Native New Yorker who has lived in Washington DC and California and now resides in the Netherlands. The Netherlands is what Americans "think" they have in ambiance and government but aren't even close. The schools, police, transit, community centers, medical system are all superior to the States. There is respect shown for every worker in every position. There is much less honking of horns or defacing of buildings; there are a few busy traffic corners in Rotterdam that have no lights--each respects the right of the other and it runs smoothly--even with a tram running through it. The Netherlands was way ahead of the States on the decriminalization of marijuana. It is also a diverse country ; when I first arrived I thought I was in New York. Which, by the way, would be a lot better place if the Dutch had stayed and developed it; once the English took over, Manhattan was cut like a checker board with straight lines. The Dutch part of Manhattan--below Canal Street - shows what could have been reality throughout the island--angled streets, pockets of community, lots of green places, lots of water to soothe and provide places of reflection. It is the most densely populated country in Europe and handles the density with care and variety. From land that was below sea level, the Dutch created a civilization that embraces the natural forces of life and adjusts to it. It is a child-friendly country; imagine the MLB or NFL players walking out hand in hand with a boy or girl who plays the sport. Not the least of the pleasures is the priority of the bike and the bike paths. Cars dominate most cities in America--indeed there is little consideration for those who walk or bike. The Netherlands has its priorities right: the "pursuit of happiness" is as important as "life" and "liberty."
"The schools, police, transit, community centers, medical system are all superior to the States." It better be as they pay *a lot* more tax overall to afford all of that.. Just compare sales tax or how much new cars cost (huge tax on that) for example.. Everything has it's price and yes, they are all political choices.. USA for example spends a lot more on it's military forces where The Netherlands does not even come close to the NATO norm..
Hi Robert and also Jovie, This comment really hits home for me. I spend a lot of time in the Netherlands and I find there is a strong focus on quality, and little details that make things more thoughtful and beautiful. Yes, there are some nice parts of the US, and we innovate like crazy, but many areas look like trash. Recently I was driving with a friend to Maastricht, and we stopped for gas. I thought, maybe the gas station will have a decent cappuccino, but I won't get my hopes up, as in the US gas stations have the most awful coffee machines. I then enter an immaculate gas station shop, and see three high-tech coffee machines. Same when I go into the train-station market. Wonderful, healthy food for decent price and not so much junk. It's amazing.
@@michaeldamian5750 the Netherlands has a massive coffee culture with some of the highest consumption of coffee on average in the world. Shit coffee will therefore not be tolerated anywhere ;)
@@inflatable2 I'm from the Netherlands and like Jovie said, you can clearly see here that much of the tax money is well spent. Private people would not take care of things like infrastructure personally which is why the government takes care of that in the name of the people. Infrastructure innovation and maintenance being a massive problem in the US, here it's considered to be one of the best in the world with well maintained and highly dense highway network and efficient public transport. As to the NATO norm... Why would we overspend like the US does? We participate in almost all UN missions and make considerable contributions in Aid missions around the world most recently in the Bahamas.
Wait until those anti-envirenmentalists manage to divert our Gulfstream. They don't care a damn for climate change, one day that might proof stupid. If those ocean currents change, the weather changes dramatically. Just like El Niño. That way Europe can get the New York winters, too. Roughly the same lattitude, is it? I do not want to scare you, I don't know the climate models. But what I know is that Europe is a whole lot of warmer than the US across the Atlantic. So if those currents would change, we are in for changes. Find out yourself what caused El Niño, find out what is known today. Predictions are tricky, remember the weather forecast. But it is not gambling any more.
@@Whistler4u Wow, you are living in the now. Good-on-you. Yes, the future is not interesting. Sorry that I exist and think, too. Must be confusing, getting real reactions.
You raise a valid point. The weather is "terrible" for me as a mother of two small kids who want to play outside but the wind and rain make it difficult. Last summer was a dream, I hope this year it is the same! Now that I think about it, I didn't think the climate was bad before I had little people who needed to be entertained with daily trips to the park and walks 😂
You raise a valid point. The weather is "terrible" for me as a mother of two small kids who want to play outside but the wind and rain make it difficult. Last summer was a dream, I hope this year it is the same! Now that I think about it, I didn't think the climate was bad before I had little people who needed to be entertained with daily trips to the park and walks 😂
Watching your video makes me more aware how lucky I am being born in the Netherlands. Living in this country and in our "system" makes that you easily take things for granted because of how normal they are in everyday life. After your video I appreciate it all a lot more.
I was thinking exactly the same and hearing opinions from foreigners makes you think about the things we are always complaining about, like taxes and the weather. It makes you realise we are pretty much spoiled compared with other countries.
The problem these days that you have people who preach that our country is shit. Especially you have them in politics. Complaining dutch people who feed fascism right now for example Geert Wilders, Thierry Baudet they are complaining like crazy. But those people who voted on those never really seen the world on how GOOD we have it here.
@@JoviesHome thank you. I worked as camp counselor for two seasons in the USA. Only thing i hated with a passion was tipping bad waiters. I realy did. And welcome in the Netherlands btw. 😀
If you are not happy with the service, ask for the manager. Problem solved. Don't forget you don't only tip the waiter or waitress, but also the busser, cook etc. Prices of food in restaurants are also lower than in The Netherlands.
Indeed, mandatory tipping goes against the nature of tipping. Is tipping in the US only socially mandatory in restaurants or also when ordering takeout or buying food from a mc drive?
And if it has decent pricing, we're dutch and all .. hehe. But yeah, nice smile and service and even we dutch feel obligated to give a tip. (with high prices, not so much ... we're already tipping just for paying the bill).
Did she say Gelre? No, she just said the Republiek der Vereenigde Nederlanden. With a king, because we need a leader, of course. Can you explain that to Americans?
@@CHRISZIOMusic Yes, and I live on the brink of Gelderland and Overijssel. My town is older than Amsterdam. Another reason not to call us Holland. Those Amsterdammers are newcomers, after all.
Oof, if you feel like we're agressive drivers, never go driving in France or Italy... Just a friendly warning... Every thing else.. Yes, that's pretty much us.
Thank you for watching and for your comment! I actually just drove to France yesterday (my aunt lives there) and you're right, the French were crazy! And once when I was in Italy a local person told me "Traffic lights? Those are just a suggestion!" 😳😂
Most of your tax money is wasted. You could buy the things yourself to give you comfort. Did you know, Brussels parliament moves once a month to Strasbourg and back? Complete with all the paperwork and stuff? I heard this story about this politician, brought to the airport by a limo. When he reached his destination, the same limo, and the same driver picked him up at the airport. Such things happen when you work at a place with unlimited money to spend, and no one to hold you accountable.
We can complain so much about things that we have or getting in the Netherlands. But we are spoiled and want it better and better. This video shows that we have such a good life in the Netherlands and that the government take care of us so good
Het aantal vakantie uren bedraagt vier maal de overeengekomen arbeidsuren per week. Bij een fulltime dienstverband (van vijf werkdagen per week) heb je recht op vier weken vakantie: 4 x 5 dagen = 20 dagen. Bovenwettelijke vakantiedagen zijn de dagen waar je op basis van een toepasselijke cao recht op hebt.
