Here are my impression from living in the Netherlands. Honestly 90% of my time is spent on the internet anyway so the other 10%...
Apparently Utrecht (the city where I live in) is ranked by the BBC as one of the world's happiest places to live.
1. Biking Everyone bikes here. Look at this shit. I never biked often before, always took the subway in NY or drove. Now I bike everywhere. I ride a "female" bike and apparently I go too slow. That's OK, my Chinese biking genes are firing up and I'll be weaving in and out of traffic like Trinity in the only good part in the second Matrix movie in no time. Here is a picture of me riding a bike. I've almost died twice even though the laws are super favorable to bike riders (no helmets tho wtf?). I have yet to name my bike, accepting suggestions.
2. Weather It rains here all the fucking time. Apparently its entirely normal to just ride a bike in rain for 20 minutes to get places. I imagine it's going to get really cold. This really isn't important to me because I don't go outside ever anyway.
3. Food OK here is what I miss most about NY. In NYC there were like 20 places open 24/7, 5 of which were very good, all delivery range that I could get food from at like 4am. Not the case here. Restaurant and delivery is expensive. Some of the local food is pretty good though, I like the farmer's cabbage (this weird mashed potatoes style green stuff) and somehow the bread here is amazing. I also ate these sweet ball things that they normally eat at New Years, those were good too. Why is the bread so good? I don't understand. Maybe the bread in the US was just shit and this is normal bread, not some next level yeast infused with cocaine.
4. Places / Social OK admittedly I haven't been outside much, my free time is spent watching ESPORTS and playing games. I have been to the Utrecht city center a few times, and it seems nice. There are no cars and lots of young people (I think this place is the equivalent of a college town). After not being an "internet person" at all at the start of college, years I think I've finally accepted that I'm an introvert who only goes out like twice a month and I'm OK with that. I get plenty of virtual socialization through the Internet, it's just so tiresome going outside. This is probably where my mom asks where are my grandkids?? Where are they?? Well dunno what to tell you mom, moving away from the thousands of compatible NY women probably didn't help that. Arranged marriage time??
5. Entertainment There's no movie theaters here and they only play the biggest movie releases. For instance I like see movies like this one and Europe just doesn't have these. I'm going to fiend on movies so hard when I visit the US. However, I do watch a lot of sports and movies online through entirely legal means because it's much easier to find entirely legal sources for those entirely legal things here.
6. People Everyone is so nice and seemingly content. Maybe it's the universal health care and basic human rights, like gays can marry and there's no debate about it?? Crazy I know. It's hard to describe but everyone seems to just be content. Not like overtly happy, but content. I've heard that there's a more European mindset about life and happiness that doesn't revolve around rat racing to get more money like the US, which has its good and bad... on the one hand you have people who are happy but on the other hand there's less creativity and innovation and "American dream" success stories. Either way it produces less depressed people probably but less NBA basketball players and actors.
6.5 People Part 2 Everyone is tall. I'm like 5'7-5'8 (172cm) and everyone is taller than me. I'm also the only Asian for miles, every time I see another Asian dude I wanna chest bump him and be like "yo lets get some mooncakes and eat them with chopsticks bro and then take a math test." I want to say the people are more attractive but I'm not sure if that's actually true or whether it's just the fact that there are very few obese people like there are in the US. I think it might be because everyone bikes everywhere and that's entirely more exercise than most Americans get. Biking to and from places is like an extra half hour of cardio every where you go.
7. Dutchness What a troonrede, indeed. Personally I like King Willem-Alexander, I call him KWA for short, like an airport. He's the first King I've known since George, and frankly I like KWA better, he's much more hands off and we totally wouldn't have had a colonial rebellion if it was him instead. Everyone speaks English here and often their grammar is better than those in the US. I don't think I'm ever going to learn Dutch, though I might learn a few key phrases, like "I only know how to say this in Dutch" and "where is the nearest bus station" and "are you open to dating men who are shorter than you". I have eaten some traditional Dutch food, I have not yet worn clogs, visited a windmill, or attended a football match. I probably will eventually.
8. Miscellaneous differences Service based industries in the US seem to be nicer in general. Since theres not really a tipping, customer-is-always-right culture in Europe the service is different. It's not necessarily bad, just more tepid, ie you won't feel the waitresses are flirting with you like every American restaurant. Also lots of laws here just make sense, and that's sad that I have to mention that as a difference between here and the US.
That's all for now, my life is not that exciting. I will be attending Blizzcon, MLG Columbus, and DreamHack this next month. I will miss HomeStory, which I am quite sad about. I will probably attend an EU WCS in Germany at some point so Kennigit I'm coming for you.
TLDR: Netherlands is different than New York, read my blog you lazy illiterate
6.5 People Part 2 Everyone is tall. I'm like 5'7-5'8 (172cm) and everyone is taller than me. I'm also the only Asian for miles, every time I see another Asian dude I wanna chest bump him and be like "yo lets get some mooncakes and eat them with chopsticks bro and then take a math test." I want to say the people are more attractive but I'm not sure if that's actually true or whether it's just the fact that there are very few obese people like there are in the US. I think it might be because everyone bikes everywhere and that's entirely more exercise than most Americans get. Biking to and from places is like an extra half hour of cardio every where you go.
About food, you're probably in the worst country in Europe when it comes to that (I'm preparing to be flamed but let's be honest two second here...). And american bread more or less sucks yeah. Nice blog anyway, don't go out too much, you might catch that throat disease they call a language over there
Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed. They don't stop for no one. It's not as bad as when I was in Dublin, I think the crosswalks are there to add some flair to the city; every mother-funker crosses whenever/wherever/whoever they want.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
dude I forget it's Sunday ALL The time and then it's bread and butter or pasta with hopefully spare pesto time :D There's a few places that are open though. the Edeka in the Friedrichstrasse for example ^^
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
dude I forget it's Sunday ALL The time and then it's bread and butter or pasta with hopefully spare pesto time :D There's a few places that are open though. the Edeka in the Friedrichstrasse for example ^^
YOU MUST SHOW ME!
This weekend, I finished my last boiled egg during dinner and I was stuck with olive oil, butter and some sliced cheese (Germans love their cheese!).
I'm around Oranienburger Straße, so I can definitely trek there!
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed. They don't stop for no one. It's not as bad as when I was in Dublin, I think the crosswalks are there to add some flair to the city; every mother-funker crosses whenever/wherever/whoever they want.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
Here in Belgium it's easier if you know neighbourhoods with Turkish/Moroccan shops you can always go there on sundays, they're always open(unless there's a wedding ^^)
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Actually since like half a year or a year or so most supermarkets are open here in Utrecht, edit: on Sunday lol! So that's nice Fun read Hotbid!
On November 05 2013 21:15 Wout wrote: There's a traditional windmill just northwest of the city center, my grandpa used to work there. You should go and visit it some day.
On November 05 2013 21:15 Wout wrote: There's a traditional windmill just northwest of the city center, my grandpa used to work there. You should go and visit it some day.
1. Does viewing this windmill in person have any advantages over just looking at a picture of it online for 2 minutes?
2. Do older windmills serve any purpose other than historical decoration?
Heh, that windmill has an organic butcher in it. So: 1. Windmills in action are pretty impressive, especially if you are in the top of one. So that's the only advantage I think. 2. Sometimes they are still used for useful purposes like pumping water or grinding grain, but I think those are kept alive for more nostalgic/cultural reasons. It is fun to buy flour at a windmill though!
On November 05 2013 21:15 Wout wrote: There's a traditional windmill just northwest of the city center, my grandpa used to work there. You should go and visit it some day.
On November 05 2013 21:15 Wout wrote: There's a traditional windmill just northwest of the city center, my grandpa used to work there. You should go and visit it some day.
1. Does viewing this windmill in person have any advantages over just looking at a picture of it online for 2 minutes?
2. Do older windmills serve any purpose other than historical decoration?
You're saying you don't want to visit a random historical landmark and take a picture of yourself there (probably in the rain). I'm starting to doubt you're asian.
And you're probably referring to "oliebollen" what we eat at New Years.
Haha, you need to stop saying Netherlands is _europe_! Some of the things you described are very different from how it is in Sweden for instance. Tipping is also very different.
The food is another thing - I think this totally depends on where you live. In some parts of Sweden (and probably just like NL), there won't be foodplaces all over the place but if you get to them bigger cities they should be pretty much like NYC (just not THAT big). In Stockholm, I tend to order indian food regularly and have it delivered to my door.
Anyway, real fun reading these stories. It's so funny because you're American :D [edit: no offense, we usually make fun of americans]
Gogo, but really, Nazgul should consider moving that office to Sweden! [edit: Swedish girls are also better looking and shorter :D]
On November 05 2013 21:15 Wout wrote: There's a traditional windmill just northwest of the city center, my grandpa used to work there. You should go and visit it some day.
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed. They don't stop for no one. It's not as bad as when I was in Dublin, I think the crosswalks are there to add some flair to the city; every mother-funker crosses whenever/wherever/whoever they want.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
dont you live in berlin? there should be atleast 23 döner stands in shouting range when ur out of food on sunday
On November 05 2013 21:48 bogderpirat wrote: you should try german bread, it's the best in the world
I never understood why people eat in america eat outside. I have not eaten outside of my home for the last 15years I think. In europe you buy your food and cook it for yourself! Or at least heat a pizza in the stove.
On November 05 2013 22:02 Haedley wrote: I never understand why people eat in america eat outside. I have not eaten outside of my home for the last 15years I think. In europe you buy your food and cook it for yourself! Or at least heat a pizza in the stove.
