARS (as in 16 year olds get on the waiting list in their towns so they can live somewhere when they are 21). In the process...because we are temporarily living in a house much closer to the office so we can be better situated to be at the office and to look for private housing. In the process...because not even the Dutch who are helping us really know how to conquer this hurdle, and by now, all the bumping into it REALLY hurts! But I digress...

So now we wait for the next milestones, like finding a home, really being able to work here, becoming taxpayers, and conquering the healthcare system. And only two of those am I looking forward to!