Tipping is not standard, but often when the service and food have been good, we do round up the bil, lets say you had to pay 76,50 euro, it is not uncommon for people to say to round it up to an 80 euro.
You're absolutely right and I love tipping/rounding up for good service. But in America waiters/servers are generally paid BELOW the minimum wage because they work in a "tip" industry. So a restaurant might pay a server $2-3 per hour and then it's up to the restaurant guests to leave 15-20% tip on top of the bill. And that's for "average" service! When the service is really excellent, the tips go 20-30%+. And that's what I was trying to say here. I don't think it's right that a business doesn't pay it's employees a proper, living wage just because the customers will leave tips.
You're absolutely right and I love tipping/rounding up for good service. But in America waiters/servers are generally paid BELOW the minimum wage because they work in a "tip" industry. So a restaurant might pay a server $2-3 per hour and then it's up to the restaurant guests to leave 15-20% tip on top of the bill. And that's for "average" service! When the service is really excellent, the tips go 20-30%+. And that's what I was trying to say here. I don't think it's right that a business doesn't pay it's employees a proper, living wage just because the customers will leave tips.
You're absolutely right and I love tipping/rounding up for good service. But in America waiters/servers are generally paid BELOW the minimum wage because they work in a "tip" industry. So a restaurant might pay a server $2-3 per hour and then it's up to the restaurant guests to leave 15-20% tip on top of the bill. And that's for "average" service! When the service is really excellent, the tips go 20-30%+. And that's what I was trying to say here. I don't think it's right that a business doesn't pay it's employees a proper, living wage just because the customers will leave tips.
@@JoviesHome Where people work for $2-3 per hour please? I have a restaurant and have to pay minimum wage $11.50 per hour. As to tipping 20% I do it but hate it. It makes me want to go out less.
An American here...been living in The Netherlands/Germany for 39 years! I'm with you on all your points! Personally...I don't like to drive in Europe at all (regardless of the country) and I've become so spoiled with all the benefits of Dutch/Germany health care and the whole social systems of both countries that I've never thought about going back to America for one second! :) Greetings from Lobith-Tolkamer
the only question i have with driving in the Netherlands?? Where did you live in the USA? for my work i spend a huge amount of time in Portland,OR, San Diego, CA and New York, NY but personally i think the drivers over there are way more agressive and dangerous
I lived in Scottsdale, Arizona and studied in San Diego. For me the most dangerous thing about driving in the US is, you know, the guns that people wave around in a threatening way when they have road rage. I don't miss that at all! Thanks for watching and commenting!
@@Timberjagi I grew up in Michigan, sometimes on I94 in the morning toward Kalamazoo, I never came across a soul. But that was 45 years ago, things have probably changed in America...I was in NY once (2003) heading toward the "Holland Tunnel", now that was a disaster! :/
@ Holly Boerse.Sometimes I look at someone's personal FB page (curiosity) and was a little surprised about your spider post. In the 80's I was visiting a friend in Gelderland and an American family temporarily lived next door. My friend and I were just talking when we heard a terrible scream. Running next door, the American woman was in total panic: a small, innocent little Dutch spider was sitting at the wall, nothing poisonous, not biting. I caught it in a second and brought it out of the house. Flies were the only thing the spider was interested in. In 1972 I visited the U.S. My host in Oklahoma was a Comanche Indian. He showed me a tiny green spider that most certainly was very dangerous.
Hi Jovie! I can relate to whatever you're saying about Holland; it's always interesting to see/hear the perspective of a foreigner. The driving I found funny to hear; I do agree on the fact that Dutch drivers can be a bit aggressive compared to the States, however ... I'm sure you will change your mind when you see how they drive in other European countries such as France, Italy or Spain. They bring "aggressive" to a whole other level by pushing, flashing lights and giving the finger when you're not driving quick enough. What your examinator meant by "too polite" is probably the fact that you gave way in situations where you should've taken priority. This makes for unclear and even potentionally dangerous situations. I am very sure your examinator didn't mean you should drive aggressively. Aggressive driving is prohibited under Article 5 of Dutch road laws. About food ... yeah ... we have a few typical simple dishes, but Dutch cuisine is pretty much non-existent. Having said that ... I wouldn't consider that a disadvantage. The upside of this is that Holland is about food from every country in the world; we embrace everything. The restaurants in general are of high quality and high diversity; something you will not find in Italy or France for instance. You will be stuck with native food for pretty much every restaurant. This is fine or even nice during holidays, but for every day food ... I'm pretty happy I live in The Netherlands with plenty of good places for good food. As a Dutch guy I value the same things as you mention. Things that many people here take for granted. Things that I love about The Netherlands that you haven't mentioned yet ... not that you asked, but anyway here goes: - The Dutch have a special kind of pride about their country. You can see this in (sport) events. Max Verstappen, the Dutch football team, ice skating, athletics ... etc. There's an orange mass of people cheering for their heroes and taking pride of the fact that they're Dutch. - Holland is free and everyone is equal by law! You can pretty much say or do anything with any consequences with only a few reasonable limitations. - It has a reasonable stable political system. War and terrorism is a very low risk within The Netherlands, even with the shooting of last month in mind. - The Dutch legal system feels like a system I can trust. It is fair. Also the police in Holland are considered to be "your best friend" ... I personally respect them very much for good reasons. - Minor thing ... but still ... there are only a few dangerous animals here. The ones that are will not be easy to find. The things that I don't like: - Very personal opinion, but It's flat everywhere. I personally would've liked that The Netherlands has mountains. Not that this can be changed ... - Can't think of anything else actually :D ... Thanks for the vid!
Hi Dinand, I'm so happy you shared what you love about The Netherlands, thank you! I am currently in France visiting my aunt and I drove here. You're right, they are aggressive but it's aggressive in a different way. In NL I find that drivers don't leave much space when changing lanes (I referred to that as aggressive, maybe wrong choice of words from my side). Meanwhile in France they seem to be very curious about what I have in the trunk of my car -- they're always getting so very very close, I assume to try to see what's inside 😋😉😂And you nailed it on the head about my examiner, I failed because I gave priority to an old lady who was crossing the street (illegally). I mean, come on! She was old and carrying a load and it was raining. I didn't have the heart to make her wait 💛. You are completely right about the choice of restaurants from different places, that is very nice indeed. I need a Dutch grandma-stye restaurant though where I can try some real stamppot! Your points about why you love NL are 😍👏👌thank you for sharing! It looks like I'll have to film a part 2 and include some of these because I couldn't agree more. I love seeing the sea of orange in the crowds at international sporting events - even I feel proud!! Legal system that is fair ... you're a man after my own heart! I'm a lawyer by education 👏😀 Dangerous animals? I used to live in Arizona where I had to check my shoes for scorpions before putting them on, and rattle snakes before getting in the car. So YES!! It feels good that I'm only "worried" about an annoying fly entering my house through an open window 😂 I miss mountain landscapes too. But I've grown to appreciate the green pastures with grazing animals. Thank you so much for watching, commenting and supporting my channel. I hope you'll consider subscribing and coming back for future videos. Enjoy your day!