I wonder what all the restaurants and fast food places are for then. I'd say there's quite a lot of people who don't eat at home all the time here as well! We might cook more at home though, but I don't have any stats to support that.
On November 05 2013 22:02 Haedley wrote: I never understand why people eat in america eat outside. I have not eaten outside of my home for the last 15years I think. In europe you buy your food and cook it for yourself! Or at least heat a pizza in the stove.
well in new york you eat out because the food is infinitely better than what you can make at home, like insanely better
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
dude I forget it's Sunday ALL The time and then it's bread and butter or pasta with hopefully spare pesto time :D There's a few places that are open though. the Edeka in the Friedrichstrasse for example ^^
Yeah all the markets in the big stations generally, like Edeka Südkreuz.
Nice blog btw Hotbid, reading this, I want to start using the bike more again.
On November 05 2013 22:02 Haedley wrote: I never understand why people eat in america eat outside. I have not eaten outside of my home for the last 15years I think. In europe you buy your food and cook it for yourself! Or at least heat a pizza in the stove.
I wonder what all the restaurants and fast food places are for then. I'd say there's quite a lot of people who don't eat at home all the time here as well! We might cook more at home though, but I don't have any stats to support that.
I live in a 30k town and even we have a McDonalds and a BurgerKing there. But people still don't buy the shit they sell there. Best and cheapest thing is always buy a frozen Pizza at Aldi or Lidl put it in your stove. Cheap, fast and easy.
While I haven't been to the USA, I would guess that bread in the US indeed was just really bad quality. I have been to the UK though, crap sugared toast bread (wonderbread?) basis in all kinds of shapes/size. At least here in Denmark some us think good rye bread is a must for a good lunch. I know people from both Holland and Germany think the same.
If I check the education here in Denmark for being a "baker" or a pastry baker then length of the education is 2-3 years. A talented friend of mine that is teaching this craft, says that he was told in the US a cake/pastry education is a 3 month course.
TL;DR: Yes, some of us here in Europe are serious about our bread.
On November 05 2013 21:48 bogderpirat wrote: you should try german bread, it's the best in the world
why
generally accepted fact
By german I guess lol
Maybe not "best" but Germany has an insane variety of bread sort. Even in a low price super market like aldi or lidl you can choose between 10 defferent kinds of bread. Something like this : + Show Spoiler +
is nothing special in mid prize german super markets.
In Munich there is a baker with around 500 to 800 (depending on the season) kinds of bread with like 3 dozens of "beer breads" with different sorts of beer.
On November 05 2013 21:25 Kipsate wrote: the only asian for miles
u lie
our bread is mwah, its not actually that great but America's bread is really bad.
there are probably tons of Asians. It's just that they all only go out twice a month so the probability of them meeting is low.
also I don't see why there WOULD be a debate about gay marriage. like who cares if they want to get married? I guess its just Ameica is still in their religious phase.
Yea the Dutch are the tallest people on the planet. IIRC their average height is 183cm (!). So you will have to look up to ppl around you a bit, literally, lol.
So many funny remarks, I must say. You should do this more often, and perhaps throw in a video or two where you do the hotbid interview with Dutch chicks.
On November 05 2013 21:48 bogderpirat wrote: you should try german bread, it's the best in the world
why
generally accepted fact
By german I guess lol
Maybe not "best" but Germany has an insane variety of bread sort. Even in a low price super market like aldi or lidl you can choose between 10 defferent kinds of bread. Something like this : + Show Spoiler +
is nothing special in mid prize german super markets.
In Munich there is a baker with around 500 to 800 (depending on the season) kinds of bread with like 3 dozens of "beer breads" with different sorts of beer.
I'm French. We are (i think) the best bread country... and coming from someone in this country... German bread is AWESOME and so much better than ours ! And it's cheaper
On November 05 2013 22:41 alypse wrote: Yea the Dutch are the tallest people on the planet. IIRC their average height is 183cm (!). So you will have to look up to ppl around you a bit, literally, lol.
yeah, when I was younger and being dragged around to chess tournaments you could always spot the dutch guys who travelled over because they used to tower over everyone (since most people would be sitting down ofc) like praying mantis in an ant colony
maybe I belong in the Netherlands, I always internally feel like im average height but I'm quite a bit above but it seems like id be exactly average height there lol.
Service based industries in the US seem to be nicer in general. Since theres not really a tipping, customer-is-always-right culture in Europe the service is different. It's not necessarily bad, just more tepid, ie you won't feel the waitresses are flirting with you like every American restaurant. Also lots of laws here just make sense, and that's sad that I have to mention that as a difference between here and the US.
I spend some time working in NY and I think it is kind of a different mentality with the service. In the states it looks like service personal tries to be "serving" you as much as possible, maybe because of the difference in tipping. In Europe there is more of a "the best service is the one you don´t notice" mentality.
For example in my experience in a restaurant in the states most of the waiters are coming a couple of times to ask you if you need something, were in my and my wife's favorite restaurant in Germany no one is bothering you for hours if you dont make eye contact or do something to grab their attention.
On November 05 2013 21:45 sd_andeh wrote: Haha, you need to stop saying Netherlands is _europe_! ]
THIS!!!
I was going to post this too. It saddens me when people visit one, two or three countries then conclude that all of Europe is the same. Whenever someone says Europe, they most likely mean Western Europe.
On November 05 2013 21:45 sd_andeh wrote: Haha, you need to stop saying Netherlands is _europe_! ]
THIS!!!
I was going to post this too. It saddens me when people visit one, two or three countries then conclude that all of Europe is the same. Whenever someone says Europe, they most likely mean Western Europe.
I think it's similar to visiting one place in the USA and thinking most of it is the same. There's a lot of similarity and differences within the continent(al areas) and especially a lot of the generalizations hold true.
It's quite interesting to read about how another American's experience moving (from a different side of the country) to (a different European) country is still very similar.
On November 05 2013 22:34 Artanis[Xp] wrote: Dutch bread is best bread. There's no denying it. Fun to see an American's perspective on my country. I hope you don't miss your freedom too much.
On November 05 2013 21:15 Wout wrote: There's a traditional windmill just northwest of the city center, my grandpa used to work there. You should go and visit it some day.
1. Does viewing this windmill in person have any advantages over just looking at a picture of it online for 2 minutes?
2. Do older windmills serve any purpose other than historical decoration?
1. Honestly, unless you can actually go inside, preferably while it is working, not really. I'm not sure if this one currently operates, though there's bound to be tours. The inner workings of those things are actually quite fascinating and advanced, but like I said, unless there's someone who can explain and preferably demonstrate how it works, it won't do you much good.
2. They're mostly preserved for historical decoration, yes, though some are still operated by volunteers. Some still sell flour etc to amateur bakers or speciality restaurants etc.
Wow, a lot of hate on American bread, apparently. I guess the difference between countries known for their bread like Holland and the USA is that you can just get Dutch bread anywhere and it's really good, whereas in the USA you need to know where to get the good bread. You can get very good bread in the USA, too.... but the average loaf isn't anything special.
Hot_Bid thank you for sharing your experiences so far in your new home.
=) made me smile! And yes, American bread is just really, really bad. Try some "rustical" bread or try to get your hands on some sourdough bread. Fresh, on the day it's baked, with butter has the best taste in the world :D The "shops-closed-on-sunday" is a western Europe thing. Here in Poland we have shops open everyday be it small private shops or big franchise supermarkets . Granted, some stay open for only a few hours but most are open 12+ hours a day so you can shop whenever you want! The bicycle plague is some of the worst I've seen. I wholeheartedly agree with Torte about cyclists being gender confused. They don't respect any traffic laws. They think wearing a helmet is all the have to do and act like sacred cows on the road/sidewalk. You should go visit other countries while you're in Europe
On November 05 2013 21:15 Wout wrote: There's a traditional windmill just northwest of the city center, my grandpa used to work there. You should go and visit it some day.
1. Does viewing this windmill in person have any advantages over just looking at a picture of it online for 2 minutes?
2. Do older windmills serve any purpose other than historical decoration?
You can go to a traditional windmill and usually they will have some things on sale and you can look at the insides. That's the case for some traditional windmills near where I live. I would go there with my parents and sample the flour they would have and feel like I was in a country with a long history and tradition.
Also, why don't you bake your own bread? Laziness...
[QUOTE]On November 05 2013 21:54 Hot_Bid wrote: [QUOTE]On November 05 2013 21:32 jimmyqgr wrote: [QUOTE]On November 05 2013 21:19 Hot_Bid wrote: [QUOTE]On November 05 2013 21:15 Wout wrote: There's a traditional windmill just northwest of the city center, my grandpa used to work there. You should go and visit it some day.
google maps: [url=https://www.google.com/maps/preview#!q=52.099341+5.115587&data=!1m4!1m3!1d34569!2d5.1149433!3d52.0985995!4m14!2m13!1m12!3m8!1m3!1d26081603!2d-95.677068!3d37.0625!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!4m2!3d52.099341!4d5.115587]https://www.google.com/maps/preview#!q=52.099341+5.115587&data=!1m4!1m3!1d34569!2d5.1149433!3d52.0985995!4m14!2m13!1m12!3m8!1m3!1d26081603!2d-95.677068!3d37.0625!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!4m2!3d52.099341!4d5.115587[/url][/QUOTE] I have two serious questions:
1. Does viewing this windmill in person have any advantages over just looking at a picture of it online for 2 minutes?
2. Do older windmills serve any purpose other than historical decoration?[/QUOTE]
Hey man,
I live just down the street from that mill and:
1. Yeah because you should see it up close, smell the wall and hear the wood crackle (dunno if that's a word).
2. This isnt a working mill anymore but a biological butcher.
If you wanna go out sometime too a party PM me, we will show you around :D[/QUOTE] OK DONE
a few questions
1. what is a party 2. do people speak english there
A few answers:
1. Vodka, beer and people. 2. do people speak english where? you are in the netherlands :D
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote: 3. Food OK here is what I miss most about NY. In NYC there were like 20 places open 24/7, 5 of which were very good, all delivery range that I could get food from at like 4am. Not the case here. Restaurant and delivery is expensive. Some of the local food is pretty good though, I like the farmer's cabbage (this weird mashed potatoes style green stuff) and somehow the bread here is amazing. I also ate these sweet ball things that they normally eat at New Years, those were good too. Why is the bread so good? I don't understand. Maybe the bread in the US was just shit and this is normal bread, not some next level yeast infused with cocaine.
