For everyone who feels like speaking English....

Now there is a topic for ya, what is the difference between the Dutch and the English or German or Ozzies.... anybody?

I know that the dutch in general are known for a couple of things like, hard workers, skilled in several languages and great party people.... On the otherside we are called arrogant, clog walks etcetera.
Im wondering what the general opinion is.... has anybody heared anything else....

Skutch how do you see the Dutch?  :wink:

Gr.Koen  :up:
 
I heard in the documentary in "Andere Tijden" on tele last sunday: the Dutch are highly regarded and esteemed and very welcome in our country. Hhmmm, hopefully that's still the case. This was 1950-something.

I have been called:
blunt
pretty, but with an attitude  :-D :wink: :| :lol:
direct
bubbly

But to what extend these are personal or in general, who knows?

Any Aussies can comment on that?
 
Hallo Koen and Henriette,

I can comment as a Brit who has lived here for 13 years.

In the beginning I could not believe how direct the Dutch were.  I used to say to my ex-husband a lot 'You can't say that!' to which he would reply 'Why not?'  I would always explain to him how he could say it more tactfully, for example instead of telling someone they're crap at something, try and tell them what they could do to improve it.

Over the years I have got used to the directness and I believe I have become directer too, all the British politeness can be a bit too much sometimes!

But I agree with what Katrina says, using 'please' more often would certainly help the Dutch more in Australia!

What I do still find though is that the Dutch are very good at complaining (zeuren), they never seem to be completely happy.  But it's difficult for me to compare this with all Brits as I lived in the North East of Scotland which is totally different to someone who lives in London, maybe they complain a lot too!

I have lived here now 13 years, a third of my life, and I really enjoy it, especially now I can speak fluent Dutch. I have a lot of Dutch friends, of course my partner is Dutch too, I much prefer Dutch men to Scottish ones!

Groetjes,
Susan  :)
 
You know what my 'problem' is... I forget to say please a lot... Dutch people also say "I want that one", but I think that it would be "I would like to have that one" in proper English.
Any good tips for remembering to say your thank you's and please's?? ;)
 
I am happy that in the end everybody seems to appreciate certain aspects of eachothers characteristics.....
We, as Dutchies, learn that not everybody thinks blunt and direct is good and other more "closed" or "polite" people think that sometimes saying just as it is, can be a blessing!

Let's take the best of both worlds!

Please.

Henriette

ps: compare Israeli's with Dutch and we suddenly are a lot less blunt/direct/tactless. Don't know if it's in the translation of the language though. Might have something to do with it, with so little words expressing things in Hebrew. English (Australian as well, if not more) has many words for the same thing, for instance compared to Spanish.....
 
I just think once a while . more often dutch ppl should use please more often when asking for a beer and or something else

may i have that one ok , but ''may i please have 1-10 beers please is much better

i don't like to serve custumors when they don't ask nicely :cry: :cry: :-D
 
.....but don't tell me that you've never heard in an Australian pub: two pots, thanx!
I don't see any please in that either!  :-o

:lol:
 
i know , some Australian's are like that to ,
but not all

i guess they are everywhere!!

please would be nice though
 
I guess the bottom line is to adapt to the etiquette of the country that you're in. And I think that you can be too little polite, but not TOO polite (well, okay, in general, I mean).

Which means that where ever you may go, you listen and learn, right? One should measure with the standards of the country, not persé your own.

Just my thoughts :)
 
Yes, Irene adaption is the key!

I first arrived in the Netherlands back in 1993 in Rotterdam.  In those days the supermarkets weren't open till late in the evening, which meant if you worked you could only do your grocery shopping on a Friday evening or Saturday, so as you can imagine it was pretty busy in the supermarket.

It was like a war sometimes, everyone bad-tempered  :x, banging into each other with their trollies, in the beginning I always used to say 'sorry' when I banged into someone, but I quickly realised that no-one else said sorry so I soon stopped that! 

But here in Friesland it's different, people are politer, but that has I think a lot to do with more space here, people seem less stressed out. :)

So it's not just adapting to the country you're in, but also which part of the country.  I remember when as a naive 23 year old I went from rural Scotland to work in London for a few months.  Sometimes I had to travel to an office outside London in the train.  In Scotland where I come from people talk to each other in the bus and the train, so once to kill the time I offered to help the guy sitting opposite me with his crossword.  Well you would have thought I was an alien with 2 heads  :crazy:, he was speechless, he'd probably been travelling in the same train for years and nobody had ever spoken to him!
 
Sometimes it is strange indeed. I live in a small town where most people (even if they don't know each other) nod their head or say hello
when passing by. I really like that, just being polite and courtious (spelling OK?) to each other.
But if you drive about 10K to the nearest town it's a different  ball game, people (just like Scutch said)
stare at you like some kind of freak or alien when you smile at them or let alone greet them  :shocking:.

To me being courtious is a bit like going to work in the morning, listening to that stupid song on 3FM, 'begin de dag met
een dansje', and starting the day with a smile (a really goofy one  :doofywave: ). Not particularly becaus I looooooove
my job and going to work, but because this song made me feel happy  :-D. To me this is the same effect you get when walking down the street and somebody smiles at you or greets you. I hope this still makes sense  :wink: :wink:.

Miranda  :)
 
Yeah! Just heard from my boss that I can stay for another year :) Already knew it, but now it's official :) And... I'm getting travel expences compensation for another year :) At the municipality here they have a rule that says that you only get two years compensation, but when you have a yearcontract (?) you get it for three years :) So that saves me 245 euro's a month ;)
 
Congrats on the renewal of your contract Annemiek. AND with travel expenses compensation, lucky you, we don't get sh*t where
I work.

But another year will probably get you to the point where you (?? :? :-D) can apply again for the visa???

Miranda  :)
 
My new contract will go from 01-05-06 -> 01-05-07. We can start again with the visa procedure in September 2006.
 
Great news Annemiek, congratulations  :up: 

And Miranda I know what you mean about starting the day with a smile!  I appreciate it now even more that I am a Mum.  Yesterday we had to take our little girl to the doctor, even though she was ill (bronchitis) she still managed to smile at everyone in the waiting room, and they all smiled back, a baby has that effect  :) :)

It's a pity we lose that as we get older, a smile can make a huge difference!

(PS.  It's courteous)
 
I agree, kids still have that effect because they are seen
(at least to a certain age  :roll: ) as innocent. They don't
want anything from you...besides a smile or a funny face  :wink:.

Hope the bronchitis will be cured quickly. Joe has had it once when
he was about 1 1/2 years old, completely out of breath and
it took him about 2 weeks (with penicilline) to get over it.
You know, with the large tube and mouth coveringt thingy
which looks like it has just landed on earth!!!!!

Take care,

Miranda

PS Annemiek, so, probably, hopefully at the end of your
contract you can say bye bye to them too!!!  :up:
 
Thanks Miranda.  She is a bit better today.  She had it two weeks ago, got antibiotics, but it has come back.  So now she has more antibiotics and she also has an alien contraption for an inhaler :)  But how do you explain to an 11 month old that she should stay still, let this 'thing' be placed over her mouth and then breathe in and out 5 times?  :-(  It's hard being a parent seeing your child suffer!
 
I know, we couldn't explain it to him either, so....only one thing
left, keep him in some sort of lock hold and when you cry you
have to breathe also  :-(. Sounds horrible and it was, but what else
can you do. So just keep on hanging in there, it's terrible, but
there's just no negotiating around it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top