😂 living in the soud ( Zuid-Limburg) Valkenburg, Vaals, Simpelveld children go to school on there the bike. Its not flat here 😉 love love Zuid-Limburg ❤ The beauty of the Netherlands
Jovie's Home drive to Germany! You notice that as well. Especially when it rains... the rain comes up from the road again which causes that you have less of a view and have to drive slower for your own safety... not al roads are like this there but I have seen a lot lately.
@@CommDante Because a LOT of Belgian roads are just giant concrete slabs glued together with tar. The last couple of years they have been improving their roads and actually repaired some, but a giant portion still sucks compared to the well-maintained, asphalt roads the Netherlands has.
I had to laugh, you are sooooo American! Especially when you started talking about the 2 not so nice things. You were almost apologizing before you told us :-) You must know by now that here in Holland we tell people straight: I don't like this or that, try it one time. About the driving: I'm from the Netherlands and I lived in the US for 2 years (Memphis) and I hated the behavior of some drivers. I always remembered the Dutch driving to be much more polite. Until I went back, the aggressive Dutch driving shocked me. I had forgotten...you are correct.
I totally agree with you on the 'hate' on driving in the Netherlands. You have to know the rules and adhere to them, then everything goes smooth sailing. If your don't...... My husband is quite agressive as a driver. He especially mentions the difference between people who drive often and those who only drive in the weekend. The term for those people 'zondagsrijders'. You don't want to be a sundaydriver when he's in your vicinity. Otherwise he's really nice. :-) Another point I love how you don't want to be a political vlogger but allmost every point on your lovelist is the result of political choices Dutch citizens voted for in the past. Which brings me on another point you might love or hate about us. We love to work on solutions and tweeks of things that might be better. If that requires some debate, bring on the debate. Being political is a joy.
Your husband is funny with the zondagsrijders! And you totally caught me - I love the political choices of the Dutch people. Which means, that the way Dutch are raised, taught, think, are generally care about the welfare of the society as a whole is truly inspiring. My channel is meant to be an "expat mom" channel and that's why I'm trying to stay away from being TOO political. In these times when all I see is devastating political news coming from the USA (and other places too) it's just too dang depressing to participate in debate. I mean, I love a real debate but lately people don't care about "science" or "facts" (i.e., "climate change isn't real because we had a cold winter so there isn't global warming. I don't care what the scientists say, the ice caps are not melting") 😶and trying to convince those people otherwise is impossible. Instead, I'm trying to share all of the WONDERFUL things I've experienced in The Netherlands so that maybe some of my American viewers will think twice ('hmm, affordable healthcare sounds good; maternity leave sounds good, few homeless people on the street sounds good") and will lead them to think about the political choices they have to make in the near future. Thank you for your comment and for watching the video!
Appreciate your positive remarks. Of course we all have our opinions which are not necessarily the same as facts. But the fact that people in trouble anywhere in the world mention the Netherlands as the place they would love to live is a sure sign our country is great. As far as the weather. Put the right clothes on. As far as traffic is concerned. A very low mortality rate. As far as healthcare: my wife received two artificial knee replacements recently and we have not filed for bankrupty😉
I have been living in the Netherlands for nearly two years. What I love about the Netherlands - 1. Riding my bicycle! There is good bike infrastructure to where ever you want to go, including IKEA.. 2. There are so many parks, most have very cool, unique playgrounds. Larger parks have a little farm with cows, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens or other animals where the kids can go into the pasture and interact with the animals. 3. Kids have a lot of freedom and get places on their own by bicycle without relying on Mom or Dad chauffeuring them around. According to a recent UNICEF study on well-being, children from the Netherlands are the happiest kids out of 29 of the world's richest industrialized nations.Apr 9, 2017. That is because children have a great deal of independence. 4. I see lots of people out and about biking, walking, hanging out in parks, sitting in outdoor cafes having a cup of coffee, wine or beer., or sitting on benches in front of their house hanging out with neighbors. . At least here in Utrecht, where I live. You don't see many people out and about in the USA. People are tethered to their cars, isolated from one another. 5. The trains are AWESOME! They are frequent and run on time. There are few places you can't go by train and you can take your bike on the train. 6. The weather, I come from Boston, Massachusetts which has snow for five months out of the year. We had maybe two days of snow here in Utrecht this winter. There was not enough snow to bother shoveling. Rainy days, I put on a raincoat and rain pants if I'm going to be out for a long time on my bike. 7. I am past college age, but college is very low cost, like maybe $2000 a year if that, plus there is a housing subsidy for students, 8. Health care is affordable for everyone. 9. There is no stress here over affordable health care or education costs. 10. School funding does not depend on the neighborhood you live in. All kids go to schools that aren't falling apart.
Thank you so much for this! I agree with everything you say! Maybe I should do a Part 2 of this video because it was difficult to limit myself to only 10 things ;)
That's funny. I just had my first IKEA experience in NL. Went there by bus. First thing I noticed (besides the short distance from the bus stop) was the stand of bike racks near the entrance. Full. Never saw that before. Also, thanks for liking the weather. I am from California and have moved here from Spain and I'm the only person I've met who prefers the weather here to that in Madrid.
"5. The trains are AWESOME! They are frequent and run on time." The devil finds work for idle hands to do ... one of the main complains about dutch public transportation are that they're so often NOT on time. (If it's ones a month 5 min late, it's already 'too often too late ' to most, I'm guessing >_< ). I find it quite funny you saying that, and shows how spoiled we are. (In contrast, Dutch Railways/NS did change their schedules few years back so you don't need to care about 'when' to to catch a train any more ... most are bound to come within 5-15 min these days). It also shows a lot of other stuff elsewhere, but not going into that now.
@@CommDante Yeah I guess there are some delays of 10 minutes sometimes.I forgot about that, The trains are so frequent, that there will be another one anyway in 15 minutes, if that. Back in Boston where I'm from, delays of an hour were not uncommon. There might be only one train a day or maybe two if you are lucky, for your destination. It's happened to me that the train will stop in the middle of "nowhere" for who knows why, for half an hour before starting up again. The tracks in the US on a major route between Boston, New York City and Washington, DC, a major corridor, are badly in need of being updated. As they are now, trains can not go as fast as they are designed to go. So coming from that, the trains here are amazing.,
@@rebeccaalbrecht771 He he, thanks for sharing. There are still some countries in the world where a train arrives 'sometime on tuesday', running only ones a month .... with no idea of an actual time, other than 'some tine on Tuesday' ... shows how silly it is to complain about a train being 5 min late when the next one arrives 10min after that! ;)
Re. the holiday pay: Spain and Italy also have something similar. Basically, they get an "extra month" paid (usually 1/2 in December, and 1/2 in summer). Also, Israel has something called "dmei havra'a" (health pay) which is a right to anyone who has worked over a year in a company. It starts at 5 days payment, and on as you work more years - this is just a payment given in July/Aug, independent of vacation days taken/allocated, to ensure people actually do take time off..