''sweet ball things'' :D It's called a ''oliebol''.
And for sure, I was surprised how relative cheap food was in restaurants in New York, especially the fast food ones that we have here as well like McDonald's and the Chinese restaurants. Then again, in Norway everything is like twice as expensive as in the Netherlands, so it can be worse.
On November 05 2013 21:45 sd_andeh wrote: Haha, you need to stop saying Netherlands is _europe_! ]
THIS!!!
I was going to post this too. It saddens me when people visit one, two or three countries then conclude that all of Europe is the same. Whenever someone says Europe, they most likely mean Western Europe.
I think it's similar to visiting one place in the USA and thinking most of it is the same. There's a lot of similarity and differences within the continent(al areas) and especially a lot of the generalizations hold true.
It's quite interesting to read about how another American's experience moving (from a different side of the country) to (a different European) country is still very similar.
Great read! 4 stars I too just have a problem with this "europe" thing. The differences between countries in europe are huge, and not very comparable to differences of different states in the US imho. I do agree though that alot of people that don't live in the states does the same mistake. However consider this: If a person said something along the likes "People in Toronto wear hats! Seems like everyone in North America wears hats". Which is similar to " For instance I like see movies like this one and Europe just doesn't have these." The Netherland is the Netherlands, the city of Utrecht is the city of Utrecht. It's naive to go about calling the experience "Living in Europe".
Just the fact that very few countries (brittish islands..) speaks the same language should be enough to differentiate.
I see this so often from first and foremost americans, and I experienced it myself very recently when I visited my sister in Florida. I just find the phenomenon rather strange and, how to put it... Feels like a naive worldview?
5 stars. I'm thinking of moving to Europe after I get my neurology residency finished in a few years, and I'm torn between Germany or the Netherlands. Reading this kind of thing helps me put things in perspective.
Awesome stuff HotBid! When the weather gets warm again, you should totally go down the river Vecht. And try some pancakes! (Great pancake house in Loenen a/d Vecht if it's still there after 7 years...) And eat some pepernooten! Oh and you should go to a rijsttafel restaurant - man, I miss those! (Rijsttafel - literally 'rice table', lots of small portions of Indonesian dishes.) And... and... there's so much to do/see/eat in The Netherlands. (:
And on the bread discussion: I nominate Finnish bread as some of the best bread in the world. :D
I fucking love your blogs. 5 stars. If you're looking for something to do at a windmill, some mills organize events where they tie you to one of the things("wieken" in dutch, google translate wasn't doing anything for me) and basically spin you around for a couple of minutes. It's pretty fucking insane. I have no idea what it's called though .
Generally you can get like a tour of the windmill and learn about some history. Might be fun for tourists :p. Older people might not speak English as well as you're used to, so you might need to find a proper tourism focused one :p
Also,
On November 05 2013 21:41 Saechiis wrote: You're saying you don't want to visit a random historical landmark and take a picture of yourself there (probably in the rain). I'm starting to doubt you're asian.
cool stuff funny to see how american people look at certain stuff in europe :D you should really try and taste as much local or european food as possible. i know that you can get most of the stuff in the states aswell but the taste is just not that great in comparison (no italian restaurant in the states is really "good")
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote: 5. Entertainment There's no movie theaters here and they only play the biggest movie releases. For instance I like see movies like this one and Europe just doesn't have these. I'm going to fiend on movies so hard when I visit the US. However, I do watch a lot of sports and movies online through entirely legal means because it's much easier to find entirely legal sources for those entirely legal things here.
Heh, between the Louis Hartlooper Complex, 't Hoogt and Springhaver, Utrecht has more than its fair share of small arthouse cinemas. The only real thing wrong with Utrecht's cinemas is that small Hollywood movies get no show time at all (it's either blockbuster or arthouse, nothing in between). On the upside, small Hollywood movies are either good, and fall in the arthouse category, or just plain suck.
On the upside, Pathé Arena is about 30 mins away by train, which is probably the biggest cinema in Holland (dunno, maybe Rotterdam has a bigger complex?).
On November 06 2013 02:13 BlitzerSC wrote: Is 180cm really considered tall ? I thought it was the average for white men.
in Netherlands yea,hotbid is chinese
The Netherlands has some of the tallest people on average. I think average white male (globally) might average around 1.77 or so. I was looking at this Wikipedia page just a few days ago, so have a browse if you're interested. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_height
Why is the bread so good? I don't understand. Maybe the bread in the US was just shit and this is normal bread, not some next level yeast infused with cocaine.
they use real sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup
On November 06 2013 01:32 KadaverBB wrote: You really should try german bread, or maybe you should not, because if you do, you will never want to go back. We fucking own bread.
I saw in a documentary over 2000 different kind of bread do we have in Germany!
Why is the bread so good? I don't understand. Maybe the bread in the US was just shit and this is normal bread, not some next level yeast infused with cocaine.
they use real sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup
WTF? The only sugar that's in bread is a tiny pinch to make sure the yeast does its job.
At least, in proper bread. In the industrially processed crap that WalMart sells as bread there's probably gallons of high-fructose corn syrup. There is also no real wheat to be found, which is the main point why actual bread is so much better: it has actual flour from actual cereals.
Same reason cheese in Holland is so much better than the stuff sold by WalMart. It isn't something created in a chemical laboratory and then rolled out in a massive factory, but is made following the same way cheese has been made for ages, just with modern machinery to save on manual labour (such as churning the milk).
1. Dress one tall guy as Gandalf (If Nazgul has a big height he can do it) 2. Dress Hot Bid as a Hob Bit (see what I did there) 3. Make them walk to the mysterious mill 4. But instead of a Balrog its a wild sleeping Waxangel is blocking their path 5. ??? 6. Profit
there's less creativity and innovation and "American dream" success stories.
I don't have any facts to back me up, but I am fairly certain Holland has a higher social mobility than the US. So, probably more American dream success stories. The story loses some of its charm though when you have healthcare and social security stuff to fall back on.
Also, Dutch bread, really? The only Dutch bread I know is Krentenbolletjes.
I saw people talking about nothing being open on Sunday, but ain't Utrecht stores open on Sundays as well? I live in Rotterdam my self and everything is open on Sunday.
On the point on things not being open Sundays: place where I live (village with 8000 ppl) supermarket is open on Sundays, pretty much every food place (Chinese, snackbars etc) as well.
On November 06 2013 00:05 LaNague wrote: Is it only in germany that university towns are packed with rich(in China) chinese kids?
At my university (Groningen) there are a lot of Chinese students as well, I don't know if they're rich though, because they never ever socialize with non-Chinese people. Also they always cycle on kids bikes because adult bikes are to large for them and it is hilarious to see.
Concerning stores being closed on Sunday: in the past few years this has begun to change and I don't think it will take a long time before most stores are open on Sunday.
On November 06 2013 00:05 LaNague wrote: Is it only in germany that university towns are packed with rich(in China) chinese kids?
At my university (Groningen) there are a lot of Chinese students as well, I don't know if they're rich though, because they never ever socialize with non-Chinese people. Also they always cycle on kids bikes because adult bikes are to large for them and it is hilarious to see.
Concerning stores being closed on Sunday: in the past few years this has begun to change and I don't think it will take a long time before most stores are open on Sunday.
Dutch universities are all packed with germans, no place for chinese people. hue. While there are still quite a few chinese students, study fee's for non-EU students are much more expensive in the netherlands than in germany (german universities don't ask for an increase study fee for non-eu students afaik) . So the amount of chinese students in germany is indeed higher than in the netherlands.
I am not sold on dutch bread, but they certainly excel in pastry (is that the right word? waffles and stuff)
you should definitely attend a rave once, the dutch are great on the dj, rave thingies. anyways, welcome! I hope when there's another barcraft in Utrecht you will attend
On November 05 2013 21:04 corumjhaelen wrote: About food, you're probably in the worst country in Europe when it comes to that (I'm preparing to be flamed but let's be honest two second here...). And american bread more or less sucks yeah. Nice blog anyway, don't go out too much, you might catch that throat disease they call a language over there
You're right our food is the worst... I guess nobody really cares enough about the taste of food over here.
As a Dutchie, it's nice to read your experiences here in Holland. There's actually quite a number of movie theatres that show art films. In Amsterdam, at least.
Good read, though the title should be living in Netherland, I know americans think europe is a unified country but really cultural differences are still hudge (living in spain would be a totally different experience for example).
On November 06 2013 01:32 KadaverBB wrote: You really should try german bread, or maybe you should not, because if you do, you will never want to go back. We fucking own bread.