Im Dutch myself and honestly I really do not like Dutch food, however I do enjoy that we have cuisines from many different cultures here, it has allowed me to learn to eat many different things. Maybe thats more personal for me and I definitely agree that the food is better is many european counties, but at least we can get a bit of a taste of those things at home.
Do you like pancakes? Poffertjes? Stroopwafels? Drop? Erwtensoep? Any type of stampot? Rookworst? Herring? Smoked eel? Rijstepap? Blanke vla? I'm sure I messed up somewhere, but Dutch cuisine isn't as boring as many people think. It's not all stampot or deepfried. And stampot can be made with raw vegetables instead of cooking the life out of it. The fish we eat isn't all raw or pickled. And some Dutch foods are eaten all over the world without people realising it.
#9) We do holiday pay in Norway as well. It's somewhere around 12% of the previous year's income (before tax, not including that year's holiday pay, obviously) and it generally ends up being paid out in the month of June regardless of when you are actually taking your obligatory 5 weeks (6 if you are over 60). It's essentially your employer "saving" up for your holiday for you.
Hi Matthijs, I don't disagree with you. I drove to France last week via Belgium and ... 😳🙊 thanks for watching and supporting my channel, I appreciate it!
I'm Dutch and try living in Thailand.. It's mayhem on the road here. Lines on the road are guidelines at best. People drive 120-140 where 90 is allowed. Or they drive 60-80 through dense urban areas. As a people they are incredibly polite but as soon as they're behind the wheel they turn into speed monsters. I think they're first or second place in the world when it comes to road fatalities. I like Dutch driving style because it's safe and efficient. People can drive there like they do because everyone is taught to be efficient on the road. The first thing my driving teacher taught me was to not drive too slow. She found that adjusting to traffic to maintain the flow was much more important than to adhere to the speed limit. This was back in 1999 and not much has changed since. The one thing I like about Dutch traffic and traffic laws the most is that 'weak' traffic (pedestrians, cyclists) is actively protected, both by law and in practice through separate bike lanes, pedestrian islands, intelligent traffic light systems and of course education. Young kids learn how to bike safely without supervisor and... helmets. 😎 I've been cycling for as long as I can stand on my feet and the only time my parents brought me to school was on my first day. It's this personal freedom that makes for some really happy kids and I hope that other countries will copy our ways at least in some form. And about Dutch food. Never liked it and never will although I do agree on the erwtensoep because that's yummy! But we have a rich history as a country and dito imported foods. Where the Brits have their curries we have our Indonesian and Surinamese dishes and they're awesome! I definitely call that Dutch food as well because it has been around for so long.
just found your channel. i'm german, living in the netherlands for nearly 30 years. my husband is english and we both LOVE to live here! i agree with all what you said😊 groetjes van limburg
I'm Dutch and one of the few people who doesn't like to travel. I've been to a lot of countries and every time I'm joking about the roads being half finished. Come on people, why is the sidewalk missing tiles?!?! On the other hand, The Netherlands is so small (400km2 / 250miles2 correction: 42508 square km approx 17000 square miles) that every little piece has been planned for. Feels a bit too organized.
Maybe because I am a "type A" personality, I love that everything is so organized! YES about the roads being half finished! That's how I felt when I was in Los Angeles for work. Multi-million dollar homes everywhere but the roads leading to those home full of potholes?!
@@abbofun9022 Woops my bad. Made correction. Wiki is actually stating 41,543 km2. Did we make some new land again? Or did you include the tropical islands?
I'm from Ecuador, and I love that everything is clean and organized here.... People are always very polite at the stores and blueberries are cheaper than in Ecuador 😅
Oké. About the Dutch cuisine... I guess it’s not sexy, but you have to admit... we have the tallest people on earth here, so we must be doing something right!! 😉
I love your videos. As a Dutch person I'm used to all of this, and you take them for granted. It's nice to see someone else perspective on this, it makes me more appreciative on these subjects.
Because of the bad weather, we privilege what is important in life and what is second or third on the list, namely take care of a warm and clean house and a good health and not having three cars and a mansion if you're just the two of you. This is the same thing in all scandinavian countries and in Germany, (basically the same population).
I’m thinking I might more to the Netherlands . Sounds like they really look after their people. I’m from Australia and I think we need to take a page out of your book - sounds great!!
Thanks for your comment! Do come for a visit first ;) Although Australia is a wonderful place too, I've heard. A few of my Dutch friends have gone to Aus for cultural/work exchange programs and have loved it.
With all the SJW/PC crap going on there in Australia I wouldn't blame you, you don't even have a 'basic right to speak you opinion' over there. At least that's a 'most basic law' over here... We usually tend to adopt UK/USA bs in the end though, so don't get your hopes up ... usually just takes a while before we end up just as bad....
Did you have an issue with any language barriers? If I visit will there be any problems communicating? Living in the States my whole life and only speaking English I always worry about language barriers. I love that bicycling is so integrated in everyday life. You mentioned about the awful weather, is it cold or rainy a lot? We just moved to California from the Midwest and we’ve gotten accustomed to 60 - 80 degree weather how does the climate compare to the states? Love your videos and your very charming, you paint a very nice picture of the Netherlands!
Dutch cuisine used to be potatoes, a piece of meat and vegetables. But since the 1980s this changed and now we eat just about anything. And you’re right: people here drive like lunatics, they don’t understand what blinkers are for and the Me Me Me attitude that many people have, especially in the West, is atrocious.
We should not forget that over the past 40 to 50 years the composition of the population of the Netherlands has significantly changed due to the influx of immigrants from countries where general attitudes toward traffic rules are "a little different" from what we have been used to and those "medelanders" brought along their patterns of traffic behavior.
@@Shalimar_trailsss Really Lidia. My wife used to work in Lebanon before the civil war, I in Morocco and another place in the M-E. Don't you tell us how they are driving there (I remember how a cab driver drove up a hill passing a car without seeing what was coming from the other side - a normal thing for drivers to do there. And in Cairo, Beirut, Casablanca etc. drivers use the horn constantly. Yesterday I was walking the dog when I was almost hit by a car driven by someone from, let us say, "that background". He came out of a side street racing into ours where 30 km/h is allowed and his speed was far above that. Had he hit me and my dog he would have killed us. So what do you think I think of your horse manure?
@@HaKi1950 This was one guy? Driving there? I'm talking about the bunch of people as a whole that are driving HERE...I'm sorry that happened to you, that's messed up...But in my opinion the people that drive here in an antisocial way are (young) white dudes...
@@Shalimar_trailsss Have you not learned to read? I said we have much experience in the Middle East and North Africa in big cities. I'd suggest you go there and see for yourself how "the dudes" there are driving before coming up with conclusions. I have many American friends but have also worked alongside many American colleagues. Some are very good friends till this day but alas I have also been confronted with typical American "know it alls" and they really made me sick!