On November 06 2013 01:32 KadaverBB wrote: You really should try german bread, or maybe you should not, because if you do, you will never want to go back. We fucking own bread.
Definitely can't argue against that.
I beg to differ. Well, French Boulangeries do. And our sandwiches in fresh baguettes would convert anyone over ;-> Btw what's the wurst concept... 5cm bread for a 25cm sausage?!
Gonna live in brunssum for a few years startîg next year, we shall see what life is like... :-)
love the blog. I was smiling almost the whole time while I read it. Hopefully you will try some rustical german bread as well. (here you find lots of inspiration: http://brotdoc.com )
On November 05 2013 23:53 micronesia wrote: Wow, a lot of hate on American bread, apparently. I guess the difference between countries known for their bread like Holland and the USA is that you can just get Dutch bread anywhere and it's really good, whereas in the USA you need to know where to get the good bread. You can get very good bread in the USA, too.... but the average loaf isn't anything special.
Hot_Bid thank you for sharing your experiences so far in your new home.
What I don't understand is that everyone's saying "American Bread" as if we don't have citizens of every background making amazing bread if you look hard enough in America.
Seriously, get out of the grocery stores, find the tiny local bakeries and bask in the wonder that is diversity.
But no really, if you're in America and you can't find good food, it's your own fault.
6.5 People Part 2 Everyone is tall. I'm like 5'7-5'8 (172cm) and everyone is taller than me. I'm also the only Asian for miles, every time I see another Asian dude I wanna chest bump him and be like "yo lets get some mooncakes and eat them with chopsticks bro and then take a math test." I want to say the people are more attractive but I'm not sure if that's actually true or whether it's just the fact that there are very few obese people like there are in the US. I think it might be because everyone bikes everywhere and that's entirely more exercise than most Americans get. Biking to and from places is like an extra half hour of cardio every where you go.
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed. They don't stop for no one. It's not as bad as when I was in Dublin, I think the crosswalks are there to add some flair to the city; every mother-funker crosses whenever/wherever/whoever they want.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
Here in Belgium it's easier if you know neighbourhoods with Turkish/Moroccan shops you can always go there on sundays, they're always open(unless there's a wedding ^^)
Nachtwinkel, as a Erasmus student that word was like magic.
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed. They don't stop for no one. It's not as bad as when I was in Dublin, I think the crosswalks are there to add some flair to the city; every mother-funker crosses whenever/wherever/whoever they want.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
netherlands has an incredible bike-culture. not just in the sense that everyone bikes, but that everyone bikes responsibly. they're not going too fast, they always use their little bell, they're happy and smiling and everything is wonderful.
in Trondheim, Norway, which has become an increasingly bike-friendly city, quite a lot of people bike. but they sometimes go 30 km/h on the sidewalk without signalling before passing you. bikes are awesome but bikers need to be also.
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed. They don't stop for no one. It's not as bad as when I was in Dublin, I think the crosswalks are there to add some flair to the city; every mother-funker crosses whenever/wherever/whoever they want.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
netherlands has an incredible bike-culture. not just in the sense that everyone bikes, but that everyone bikes responsibly. they're not going too fast, they always use their little bell, they're happy and smiling and everything is wonderful.
in Trondheim, Norway, which has become an increasingly bike-friendly city, quite a lot of people bike. but they sometimes go 30 km/h on the sidewalk without signalling before passing you. bikes are awesome but bikers need to be also.
I don't know.. I'm in Groningen, and the bicyclists are insane. They scare me.
well whenever I've been in holland (granted, never groningen, only amsterdam/utrecht/rotterdam) one of the many pleasing aspects has been how awesome all the bikers are.
somehow the bread here is amazing. I also ate these sweet ball things that they normally eat at New Years, those were good too. Why is the bread so good? I don't understand. Maybe the bread in the US was just shit and this is normal bread, not some next level yeast infused with cocaine.
Bread in US and a lot of other countries have ridiculous amount of sugar, also in Korea ('mericas probably 'learned' them how to make bread I guess, like they did with beer.)
Hey Hot_Bid, great read. I actually didn't realize you live in Utrecht. I'll be keeping an eye out for you, although with the winter coming I guess you'll be outside even less..
Yes, you will be expected to be able to get to places by bike in the harshest of circumstances. Just wait until it starts snowing Ofcourse you could always take a bus, but they're pretty expensive unless you have the free student fare.
If you're looking for Chinese people, there's plenty of them around the University College Utrecht (UCU) grounds. I think they're all taking business economics or something
On November 06 2013 07:40 Liquid`Drone wrote: well whenever I've been in holland (granted, never groningen, only amsterdam/utrecht/rotterdam) one of the many pleasing aspects has been how awesome all the bikers are.
The only place that truly scared me in terms of chaos in pedestrians and bikers is Dublin. That place has no rules.
I'm mildly annoyed at the lambasting of Wonder Bread as "american bread". Good bread is more often found in bakeries than in supermarkets and grocery stores in America. I come from a mid-sized city, only the 15th largest metro in the nation, and within 5 miles of my home there are 24 different bakeries, according to a quick search of google maps that I just did 3 minutes ago. If you're not liking bread in America, you're not trying very hard to get the good stuff.
Cool blog! I guess Pathé Arena has a bit more movies and it shouldn´t be far from where you are by train. Train station is right next to it as well (Amsterdam Bijlmer station).
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote: Apparently its entirely normal to just ride a bike in rain for 20 minutes to get places. I imagine it's going to get really cold.
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote: I've almost died twice even though the laws are super favorable to bike riders (no helmets tho wtf?)
Wear your helmet, man! Just because everyone else does something stupid (or rather, doesn't do something smart) doesn't mean you have to stoop down to their level of stupidity! If everyone else stopped using seatbelts in the car, or if everyone else started wearing guns down their trousers without the safety on, you wouldn't start doing such a stupid thing yourself, just because everyone else does it, would you? My helmet has saved me several times and even though I wouldn't have needed it like 99,99% of the times I've biked, those few times were the crucial ones. You're far too awesome to get injured (or worse!) for basically the sheer stupidity of not protecting yourself in an adequate manner when you should have known full well how to!
Sorry for ranting in your blog. It's just that wearing a helmet is one of those things that are so easy to do and is so important to have done when an accident occurs. If you're afraid of what random Dutch people you don't know would think about your helmet, instead think of all the people all over the world that feel they have gotten to know you (i.e. your fans on TL) that would rather see you in good health with a helmet than bleeding from the head in a traffic accident.
I hope you write more blogs about your impression of the Netherlands and Europe. I thoroughly enjoyed all the other parts of it!
the reason why dutch people don't wear helmets is that they're all biking at a slow, comfortable 15-20 km/h. there are no downhill slopes. falling from a bike in holland is basically like tripping while you're running. it's not like norway where if you fall, it's likely to be due to a crack in the road during some downhill trip going 40km/h resulting in you flying 5 meters.
seeing all those pictures of parents biking with their kids without any of them wearing helmets, I'd guess not. I'd also guess that the dutch are reasonable enough to not force their children to do something none of the adults do.
On November 06 2013 10:13 micronesia wrote: In Holland to children typically wear helmets? Where I live adults do whatever they want but children must wear them by law.
in the netherlands, no my brothers and i have been riding bikes there since the youngest was about 7-8 and theres never been an issue
Yea telling Hot_Bid not to wear a helmet when he plans to be biking slowly and safely is fine, whatever. The fact that the kids don't wear them bothers me greatly, though.
Why? biking is essentially an absolutely safe activity in holland. wearing a helmet there is kinda like wearing a helmet to the playground.. (other than the playground being far far riskier!)
On November 06 2013 10:25 micronesia wrote: Yea telling Hot_Bid not to wear a helmet when he plans to be biking slowly and safely is fine, whatever. The fact that the kids don't wear them bothers me greatly, though.
they have extra wheels on their bikes, so i agree no helmet is nesecary
On November 06 2013 10:30 Liquid`Drone wrote: Why? biking is essentially an absolutely safe activity in holland. wearing a helmet there is kinda like wearing a helmet to the playground.. (other than the playground being far far riskier!)
I would actually be interested to see data for children, rather than adults. Children are both more susceptible to getting into accidents, and more at risk of getting hurt if they have some type of an accident, than adults.
Funny to read. Utrecht actually has quite a bit of movie theaters to see smaller/arthouse movies though. Louis hartlooper is best, but Springweg and 't Hoogt are cool too. Ordering late at night is problematic though, you can for pizza and french fries etc. I think but that's it. Utrecht isn't the best place for eating out anyway, lots of cheap student prices but poor food or it's prohibitively expensive.
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote: 5. Entertainment There's no movie theaters here and they only play the biggest movie releases. For instance I like see movies like this one and Europe just doesn't have these. I'm going to fiend on movies so hard when I visit the US. However, I do watch a lot of sports and movies online through entirely legal means because it's much easier to find entirely legal sources for those entirely legal things here.
We call those kind of theaters 'filmhuis' instead of 'bioscoop'. There's usually movies from all around the world, including independent North American ones. Their schedule is often messed up though, often showing movies months after their initial release. You should check their schedule every so often.
micronesia you have no idea how safe it is to bike there, bikes have priority everywhere and the bike lanes are usually seperate from the roads, also if you hit someone on a bike with your car you're fucked
This is probably where my mom asks where are my grandkids?? Where are they?? Well dunno what to tell you mom, moving away from the thousands of compatible NY women probably didn't help that. Arranged marriage time??
I've found a decent accent is quite helpful in such things, and leaving the house. Not that I would ever be so shallow as to put on my best British accent to pick up girls.
6.5 People Part 2 I'm also the only Asian for miles, every time I see another Asian dude I wanna chest bump him and be like "yo lets get some mooncakes and eat them with chopsticks bro and then take a math test."
I just want to say this is the best part of the blog lol. I bet that's definitely a change going from new york to the netherlands
On November 06 2013 11:54 Targe wrote: micronesia you have no idea how safe it is to bike there, bikes have priority everywhere and the bike lanes are usually seperate from the roads, also if you hit someone on a bike with your car you're fucked
Yea I only have what Hot_Bid said to go on. However, the dangers of bicycling (not that it's that bad or anything) are not limited to vehicles being dumb. Helmets for kids are a good idea even in a place with no cars (it's possible to design a place to ride where helmets are not necessary, of course).
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote:... on the one hand you have people who are happy but on the other hand there's less creativity and innovation and "American dream" success stories. Either way it produces less depressed people probably but less NBA basketball players and actors.
On November 06 2013 10:30 Liquid`Drone wrote: Why? biking is essentially an absolutely safe activity in holland. wearing a helmet there is kinda like wearing a helmet to the playground.. (other than the playground being far far riskier!)
I would actually be interested to see data for children, rather than adults. Children are both more susceptible to getting into accidents, and more at risk of getting hurt if they have some type of an accident, than adults.
I think its less about the risk and more about promoting bike usage.
We have a similar system here in Melbourne, but because people have to use helmets they hardly ever get used as much, nobody wants to carry a backpack everywhere just for their helmet. A lot of people are advocating removing the helmet laws for this reason. Unfortunately while we borrow a lot from European culture (lots of bike riders and cafes), we also have American style lawyers.
On November 06 2013 05:32 zul wrote: love the blog. I was smiling almost the whole time while I read it. Hopefully you will try some rustical german bread as well. (here you find lots of inspiration: http://brotdoc.com )
Yep, as far as I know. Americans have no real bread. Only this terrible toast which they call "Bread".
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote:... on the one hand you have people who are happy but on the other hand there's less creativity and innovation and "American dream" success stories. Either way it produces less depressed people probably but less NBA basketball players and actors.
Are you kidding? they invented lego... LEGO!
I know that Europe is small and on the other side of the world for you, but Denmark and The Netherlands are two entirely different countries.
On November 06 2013 11:50 fuzzy_panda wrote: 5/5 would read again. This bought back memories of living in Germany. Can totally relate to the 'only asian for miles' thing.
Though the Dutch are statistically among the happiest in the world, while the Germans are below many poorer, more insecure nations. Generally speaking, of course. And the Germans have an irrational hate for cyclists, probably funded by the car industry.
On November 05 2013 23:53 micronesia wrote: Wow, a lot of hate on American bread, apparently. I guess the difference between countries known for their bread like Holland and the USA is that you can just get Dutch bread anywhere and it's really good, whereas in the USA you need to know where to get the good bread. You can get very good bread in the USA, too.... but the average loaf isn't anything special.
Hot_Bid thank you for sharing your experiences so far in your new home.
What I don't understand is that everyone's saying "American Bread" as if we don't have citizens of every background making amazing bread if you look hard enough in America.
Seriously, get out of the grocery stores, find the tiny local bakeries and bask in the wonder that is diversity.
But no really, if you're in America and you can't find good food, it's your own fault.
Well I guess that is the difference. Take a random urban spot in the US and you might have to drive an hour to find good bread. In Germany (and I image Holland to be similar) you walk 5 minutes into a random direction.
On November 06 2013 10:25 micronesia wrote: Yea telling Hot_Bid not to wear a helmet when he plans to be biking slowly and safely is fine, whatever. The fact that the kids don't wear them bothers me greatly, though.
Do you want kids to wear helmets when walking through the traffic too? I'm quite sure pedestrians in the Netherlands are in as much danger as people on bikes.
On a funny note, Steve hughes about Dutch health and safety regulations:
On November 06 2013 10:30 Liquid`Drone wrote: Why? biking is essentially an absolutely safe activity in holland. wearing a helmet there is kinda like wearing a helmet to the playground.. (other than the playground being far far riskier!)
I would actually be interested to see data for children, rather than adults. Children are both more susceptible to getting into accidents, and more at risk of getting hurt if they have some type of an accident, than adults.
Some more statistics. Still searching for child statistics.
Road casualties in the Netherlands have dropped steeply, even as cycling rates have risen. Now approximately 720 people per year die on Dutch roads. 180 of them are cyclists, and 22 of those are children. The cycling figures may sound high, but they are in part a reflection of the number of cycle journeys made. The Dutch now experience an overall risk which is less than a quarter of that in 1973, and for children it's now a twentieth of that in 1973. Dutch cyclists are now the safest in the world. Of course, the campaign goes on to reduce the figures.
We also have these near every big road children have to cross when they go to school or come from school. These are mothers and fathers volunteering.
At times I'm really glad my country is so big. I fucking hate cyclists on the road. Mother fuckers don't signal or anything, and they're slow as balls. Cool blog though, agreed take more pics.
Well it's not like you can't work hard in the Netherlands if you want to pursue it, it's just that it's not really in our culture. I think there were some studies conducted lately that showed that we are actually very productive despite working less hours on average.
On November 06 2013 19:13 mikkmagro wrote: Haha, really interesting blog!
Have you learned how to pronounce Utrecht properly?
also, I thought someone moving from a metropolis to a 'clean' country like the Netherlands would be really happy with the change in air quality
Air quality in the Randstad (urban/metropolitan area of the Netherlands) is actually one of the worst places in the world when it comes to air pollution lol.
Lookie, big red dot over Utrecht and surrounding area :p. + Show Spoiler +
On November 06 2013 19:15 Twisted wrote: Well it's not like you can't work hard in the Netherlands if you want to pursue it, it's just that it's not really in our culture. I think there were some studies conducted lately that showed that we are actually very productive despite working less hours on average.
On November 06 2013 19:13 mikkmagro wrote: Haha, really interesting blog!
Have you learned how to pronounce Utrecht properly?
also, I thought someone moving from a metropolis to a 'clean' country like the Netherlands would be really happy with the change in air quality
Air quality in the Randstad (urban/metropolitan area of the Netherlands) is actually one of the worst places in the world when it comes to air pollution lol.
Lookie, big red dot over Utrecht and surrounding area :p. + Show Spoiler +
wow ok, I've never actually been to the Netherlands, but with all the well-planned cities, rivers, wind and people opting for bicycles instead of cars, I always imagined it to be a breath of fresh air, at least compared to the exhaust ridden air of my country lol.
On November 06 2013 18:28 SK.Testie wrote: At times I'm really glad my country is so big. I fucking hate cyclists on the road. Mother fuckers don't signal or anything, and they're slow as balls. Cool blog though, agreed take more pics.
Cyclists aren't on the road in the Netherlands. They're on bicycle paths.
On November 05 2013 21:04 corumjhaelen wrote: About food, you're probably in the worst country in Europe when it comes to that (I'm preparing to be flamed but let's be honest two second here...). And american bread more or less sucks yeah. Nice blog anyway, don't go out too much, you might catch that throat disease they call a language over there
I just logged in to say you're wrong. God you're wrong! Dutch food is amazing ^.^
On November 05 2013 21:04 corumjhaelen wrote: About food, you're probably in the worst country in Europe when it comes to that (I'm preparing to be flamed but let's be honest two second here...). And american bread more or less sucks yeah. Nice blog anyway, don't go out too much, you might catch that throat disease they call a language over there
I just logged in to say you're wrong. God you're wrong! Dutch food is amazing ^.^
They do have a ridiculous amount of sweets and deep fried stuff, yes.
On November 06 2013 18:28 SK.Testie wrote: At times I'm really glad my country is so big. I fucking hate cyclists on the road. Mother fuckers don't signal or anything, and they're slow as balls. Cool blog though, agreed take more pics.
Actually, the biggest cultur shock to me was - coming from germany - that cyclist do stop at traffic lights, do signals and respect laws in general. It's not suprising though, you barely have to stop at traffic lights anyway, because everything is optimized for cyclists.
On November 05 2013 21:04 corumjhaelen wrote: About food, you're probably in the worst country in Europe when it comes to that (I'm preparing to be flamed but let's be honest two second here...). And american bread more or less sucks yeah. Nice blog anyway, don't go out too much, you might catch that throat disease they call a language over there
I just logged in to say you're wrong. God you're wrong! Dutch food is amazing ^.^
Dutch food is pretty meh. Food in the Netherlands, on the other hand, can be really great.
The "typical" Dutch meal is mashed potatoes, mixed with a vegetable (generally some type of cabbage) and sausage, bacon or other meat (mostly pork). I am a big fan of boerenkool met worst, or hutspot met haché, but it is not on par with mediterranean dishes or asian food, for instance.
Other than that, there are some good soups (in particular, the pea soup is really good. Try it when winter rolls around in earnest), there's pancakes (different from crêpes or the US-style pancakes) and there's a couple of indonesia-inspired dishes which are nice. Just try nasi goreng, or kip saté.
However, there are plenty of good restaurants that mix and match different styles of cooking from all over the world, and the Dutch supermarkets have some of the most diverse selection of foodstuffs that I have seen anywhere (and I have traveled a fair bit).
EDIT: oh, and forgot. Try the herring and the smoked eel. They're great.
Great blog man! Would love to get the opportunity to meet up with you and everyone from TL in the Netherlands. Nazgul should organize a fanday in Utrecht. Just because.