Great video! btw, if a dutch driver cuts really close in front of your car, and you are not driving all the way to the right, they are trying to get you to move over. Otherwise they will generally leave more room. I 've done it myself, and seen several cars doing it to drivers which stay on the middle lane.
The reason of the driving situation is because the country is very very very compact. There is a huge amount of roads on a small surface. People tent to drive very close to each other (and being good at it) because if everyone would be more 'patient' people would be in traffic all the time, which would suck.
Just as a heads up, the word "haat" is aeons more virulent in the Dutch lexicon than it is in the English one. "Haat" in the colloquial sense quite literally denotes wishing death upon something or someone, both figuratively and litterally. Your best bet is to opt for the more diminutive alternative known as "een hekel aan". They fundamentally bear the same meaning of declaiming distaste for something but the latter makes you sound a lot less militant. Just some friendly advice from a Dutchman.
Thank you! So how would you translate the title so it makes sense too? I don't hate anyone or anything in the literal sense of the word, as you may have seen !
I recommend changing the latter construct into either "dingen die ik wat minder vind " (things I'm not as fund of) or "dingen waar ik moeite mee heb" (things I have grievances about". Though there are a vast array of alternatives to use. "Haat" has sort of become reappropriated as an everyday cuss word in the same way "shit" has. So don't hesitate to use it when you feel it's pertinent to the situation.
Love your video's Jovie.I agree with you on all these topic's especially the driving.They are so fast!! However I've never seen an accident so far!I tired to back out onto the road and no one stopped to let me make my manuver, I just had to go for it. You got to be fast and stick to your decision and then you will start to drive like them.
Hahaha, I don’t need a sign that tells me I’m in Belgium... it’s true 😂 What is considered real American Cuisine to you?... the netherlands doesn’t have a real own cuisine, true.. but you can find “world food” in every city..
@Matt R Yep, this is what WIKIPEDIA says and not reality. Most people in USA (I am moving back to Europe from USA soon after 3 years) live on cheap take outs. You compare USA to Europe (doesn't apply to UK, people there buy ready meals mostly, lived there 16 years) where people cook at home, making sure that the food is fresh and organic. Yes, in USA some people do the same, but only some and food in general is awful. Additives are worse than anywhere in the world and everything far too sweet.
@Matt R My experience in your country is enough to know about food. I am a vegan chef and ran my own restaurant until a few months ago. I think I can tell you more about people's attitudes to healthy food than you can tell me. If you read my comment I wrote "in USA some people do the same (cook at home like Europeans) but only some and food in general is awful". It seems we both agree on this one, but say it differently. I agree with you on young people's changing attitudes to food.
About holiday pay: In Austria there is a 13th and 14th month salary. Yes, we get payed as if there would be 14 month. One of those payments is in summer and called Urlaubsgeld (vacation money), the other in winter called Weihnachtsgeld (Christmas money). :D (Those virtual months have some different tax rate, so you might pay a bit more taxes on that, but its just a tiny difference.)
@4: foreign companies also love paying taxes in NL, because they're incredibly low. So called postbox companies, with only an address for example. To abuse the tax laws in NL :)
I love hearing you talk about your experiences in the Netherlands. I live here and because of your videos, I realised I'm lucky to be born here in the Netherlands Welcome to the Netherlands. Im subscribed
We do have a Dutch cuisine; erwtensoep, boerenmoes met worst, hutspot, andijviestamppot. Stamppot dus in alle soorten en maten😊. About holidays, part-time work etc., Dutch people tend to work to live not live to work. I too don't like aggressiveness in traffic and not standing in line. Sometimes I take for granted how good the Netherlands as a country works in comparison to other countries. But is a very Dutch thing to have an opinion or complain about it.
You are wrong about the amount of holidays days we get. According to the law you get 4x the amount of hours you work in the week. So on fulltime basis this is 4x40=160/8=20days of holidays. Not 25. Everything above this are the bovenwettelijke vakantiedagen which means it depends on your contract
We don't have the best weather in the world, but it is rather mild. No hurricanes etc. I loved your number 4, it reminds me how good it is here, thanks!
aww shucks, you're making me feel good about being Dutch! Also, I don't think you should feel too scared about saying something negative about the Netherlands, most of us Dutchies have a list of complaints longer than you could ever dream of, and your two points are very mild, considering the things we tend to say. I completely agree with you on the Dutch 'cuisine' point, we don't really have much of anything, and the things we do have are an acquired taste. Most of the things we do consider to be ours are winter foods, so very seasonal, as you pointed out as well. Stews and stamppot are definitely things we Dutchies like to eat during the cold months. I will say though, if you've never tried it before... try eating homemade hachee or jachtschotel sometime. It's been my favorite food ever since I was a little kid and I think it's very Dutch. On the 'aggressive driving' comment: I failed to get my driver's license because I don't dare to drive on the highway. So I can completely relate to that. I don't think I could ever get used to it.
Some points may need some extra info. The 'holiday pay' is not exactly like that, because it's you're own money. Your employer holds back 8% of your salary and "give" it back to you once a year. (most of the time combined with the salary of April/May) The idea behind it is to 'protect' the employees from spending that money during the year, and ending up with no money to go on holiday. However, a lot of people rely on that money to pay unexpected bills from i.e energy company's or maybe they need a new washing machine or refrigerator and so on. Also the healthcare system is a lot more expensive as many people think it is. Most people only see the 110 Euro 'basic insurance' and some extra for dentist costs or physiotherapy. But again there is a HUGE amount of money your employer has to pay to the government, and that money is taken from your Gross salary !! Most Dutch people don't look very carefully to their paycheck , but in the section "cumulative" you can see exactly how much money is reserved for holiday, and for healthcare . And on top of that you pay the 12 x 110 = 1320 Euro (per person!) for just basic insurance.
Thanks Martijn! Even if the 8% is your own money, it's so cool that the system is set up like that. A lot of people I know would have a difficult time setting aside 8% every month and not touching it until a year later! So it's great that employers do that and then it's named "holiday pay" to encourage you to go on HOLIDAY, unless, of course, you need it to pay an unexpected/high bill. The principle of it overall is so cool (to an outsider). And while you're right about the cost, let me tell you, many American families pay $1,000+ EACH MONTH for medical insurance and even then have a super high "own risk". My parents, for example, had an own risk of $10,000 per year EACH before their medical insurance would cover anything. And on top of that, they had to pay a monthly fee to have the insurance at all. So for me, the Dutch insurance seems so inexpensive, comparatively. Plus, the insurance companies can do all kinds of nasty things, like drop your coverage if you're too sick... it's so sad.