On November 05 2013 23:53 micronesia wrote: Wow, a lot of hate on American bread, apparently. I guess the difference between countries known for their bread like Holland and the USA is that you can just get Dutch bread anywhere and it's really good, whereas in the USA you need to know where to get the good bread. You can get very good bread in the USA, too.... but the average loaf isn't anything special.
Hot_Bid thank you for sharing your experiences so far in your new home.
What I don't understand is that everyone's saying "American Bread" as if we don't have citizens of every background making amazing bread if you look hard enough in America.
Seriously, get out of the grocery stores, find the tiny local bakeries and bask in the wonder that is diversity.
But no really, if you're in America and you can't find good food, it's your own fault.
Well I guess that is the difference. Take a random urban spot in the US and you might have to drive an hour to find good bread. In Germany (and I image Holland to be similar) you walk 5 minutes into a random direction.
People I notice here in LA just eat the cheap, crappy bread. Being Chinese here is different since I can eat rice almost every day. And then if I don't eat Asian food, there are usually tacos and burritos. No need for bread, really.
On November 06 2013 00:05 LaNague wrote: Is it only in germany that university towns are packed with rich(in China) chinese kids?
If you ever go to LA (technically Orange county) for Blizzcon or something, visit UC Irvine, the university next door to Blizzard HQ. It's roughly 70% Asian.
Bread is something that you'd think would be quite similar in western countries (apart from places like France or Greece with their own types of bread being more popular), but even basic white bread is significantly better in some countries
After moving to the UK I barely buy any bread here because it's just terrible compared to Sweden, rather just bake my own.
On November 06 2013 18:58 DannyJ wrote: So you leave us here in NYC to go to a place where the biggest talking points are the quality of bread and child bike safety. Must be a blast
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote: Either way it produces less depressed people probably but less NBA basketball players and actors.
Funny how you mentioned NBA, because Netherlands and basketball are like fire and ice on the other hand, your statement can go vice versa - USA produces little to no people, who can play in Champions League
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote: Either way it produces less depressed people probably but less NBA basketball players and actors.
Funny how you mentioned NBA, because Netherlands and basketball are like fire and ice on the other hand, your statement can go vice versa - USA produces little to no people, who can play in Champions League
Great blog overall cheers!
You have to admit, having the tallest people in the world not be good in the sport with arguably the biggest height advantage is stranger. Then again, I came from the Philippines, where the people are really short but basketball is the no. 1 sport.
i didn't know you moved outta nyc. i recently started biking here too -- it's actually pretty feasible (esp with all the new bike lanes, thx citi bikes) albeit almost certainly more dangerous than biking in the netherlands.
also, why are you biking on the sidewalk?! or is that actually a bike path?
Sounds fun, what area of Utrecht are you guys in? I'm in Tuindorp myself. Make sure you visit Kafe Belgie if you're looking to go to a cafe rather than a club by the way - it has a beer chart of a few hundred different brands and is more tailored towards just chilling and chatting. It's quite "internationally accessible" too, loads of exchange students go there on a regular basis, so people have no problems talking English there.
Sorry that you're living in Europe for now, Hotbid. It was fun meeting you at MLG Anaheim; I told you that I'm a fan of your trolling. <3 Teach them EUs WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A TROLL!!~~
On November 07 2013 17:15 tshi wrote: Sorry that you're living in Europe for now, Hotbid. It was fun meeting you at MLG Anaheim; I told you that I'm a fan of your trolling. <3 Teach them EUs WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A TROLL!!~~
Because we don't have enough trolling between Carmac and Robert Ohlen lol
I always get envious when people talk about food in the US, especially NYC.
Seriously, you guys seem to have affordable, delicious looking fast food in generous portions all over the place, at least that's what it looks like to me.
Do you realise difficult it is to get decent donuts in Germany? Or almost anywhere else in Europe for that matter? And Burgers... fucking hell, it's impossible to get nearly satisfied eating burgers without paying through your ass. I weigh 66 kilos and getting me content at McDonald's would take 20 €, 15 € at Pizza Hut and 14 € at Subway.
To think there are dedicated donut shops in the US makes me want to live there _so_ badly.
On November 07 2013 20:17 SixStrings wrote: I always get envious when people talk about food in the US, especially NYC. Seriously, you guys seem to have affordable, delicious looking fast food in generous portions all over the place, at least that's what it looks like to me.
Do you realise difficult it is to get decent donuts in Germany? Or almost anywhere else in Europe for that matter? And Burgers... fucking hell, it's impossible to get nearly satisfied eating burgers without paying through your ass. I weigh 66 kilos and getting me content at McDonald's would take 20 €, 15 € at Pizza Hut and 14 € at Subway.
To think there are dedicated donut shops in the US makes me want to live there _so_ badly.
It's a buyer's market (I think Im using that phrase right vis-a-vis (this one too?) the seller and buyer relationship). ANYWAY. There is a hiiiiiigh demand (especially in states where marijuana is quasi legal) for that type of food so there are all sorts of delicious foods out there being sold at cheap prices ... like everywhere...but especially big cities like new york and los angeles. I live in Los Angeles-ish area and ... well yeah, it's easy to find the best ___ for low prices here. USA is the melting pot of the world!
On November 07 2013 20:17 SixStrings wrote: I always get envious when people talk about food in the US, especially NYC.
Seriously, you guys seem to have affordable, delicious looking fast food in generous portions all over the place, at least that's what it looks like to me.
Do you realise difficult it is to get decent donuts in Germany? Or almost anywhere else in Europe for that matter? And Burgers... fucking hell, it's impossible to get nearly satisfied eating burgers without paying through your ass. I weigh 66 kilos and getting me content at McDonald's would take 20 €, 15 € at Pizza Hut and 14 € at Subway.
To think there are dedicated donut shops in the US makes me want to live there _so_ badly.
so you need 3 feet of subway sandwich to be satisfied? please stop talking through your ass unless you are actually weighing 166kg I highly doubt it
On November 07 2013 20:17 SixStrings wrote: I always get envious when people talk about food in the US, especially NYC. Seriously, you guys seem to have affordable, delicious looking fast food in generous portions all over the place, at least that's what it looks like to me.
Do you realise difficult it is to get decent donuts in Germany? Or almost anywhere else in Europe for that matter? And Burgers... fucking hell, it's impossible to get nearly satisfied eating burgers without paying through your ass. I weigh 66 kilos and getting me content at McDonald's would take 20 €, 15 € at Pizza Hut and 14 € at Subway.
To think there are dedicated donut shops in the US makes me want to live there _so_ badly.
It's a buyer's market (I think Im using that phrase right vis-a-vis (this one too?) the seller and buyer relationship). ANYWAY. There is a hiiiiiigh demand (especially in states where marijuana is quasi legal) for that type of food so there are all sorts of delicious foods out there being sold at cheap prices ... like everywhere...but especially big cities like new york and los angeles. I live in Los Angeles-ish area and ... well yeah, it's easy to find the best ___ for low prices here. USA is the melting pot of the world!
It's more concentrated in the larger, more cosmopolitan cities. Some relatives of mine moved to the Dallas area and they said the variety isn't as good.
I live in the Los Angeles-ish area as well. There are a crazy amount of ethnic restaurants with cheap, authentic food. We barely have any of the westernized Chinese food in my area. Instead, we have Szechuan, Hunan, HK Cafes, Shanghainese, Taiwanese, Guilin, Xinjiang, Chinese Islamic, Mongolian and all sorts of other regional specialties. A meal costs around $10-15. There are plenty of Korean restaurants that specialize in everything from fermented tofu, pork bone stew and black goat stew.
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
dude I forget it's Sunday ALL The time and then it's bread and butter or pasta with hopefully spare pesto time :D There's a few places that are open though. the Edeka in the Friedrichstrasse for example ^^
Haha I swear the guy who invented pasta + pesto is a genius to people like us.
Great read man, I'm glad you like it here. I hope you will hop over the border some time aswell. ; )
On November 07 2013 13:29 Bereft wrote: please blog more, this was awesome!
i didn't know you moved outta nyc. i recently started biking here too -- it's actually pretty feasible (esp with all the new bike lanes, thx citi bikes) albeit almost certainly more dangerous than biking in the netherlands.
also, why are you biking on the sidewalk?! or is that actually a bike path?
That's a bike path, our bike paths are coloured red .
Bread in the US sucks. I haven't been to a country in Europe yet (except maybe for the UK, if you count that towards Europe, that is...) that didn't have bread a miles better than the US.
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Bikers are the gender-confused vehicle of inner-urban society. They are constantly unsure if they are pedestrian or vehicle oriented and feel they are entitled to be on either the sidewalk and road without any regard for the trafficking laws. They have some sort of superiority complex with their two-wheeling no-pollution mobility and speed. They don't stop for no one. It's not as bad as when I was in Dublin, I think the crosswalks are there to add some flair to the city; every mother-funker crosses whenever/wherever/whoever they want.
Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
Do you have to pay for your television? Even if we don't have any TVs or radio in the house, we still have to pay for it. It's like 20 euros a month: so aggravating.
Please take more pictures
I should do a blog like this!
netherlands has an incredible bike-culture. not just in the sense that everyone bikes, but that everyone bikes responsibly. they're not going too fast, they always use their little bell, they're happy and smiling and everything is wonderful.
in Trondheim, Norway, which has become an increasingly bike-friendly city, quite a lot of people bike. but they sometimes go 30 km/h on the sidewalk without signalling before passing you. bikes are awesome but bikers need to be also.