@@JoviesHome people should have the choice to want that ..And all that money's interest is going to the boss..So are they doing it for the people or to in ritch them selves
You may be right that it’s kinda expensive but me as a Dutch girl with the highest insurance I could get (i have expensive medicine that are only covered by that insurance) and once I was sick at night in a weekend and had to go to the ER and that isn’t covered, the maximum amount I had to pay was 300€ I also got sick in New York (they thought I might have a long embolism) and also had to go to the ER because the hostpital couldn’t get into contact with my insurance they send the bill to me, for a similar visit the bill was 5000$ if I remember it correctly.. that is insane, I am lucky my insurance paid for it but imagine not getting it paid and I know if you don’t have a job you can’t have health insurance in the US and that’s insane everybody should be able to get the same right on health insurance
@@twinkharrylwt226 Maybe you have seen it already, but the movie/documentary "Sicko" by Michael Moore (from 2007) shows the US healthcare system compared to Europe..... It was very shocking to see for me as a Dutch person. The first part is about a carpenter who had cut two (top parts) of his fingers. He didn't had insurance. And in the hospital they gave him a choice, put the middle finger back for 60.000 Dollar, or his ring finger for 12.000 Dollar..... romantic as he was, he chooses the ring finger. If you haven't seen it, here is the full 2 hour (!!) documentary in low quality but with Dutch subtitles : ruclips.net/video/QpMMNqzagCk/видео.html I highly recommend watching it ! (on a rainy Sunday afternoon) What I like to know, and that's a question to Jovie , how much of this docu is real and how much is exacerbated ? I know the European parts are real.
Dutch people often complain about 'how expensive basic healthinsurance is'. Do you know how much it costs to have 1 consultation at your family doctor? 1 consulation at a specialist? And then I am not even mentioning how much a simple surgery will cost. You may not go to the hospital every year, but most people come there at least once in their lifetime for something 'big'. Your choise....pay that amount of money at once or pay a little every month in advance....
For the stroopwafels: they arent as big as a coffee mug for nothing. If you're having coffee, put one on top of the mug so it will heat up, best way to eat them. You will love it!
regarding nr 4 as someone from holland: well as all systems ours is far from perfect as well. but i think overall speaking its a relatively good and fair system for everyone. i mean, yeah we complain about the high taxes as well, and not all is spend perfectly.... so sometimes its hard when you work hard and earn honest money to see others - who are too lazy or arent able - to work to get free money paid by your hard earned money. But when you look at the greater picture it benefits you as well: it also means those people dont need to steal things to survive...meaning there is way less crime compared to other countries. as a result your children and yourself can walk on the streets - even at night - without being worried.. that feeling is priceless to me. and indeed the overal condition of buildings, nature and things like that benefits you personally as well... its more easy to feel good as everything and everybody around you feels good as well. And yes, its a hard topic and not everybody agrees on this, but generally speaking we prefer the “take care of everyone system” then for example the “take care of yourself only” system in the usa... not to say that the usa system is bad, but it just feels better if the mass is as happy as you compared to you being happy and the majority is having a hard time to survive...
As an experienced dutch professional driver, I do agree that there's a lot of aggression in dutch traffic. I've done 2 long roadtrips through the states, and despite the roads generally being in much worse condition, I found it much more pleasant to drive longer distances.
The Netherlands has a very calvinist background. It makes sense that consumerism wouldn't be as big here. In some other countries, you might want expensive flashy things just to make an impression. In the Netherlands, you would just be seen as a show-off if you try too hard to look good and especially to look rich. I'm not sure if you can call us modest, but we're definitely more modest than many other countries.
There is actually a much broader Dutch cuisine. But due to the Burgundian era, it is often called the Burgundian Kitchen. This kitchen is more typical in the Southern Netherlands. Also few Dutch today eat fish anymore. Partially because that was considered "poor people's food". The same applied a bit to the large variety of bean dishes. If you want to taste some typical Dutch cuisine, I would recommend: Asperges (it is the season now), later in the year Mussels. Vispotje, Frisian ricetable (that's a bean dish). Hazepeper, Hachee with red cabbage, or red cabbage with bloedworst and mashed potatoes.beef stew with (Brussels) sprouts or witlof (Belgian endive) with ham and cheese. You might notice that with Brussels sprouts and Belgian endive the vegetable in English is ascribed to Brussels. That's due to the Burgundian era. In that late medieval era Brussels was the capital of the low countries. In general it might be a treat for your family to once visit a Medieval Inn where they serve a Burgundian feast meal. That might give you a clue that there is a bit more to Dutch kitchen, than stroopwafels and stamppot. Some Dutch call the Burgundian kitchen as the "Brueghelian" kitchen after the famous painter Brueghel, who made paintings of people eating such meals. Google: bourgondische maaltijd or bourgondisch feestmaal and you get many hits.
Also, have you ever explained how you ended up living there since neither you or your husband are Dutch? If not you should do a story time or draw my life type video!
@@JoviesHome Meh, lame .. could've just answered his question without 'a new video' ... and you claim to be a dutch citizen...:P Wij doen dingen omdat we het willen, om de wereld beter te maken ... niet voor eigen gewin!
Hi Jovie, found your short videos very informative, please keep it up. We are a family of 4 from South Africa with EU passports and planning to move to the Netherlands within 2 years. My question if you don't mind doing a short video on the topic is about schooling. Our oldest son is in university and will enroll for a LLM degree in English which seems to be no problem and he will be spoilt for choice. Our youngest is currently 13 so will be in a very tricky stage of his education. How does the system work for kids who will be struggling with the language, what could we do as parents to support this transition? He is currently in a very strict private Catholic school, very different from what I assume happens over there.
We are proud of our country. The Netherlands isn't big so we will do anything to make living here as good as it gets, even when there are many rules and paying a higher tax.😉
Nu law our salary system is as easy as possible: if you are hired for 36 hours of work each week, one vers paid die ghose hours alsof on a holiday dat/week. The 8% holiday pay is what we save for during the working year, it's part of our salary. So the normaal salary pays all cost (houding, gas, water etc) and we go on holiday with the 8% holiday pay.
As a childless adult i sometimes feel i need to work fulltime (40) to take home the same amount of spendable money as my parttime coworkers (24) that do have children. Taxes are way better for parents.. i work and pay so they Stay home.
My and my girlfriend (who happens to be from America) are childless by choice, and while we don't have anything to complain it is a bit of a surprise that friends in the same (financial) situation as us can afford the same things, but they have two or more kids. "Kinderbijslag" we should get rid of that. ;-)
Thanks for your video, and I love how politely you brought up the negative points about the Netherlands. About that though, the Netherlands is a very dense place. The roads are narrower and every spot is used. When you leave a gap, people will think that you left that spot free on purpose so they can go there. You'll see the same thing when you go to New York, Paris or Tokyo.
C'mon, food is great here! Oke, ofcourse we include "Indisch eten" as Dutch cuisine because nobody in his right mind would eat volutarily ony traditional Dutch food. Even if one would know what that would be. So thank you indonesia and slamat makan organg blanda.
love this! quick thing since I see it coming back in vids, we don't have a tipping culture but at least in more high-end places it is customary to tip between 5-10% based on how happy you were with your service
Ok you are making me want to move to the NL! Especially as a nurse the universal healthcare system that actually works is like a dream! I almost cried a little it when you spoke about how the NL really focuses on supporting families and promoting family values. The US is sooooo behind the rest of the world on this. If we aren’t helping support our families and our children then what does that say about us as a country?? And the no tipping culture just makes so much sense!!! I’ve never understood how it makes sense for people to live off how generous other are. Cause we all know there are so many cheap people out there! And I’ve never heard of holiday pay-totally blew my mind 💣
Well it might be eye opening to you, because it is a lot better then in the US, but I have to warn you, we believe there is still a lot wrong in our health system. Nurses are over half their time spending doing office stuff. Cause everything they do with the patients has to be documented for the insurance compagny. It takes away from working where it's needed, next to the bed.