Is it considered bad etiquette to bike at faster speeds? If you are in good shape, cruising around 35 km/h on the flats is pretty comfortable riding, and is obviously way, way faster for getting somewhere than barely turning the pedals and going 15 or 20 km/h.
Not knowing the paths well, is it an etiquette issue with people being assholes and blowing by other cyclists with no warning at double the speed? Or are they just smaller paths heavily congested with riders where riding at a dramatically different speed is downright dangerous.
in any city, the paths are smaller/heavily congested. I'd say going 35 km/h is extremely irresponsible in amsterdam, prolly also utretch and any other dutch city because it's a really densely populated country and everyone bikes everywhere. I'd guess it's a combination of etiquette and just sheer.. impossibility of really going faster cause you're gonna crash then.
the thing is, nobody in holland is actually in a rush. it's just very comfortable there.
On November 07 2013 20:17 SixStrings wrote: I always get envious when people talk about food in the US, especially NYC.
Seriously, you guys seem to have affordable, delicious looking fast food in generous portions all over the place, at least that's what it looks like to me.
Do you realise difficult it is to get decent donuts in Germany? Or almost anywhere else in Europe for that matter? And Burgers... fucking hell, it's impossible to get nearly satisfied eating burgers without paying through your ass. I weigh 66 kilos and getting me content at McDonald's would take 20 €, 15 € at Pizza Hut and 14 € at Subway.
To think there are dedicated donut shops in the US makes me want to live there _so_ badly.
so you need 3 feet of subway sandwich to be satisfied? please stop talking through your ass unless you are actually weighing 166kg I highly doubt it
On November 08 2013 04:22 Liquid`Drone wrote: in any city, the paths are smaller/heavily congested. I'd say going 35 km/h is extremely irresponsible in amsterdam, prolly also utretch and any other dutch city because it's a really densely populated country and everyone bikes everywhere. I'd guess it's a combination of etiquette and just sheer.. impossibility of really going faster cause you're gonna crash then.
the thing is, nobody in holland is actually in a rush. it's just very comfortable there.
Yeah, Amsterdam is one of the nicest cities in Europe. I went there for a weekend trip and stayed for five weeks. Even the homeless are nice. One asked me for a fag, in Dutch first, then in German, then in English. He was the nicest guy ever. And trilingual. We shared a couple of smokes and played chess for an hour.
At some point I crashed with some squatters (?), who were virtually homeless as well, and when I got up the next morning, they had neither robbed nor raped me.
In Germany, most hobos I've seen are very sensitive to what they perceive as condescension and tend to get a bit rude.
When the country Nederland came into existence Holland was one of the provinces that joined the new country. As usual in that time the countries surrounding the new country translated the name of the new country into their own language, so Nederland became known as the Netherlands in English, Niederlande in German and le Pais Bas in French and so on.
But as the Duchy of Holland was well known over the world that name did become the nickname for all the country Nederland. It was its most influential area, and the name was established enough not to be 'translated' or not more than needed for local pronunciation.
Nowadays Holland is a region in the west of the country, and the name for two provinces, which together make up the region: North Holland and South Holland.
In the Netherlands you think Bikers run rampant like savages if you are from another country
the truth is we calculate every move subconciously and never actually run into people, you learn the rules of the road when you bike so often.
On November 07 2013 00:10 Liquid`Nazgul wrote: I wonder how many people show up if we do a meet up at some bar in Utrecht
The Barcraft that was held in de Winkel van Sinkel was reasonably succesfull I believe.
The Dutch kitchen is quite unimpressive and I never really liked it, there are good food places but in general they are very expensive. It is much better to cook for yourself.
also I told you to buy a rice cooker and last time I was there you still didn't have one
BUY A RICE COOKER>>Aquire rice>Aquire eggs>>Aquire random veggies>Fried rice with eggs
On November 08 2013 07:05 Zandar wrote: When the country Nederland came into existence Holland was one of the provinces that joined the new country. As usual in that time the countries surrounding the new country translated the name of the new country into their own language, so Nederland became known as the Netherlands in English, Niederlande in German and le Pais Bas in French and so on.
But as the Duchy of Holland was well known over the world that name did become the nickname for all the country Nederland. It was its most influential area, and the name was established enough not to be 'translated' or not more than needed for local pronunciation.
Nowadays Holland is a region in the west of the country, and the name for two provinces, which together make up the region: North Holland and South Holland.
Thanks for info here, in Lithuania, most of the time we use Holland not Netherlands though
On November 08 2013 07:05 Zandar wrote: When the country Nederland came into existence Holland was one of the provinces that joined the new country. As usual in that time the countries surrounding the new country translated the name of the new country into their own language, so Nederland became known as the Netherlands in English, Niederlande in German and le Pais Bas in French and so on.
But as the Duchy of Holland was well known over the world that name did become the nickname for all the country Nederland. It was its most influential area, and the name was established enough not to be 'translated' or not more than needed for local pronunciation.
Nowadays Holland is a region in the west of the country, and the name for two provinces, which together make up the region: North Holland and South Holland.
Thanks for info here, in Lithuania, most of the time we use Holland not Netherlands though
We also cheer for our country as in "Hup Holland Hup"
35 km/h biking is also almost impossible with the standard of bikes we have here. We aren't all cycling on racing/mountain bikes. 15-20 km/h is a very standard speed for most cyclists.
On November 08 2013 07:05 Zandar wrote: When the country Nederland came into existence Holland was one of the provinces that joined the new country. As usual in that time the countries surrounding the new country translated the name of the new country into their own language, so Nederland became known as the Netherlands in English, Niederlande in German and le Pais Bas in French and so on.
But as the Duchy of Holland was well known over the world that name did become the nickname for all the country Nederland. It was its most influential area, and the name was established enough not to be 'translated' or not more than needed for local pronunciation.
Nowadays Holland is a region in the west of the country, and the name for two provinces, which together make up the region: North Holland and South Holland.
Thanks for info here, in Lithuania, most of the time we use Holland not Netherlands though
Yes many do It's kinda the same thing as calling the UK England I guess.
On November 08 2013 19:07 Twisted wrote: 35 km/h biking is also almost impossible with the standard of bikes we have here. We aren't all cycling on racing/mountain bikes. 15-20 km/h is a very standard speed for most cyclists.
Exactly. The only ones you see go 35km/h are racing bikers like you see in the Tour de France and mountainbikes etc but those are cycling for sport. The average dutch biker who just uses his bike to go from A to B rarely goes that fast, certainly not in crowded places.
Dno if this has been answered already, but since I'm too lazy to read the entire thread & I've been living in Utrecht for a while now this may interest you.
3. Food Farmers cabbage == kale
4. Places / Social Well dunno what to tell you mom, moving away from the thousands of compatible NY women probably didn't help that. Arranged marriage time?? You probably didn't know that at Utrecht University there are more females than males. Something that may interest you.
5. Entertainment There's no movie theaters here and they only play the biggest movie releases. Try Louis Hartlooper Complex & Springhaver
On November 08 2013 07:05 Zandar wrote: When the country Nederland came into existence Holland was one of the provinces that joined the new country. As usual in that time the countries surrounding the new country translated the name of the new country into their own language, so Nederland became known as the Netherlands in English, Niederlande in German and le Pais Bas in French and so on.
But as the Duchy of Holland was well known over the world that name did become the nickname for all the country Nederland. It was its most influential area, and the name was established enough not to be 'translated' or not more than needed for local pronunciation.
Nowadays Holland is a region in the west of the country, and the name for two provinces, which together make up the region: North Holland and South Holland.
So why are we the Dutch then? Dutch Hollanders from the Netherlands.
On November 05 2013 21:06 Torte de Lini wrote: Are you mad that nothing is open on Sunday? I ran out of food on Saturday and so my Sunday meals consisted of butter and a variety of flat-surfaced foods, there's only so many ways I can melt butter...
I currently live in Eindhoven. The C1000 supermarket opens on Sunday. It is not open the whole day, only the afternoon, but you can buy stuff on Sunday.
Having visited European countries only twice in my young life, I find such blogs on countries with cultures vastly different than mine extremely interesting! Thanks for the blog!
On November 08 2013 09:47 VoirDire wrote: So, were Vincent Vega right? Do they put mayonnaise on their fries?
Yes and it's the best shit ever. :p However I can imagine people's distaste for it. Some restaurants make their own mayonnaise and often times it's pretty bad. Usually at fast food places you can choose what you want with your fries Mayonnaise, Ketchup or "Pindasaus" (which translates to Peanut Sauce), or any form of mixture between them. It's all pretty darn good :p
On November 08 2013 07:05 Zandar wrote: When the country Nederland came into existence Holland was one of the provinces that joined the new country. As usual in that time the countries surrounding the new country translated the name of the new country into their own language, so Nederland became known as the Netherlands in English, Niederlande in German and le Pais Bas in French and so on.
But as the Duchy of Holland was well known over the world that name did become the nickname for all the country Nederland. It was its most influential area, and the name was established enough not to be 'translated' or not more than needed for local pronunciation.
Nowadays Holland is a region in the west of the country, and the name for two provinces, which together make up the region: North Holland and South Holland.
So why are we the Dutch then? Dutch Hollanders from the Netherlands.
In Old English dutch simply meant “people or nation.” (This also explains why Germany is called Deutschland in German.) Over time, English-speaking people used the word Dutch to describe people from both the Netherlands and Germany. (At that point in time, in the early 1500s, the Netherlands and parts of Germany, along with Belgium and Luxembourg, were all part of the Holy Roman Empire.) Specifically the phrase “High Dutch” referred to people from the mountainous area of what is now southern Germany. “Low Dutch” referred to people from the flatlands in what is now the Netherlands.