Holiday pay is your own salary being 'reserved' for you, so that you don't spend it in one go. It's just a tradition, not a gift. You could set up your own monthly transfer to a savings account, and go on a holiday once a year from that, I guess.
@Contemporary Mama - I hear you. It's so difficult for me to refrain from screaming at the news when I hear US politicians saying "family values" left and right and then don't support maternity/paternity leave or medical assistance for low income families. It's like - put your money where your mouth is!! If you support families so much, DO something to show it. Kinda like offering "thoughts and prayers" after a school shooting instead of gun reform. Sorry, this is getting too political but I REALLY didn't realize how flawed the US system was until I moved here. And while there are also lots of things than can be improved here (as Linda mentioned about the nurses workload), it just feels so different than being in the US. The mentality here is much more "we/us" and not "me/I" and that has an effect in the policies, laws, etc.
In case you want to do so, visit the country a few times and get first hand information on what it is being a nurse in The Netherlands. Come from a medical background (education) myself but nearly everybody I know went doing something else, myself included.
That 8% "holiday bonus" you were talking about is not a gift from my employer. Every month he takes 8% of my loan before taxes and saves that for me to add that later on to my May salary for my holiday. So basically *he* saves some money from my salary to be paid in May.
Compared to American drives, yes we are aggressive drivers. But try driving in France, Italy, Spain or even Germany. You’ll see a whole other level of aggressive. But I agree with you in that in the past 5 or 10 years the level of Dutch driving has become more aggressive. This also visible in the rise in Road deaths in the past few years. I just stick to the right lane and put the cruise control on 100km/h. On ‘long’ thrips in the Netherlands it may cost you 15 minutes extra, but you arrive in a very relaxed mood 😌
Hi Nico, thanks so much for watching and commenting! I am now in France visiting my aunt and you're right...French drivers are very aggressive too! Cruise control is one of my favorite car features...plus it saves me a lot on speeding tickets ;)
Hi Nico, thanks so much for watching and commenting! I am now in France visiting my aunt and you're right...French drivers are very aggressive too! Cruise control is one of my favorite car features...plus it saves me a lot on speeding tickets ;)
Hi Nico, thanks so much for watching and commenting! I am now in France visiting my aunt and you're right...French drivers are very aggressive too! Cruise control is one of my favorite car features...plus it saves me a lot on speeding tickets ;)
The Nederlands and Sweden are quite similar. For your information Sweden has 12% vecation payment. We have at least 25 days of payed vecation, and everyone of these days will give you 12% extra payment.
yes, a so called soft or mild winter and a so called moderate summer. and rain is spread the whole year through with modest climaxes in july/ august and november. you may say that it's not impossible to live under it.
Love to hear all the things you talk about and can definitely see what you mean. I've been to the US a couple of times and indeed things are different here and there. The climate is as is (and sucks at times), it also depends in the states where you live ofc so it's not just here. Keep up with the cool vids!
Mooi om te horen hoe goed we het hier hebben. Zeker van iemand die er fris tegen aan kijkt. Kritisch blijven is goed maar waarderen wat we hebben is ook belangrijk!
Nice to hear how good we are here. Certainly from someone who takes a fresh look at it. Staying critical is good, but appreciating what we have is also important!
I'm always confused by people (and that includes Dutch people as well) who think the Netherlands has a horrible climate and horrible weather most of the time. I think it's great that we have four seasons that are all really different and beautiful in their own way. There is snow and ice in winter (okay, maybe not as much as some winter-people might like, but still), and warm beach-weather in the summer and pretty much everything in between. Plus that we don't have to put up with things like earthquakes, hurricanes, extreme drought and fires. I think the Dutch climate/weather is very underrated! I liked your video nontheless!
Especially that last point, about not dealing with natural disasters. People always mention how we are under sea level and how that threatens us so, but since the waternoodsramp we haven't had a single huge event. The little earthquales we've had in the north as a result of gasmining are a daily thing for people in Florida. Overall our country is very hospitable climate-wise. It's also an argument I see brought up by Americans that come from hotter states like California or Miami, but less from people in colder cities like Chicago and Seattle. But I can kinda understand when you're used to having our four weeks of summer for 75% of the year.
Sorry but we do have earthquakes on a regular basis in the northern part of the country that slowly destroys the area, the province of Groningen. Schools, churches, farms, parts of villages, small businesses,family houses, its quite terrible, families living in their threatened houses are afraid of being killed by their own houses. Hey cant sell their houses anymore. They are stuck in this situation.Walls that get big cracks, we have alsof very old roman brick churches that werd built in the 1200s, (way before u white guys of western europe colonised the lands of the Natives, and built up whats now called the USA.) So Groningen is a precious area. Our gvnment is too much focussed on keeping the big company happy, that causes all these problems, SHELL. By soaking out the gas since 1957, 3 km deep under a soft layer of Clay .it is scandalous that gvnment plus SHELL dont stop this destruction. Many politicians of a certain party, the VVD, have been employed by SHELL before or after their career as a politician. We had the biggest gasfield in Europe . The whole country has profited from the gasfields after WW2. Now the gasfields are getting empty. But they still have not stopped the exploitation. So this whole area of Groningen is slowly getting destroyed. Scandal scandal..
@@marjan166 Like I said in my first post, yes we do have eq's in the north, but they are insignificant compared to real earthquake climates. Doesn't mattet how emotional or scandalous that is to you, its a matter of magnitude.
@@atomicNoodle if u studied the backgrounds of Groninger earthquakes u would know that the impact of a magnitude of let's say 2.5 to 3.6 scale Richter on a weak soil, ground, is much stronger than the same magnitude on a Rocky area. Like Italy. These earthquakes in Groningen are created by men, companies, politics. They sold this gas also to countries around us. Profit for Netherlands, decay for Groningen.
By the way, stroopwafels are available in the US. Sold as Dutch caramel wafers. Seen them in NYC and some other places. I even spotted them in a candy store in Provincetown. The band was Belgian Boys but imported from the Netherlands Lol
@@JoviesHome euhh I hope you mean left lane, because you can't overtake people on the right......(well you can do it of course, but it's not allowed ;-) )
If someone is in the right lane and I am in the middle, it’s allowed to overtake, no? I don’t have to be all the way in the left (if it’s a 3-lane road) to overtake the driver in the right lane. Or am I missing something?
About Dutch weather: we did actually have 2 American size tornado's (1967), F5's. Before that, there was one like that at the Veluwe summer 1945, just after liberation of WW2, and before that there were 2 in the twenties. So they are rare but not impossible here.
I think our pet friendly environment is an extension of our focus on family. We're encouraged to see our pets as part of our household. So I don't blame you for the slips.