On November 09 2013 03:40 Liquid`Drone wrote: frites sauce (mayo) is wayyyyyyy superior to ketchup on fries. I had never tried it before I went to netherlands but man, it's delicious.
And like every place has their special home made sauces. I had mayo with plum jam, holy shit, that was awsome.
On November 09 2013 03:40 Liquid`Drone wrote: frites sauce (mayo) is wayyyyyyy superior to ketchup on fries. I had never tried it before I went to netherlands but man, it's delicious.
wait you guys wanna tell me fries with mayo isnt standart evrywhere? crazy world
On November 09 2013 03:40 Liquid`Drone wrote: frites sauce (mayo) is wayyyyyyy superior to ketchup on fries. I had never tried it before I went to netherlands but man, it's delicious.
wait you guys wanna tell me fries with mayo isnt standart evrywhere? crazy world
On November 05 2013 21:45 sd_andeh wrote: Haha, you need to stop saying Netherlands is _europe_! Some of the things you described are very different from how it is in Sweden for instance. Tipping is also very different.
The food is another thing - I think this totally depends on where you live. In some parts of Sweden (and probably just like NL), there won't be foodplaces all over the place but if you get to them bigger cities they should be pretty much like NYC (just not THAT big). In Stockholm, I tend to order indian food regularly and have it delivered to my door.
Anyway, real fun reading these stories. It's so funny because you're American :D [edit: no offense, we usually make fun of americans]
Gogo, but really, Nazgul should consider moving that office to Sweden! [edit: Swedish girls are also better looking and shorter :D]
Finding a place to eat after midnight even in the epicenter of Stockholm, is in my experience borderline impossible.
Whereas where I live now - and I imagine New York is similar in this regard - you could walk 2 minutes in a random direction and find a 24/7 place, and it wont even be fast food (well, at least not here - I've never been to new york so can't comment, but it's pretty well known for food).
Many food delivery and fast food services close early yes, unfortunately.
Dominos, new york pizza etc usually around 10pm. McDrives are usually open until midnight.
But you can get Turkish Kebab delivered at home until like 2am in most larger cities in the Netherlands and it's really good! And big cities have nachtwinkels (nightshops) also. But they are like 2 times more expensive than normal supermarkets.
Also gasstations. Not all in the city are open 24-7, but some are, and these usually have a mini supermarket too. Don't expect haute quisine though lol.
We don't eat out that often compared to the US I guess, but ordering online increased a lot over the past decennium. Still, I think most Dutch eat home made diner at least 5-6 times a week. Lot's of microwave food too.
Do you think Dutch people have more food in their fridges in general compared to Americans? And maybe we visit the supermarket more frequently? For me it's a chore so I try to keep these visits to a minimum and keep my fridge stacked, but I know quite a few people who go daily, just because they want to decide at that moment what to eat.
I'm also very courious what you think about the dutch chinese food lol. Is it anything like real chinese food? Many chinese restaurants deliver at home too btw.
On November 05 2013 23:50 Waxangel wrote: have you tried salt licorice yet
Well you cant find good salty liquorice in netherlands, to taste real salmiakki you have to come Finland. Same with rye bread. I have travelled lot but you find the best rye bread in Finland
Funny blog - I like European restaurants better because they don't fake flirt and get all chummy with you vying for a tips. Who likes insincere people or brownosers?
Haha, that reminds me of when I was stationed in Sicily and overheard people complaining about missing KFC etc. I thought they were fucking nuts as I was thoroughly enjoying the local food. Stuff you just can't find in the US, like the cannoli made with ricotta from sheep's milk (not the bland ricotta in the states). Occasionally was taken to a farm where it was made where they gave samples too. Eating like a king where it would cost over $100 a plate to even sample what they get to eat on a daily basis.
I also found myself noticing the little things. Tomatoes bursting with surprising flavor. Simple dishes my ex-mother-in-law would make that were tremendous (broccoli soup) because of how high in quality the basic ingredients are (where in the US you have to add spices etc for flavor). Mayonnaise with subtle lemon flavor (no wonder Europeans have that with their French fries)...
On November 10 2013 05:11 tdt wrote: Funny blog - I like European restaurants better because they don't fake flirt and get all chummy with you vying for a tips. Who likes insincere people or brownosers?
I just moved to Canada and i'm still surprised by how nice people are in general. I've always been nice toward the next because it's my way of doing, but seeing that everyone here acts like that, I never understand if it's just culture, if everyone is happy, or if they feel like they have to be nice.
On November 05 2013 20:54 Hot_Bid wrote: 6.5 People Part 2 Everyone is tall. I'm like 5'7-5'8 (172cm) and everyone is taller than me. I'm also the only Asian for miles, every time I see another Asian dude I wanna chest bump him and be like "yo lets get some mooncakes and eat them with chopsticks bro and then take a math test."
stayed in Maastricht for 1 sem during exchange. As a chinese guy I must agree that Dutch food is pretty bad. I ate sandwiches and kebabs and croquettes like every day and got sick of it really quickly.
The occasional chinese food I ate tasted like heaven
On November 07 2013 20:17 SixStrings wrote: I always get envious when people talk about food in the US, especially NYC.
Seriously, you guys seem to have affordable, delicious looking fast food in generous portions all over the place, at least that's what it looks like to me.
Do you realise difficult it is to get decent donuts in Germany? Or almost anywhere else in Europe for that matter? And Burgers... fucking hell, it's impossible to get nearly satisfied eating burgers without paying through your ass. I weigh 66 kilos and getting me content at McDonald's would take 20 €, 15 € at Pizza Hut and 14 € at Subway.
To think there are dedicated donut shops in the US makes me want to live there _so_ badly.
On November 11 2013 19:53 gosubay wrote: stayed in Maastricht for 1 sem during exchange. As a chinese guy I must agree that Dutch food is pretty bad. I ate sandwiches and kebabs and croquettes like every day and got sick of it really quickly.
The occasional chinese food I ate tasted like heaven
That's like me going to Japan and disliking the food lol but instead calling it bad.
Anyways, most countries on europe are quite different, food aswell. I never really liked german bread, but probably i haven't find good one, i like my bread salty tho.
On November 09 2013 20:48 TheBloodyDwarf wrote: Love how title is living in europe but you are only in netherland :D Every country is different.
And I agree, I was 2 weeks ago 8 days in NYC and I JUST COULDNT FIND GOOD BREAD
If someone moved to the US they would probably title the thread "Living in the US" rather than "Living in Wyoming" (I think there are some exceptions like, Living in NYC or Living in Las Vegas, but on the whole).
On November 11 2013 19:53 gosubay wrote: stayed in Maastricht for 1 sem during exchange. As a chinese guy I must agree that Dutch food is pretty bad. I ate sandwiches and kebabs and croquettes like every day and got sick of it really quickly.
The occasional chinese food I ate tasted like heaven
That's not really Dutch food... croquettes may be a Dutch snack but that's about it. If you want to taste real Dutch food you should taste mash pot with whichever vegetables you like.
I live in Norway, but spent 2 years in California, and yes, bread in USA stinks, and bread in Europe is real bread. I don't know how that happened, as home-made bread in USA is pretty good. It's just the mass-produced stuff is... ugh.
On November 11 2013 19:53 gosubay wrote: stayed in Maastricht for 1 sem during exchange. As a chinese guy I must agree that Dutch food is pretty bad. I ate sandwiches and kebabs and croquettes like every day and got sick of it really quickly.
The occasional chinese food I ate tasted like heaven
That's not really Dutch food... croquettes may be a Dutch snack but that's about it. If you want to taste real Dutch food you should taste mash pot with whichever vegetables you like.
Which is still pretty bad compared to countries like France and Italy.
Hot_Bid you should go visit the grubster at home and do an interview with him! You live so close to him, no excuses!
And Cassandra, his wife, also came to the Netherlands some years ago. It might be fun to interview her about her experiences with the Netherlands and Dutch people as wel And she's asian too, so that should allow for some bonding! I wouldn't recommend the chest bumping though.
On November 09 2013 20:48 TheBloodyDwarf wrote: Love how title is living in europe but you are only in netherland :D Every country is different.
And I agree, I was 2 weeks ago 8 days in NYC and I JUST COULDNT FIND GOOD BREAD
If someone moved to the US they would probably title the thread "Living in the US" rather than "Living in Wyoming" (I think there are some exceptions like, Living in NYC or Living in Las Vegas, but on the whole).
On November 07 2013 20:17 SixStrings wrote: I always get envious when people talk about food in the US, especially NYC.
Seriously, you guys seem to have affordable, delicious looking fast food in generous portions all over the place, at least that's what it looks like to me.
Do you realise difficult it is to get decent donuts in Germany? Or almost anywhere else in Europe for that matter? And Burgers... fucking hell, it's impossible to get nearly satisfied eating burgers without paying through your ass. I weigh 66 kilos and getting me content at McDonald's would take 20 €, 15 € at Pizza Hut and 14 € at Subway.
To think there are dedicated donut shops in the US makes me want to live there _so_ badly.
I agree, in small towns it's difficult to get good international food, but not in bigger cities like Berlin -> food heaven
I lived in Hamburg, Münster, Bonn, Cologne, Heidelberg and Koblenz so far and none of these cities had food that blew my mind. Maybe Berlin's different, haven't been there in a while. But I doubt it, Cologne is much more "metropolitan", as in more densely populated, and even there great fast food is scarce.
EPT
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