Being Dutch: Agree with Dutch food, I don't like it either. Luckily we have adopted a lot of foreign cuisines so you don't have to live of kroketten and friet if you don't want to. Driving in the Randstad is usually more hectic then driving in the rest of the country, they are more relaxed. Yes: We complain a lot about the weather. It is a perfect opening for a conversation", that is because Dutch weather can change fast and as you say: you have to take advantage of a good day.
I had to do some digging into dutch food history for school. There used to be a larger variety of higher end/high brow dutch dishes but a lot of them have disappeared through the years because of the influence calvinism had. There are some websites that collect older recipes, from the early middle ages til 1970's, that can give you an idea just how unusual those recipes could be to modern eyes. You'll see a lot of nose to tail eating, species we don't eat today, strange spice/herb combinations and things you wouldn't think to combine now like fish in a sweet pudding. I think it's safe to say that dutch cuisine has been rather simple and bland to some, since at least 1920, and the typically dutch dishes that have survived are nearly always low brow/farmers food. Kroketten, although not a uniquely dutch concept, here do taste very dutch. Other countries have their own recipes for them but you can taste subtle and not so subtle differences. Fried snacks in general really came into popularity in the 1950's and haven't left the spotlight since.
The lack of cuisine is also because the normal people used to be very poor, and there was not much variety, apart from potatoes and vegetables. Later more influences from other countrues came in.
You should have added that the 8 percent holidaypay (vakantiegeld) is normally saved up and then paid out at once, in May. It’s like having a double salary that month. If it were paid out every month then everybody would just spend it on other things.
I made 2 separate videos about what I love and hate about here, which was a mistake because the video about the cons got watched waayyyy more of course and people hated me for that 😅 Smarter to put them together 😊🙏
I think I'll have to make a part 2 of this video (and part 3-10) because there are SO many things I like about The Netherlands - including Vrije Schoolkeuze!
Um, I wouldn't dare drive in Italy. An Italian once told me "traffic lights? Those are just a suggestion"! So, not for me! LOL. Thanks for watching and supporting my channel :)
I completely agree with number 4, the roads, healthcare, the police, the fire department. All of that is simply amazing in the Netherlands, and this is due to taxes. By the way, it's adorable how nervous you are while being a tiny bit negative about the Netherlands. Don't worry, our pride is big but we're not monsters. And as for the very last thing you said. Exactly. Seriously, I was born and raised in the Netherlands and I'm still not used to those people who just skip the entire line while you've been waiting for 10 minutes or so.
I live in Canada. The choice of veggies is ALL the seasons, ALL the time very limited AND expensive, compared to the Netherlands (my home country). In Canada we get 6% vacation pay. (but not those 25 days, actually I get no paid vacation at all, just the official Holidays)
Many of the Dutch viewers have commented about how great Scandinavian countries are - 12% holiday pay sounds fab!! Thanks for watching and commenting! PS - when in Paris/Spain I'll take the metro/taxi and avoid driving at all ;)
In Belgium we receive an extra months wage just before summer Starts called " holidaymoney", we get that at the end of the year too, in december.. called " endyearsmo ey".
Terrible climate, my arse. The Netherlands is located in what is nothing less than the best climate zone. Temperatures are never too cold and never too hot. And precipitation is likewise ideal.
How do you feel about the constant chilly wind? I agree about the temperatures when it is a windless day. Even the rain doesn't bother me when it is raining, you know, vertically. But mix in that wind and my opinion changes... Thanks for watching and commenting!
Aldo I am Dutch, I agree with you our best food is either deep fried or very sweet. There is not really a Dutch cuisine. However about driving, I think that's more a difference between living in a big city or in the Netherlands "de Randstad" and living in more rural area. I live in the south-west of the Netherlands, drivers here are for the most part very relaxed.
I do live in the Randstad! It's so funny to hear that this is a "known" thing among Dutch people (another person commented something similar!) 😂 Thank you for watching! Oh and I should have mentioned Oliebollen in the winter time ... YUMMY! But also fried...
You got that one wrong. All surveys come to the same conclusion: There is NO country in the world, where so many different produce can be bought and at that reasonable prices.
As an Dutch person being in the states I know the verity is bigger in every single product. What I mean is this. When you buy chips you can choose out off endless different flavors. When you buy cereals you have ab whole ally only with that product. You go to the market and there are 10 different kind off corn and 15 different kind off potatoes. When you are in the south the choice in vegetable is endless with all that comes in from Mexico. So I think so was hinting on that and not off different produce. When I have friends over they always say when we are in the supermarket. Why are there only 3 kinds off this, why are there only 5 kind off that. There is no choice. Supermarkets or groceries like target and wall mart are very very big and you can get anything there.
Yes! Thank you, this is what I mean. I am now in France and they have an entire aisle of different yogurts at the supermarket; plus another aisle for cheeses etc. I love that we eat seasonal fruits and veg in NL, but I do miss having a huge choice and variety of non-produce sometimes (like you mention, chips and cereals etc). At the same time, the size of the supermarkets cannot be compared so in the US you can have so much stuff because the shops are so much bigger. Thank you for watching and for your comment!
Actually I am Belgain, I explained Belgium healthcare to an American recently. Wich is in most parts the same as in the netherlands. Hé told me it was communism! I can’t understand, why a lot of Americans don’t see the difference between: responsible social meseaures and communism ?
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Native New Yorker who has lived in Washington DC and California and now resides in the Netherlands. The Netherlands is what Americans "think" they have in ambiance and government but aren't even close. The schools, police, transit, community centers, medical system are all superior to the States. There is respect shown for every worker in every position. There is much less honking of horns or defacing of buildings; there are a few busy traffic corners in Rotterdam that have no lights--each respects the right of the other and it runs smoothly--even with a tram running through it. The Netherlands was way ahead of the States on the decriminalization of marijuana. It is also a diverse country ; when I first arrived I thought I was in New York. Which, by the way, would be a lot better place if the Dutch had stayed and developed it; once the English took over, Manhattan was cut like a checker board with straight lines. The Dutch part of Manhattan--below Canal Street - shows what could have been reality throughout the island--angled streets, pockets of community, lots of green places, lots of water to soothe and provide places of reflection. It is the most densely populated country in Europe and handles the density with care and variety. From land that was below sea level, the Dutch created a civilization that embraces the natural forces of life and adjusts to it. It is a child-friendly country; imagine the MLB or NFL players walking out hand in hand with a boy or girl who plays the sport. Not the least of the pleasures is the priority of the bike and the bike paths. Cars dominate most cities in America--indeed there is little consideration for those who walk or bike. The Netherlands has its priorities right: the "pursuit of happiness" is as important as "life" and "liberty."
Yes! Alll of this! ❤️
"The schools, police, transit, community centers, medical system are all superior to the States."
It better be as they pay *a lot* more tax overall to afford all of that.. Just compare sales tax or how much new cars cost (huge tax on that) for example.. Everything has it's price and yes, they are all political choices.. USA for example spends a lot more on it's military forces where The Netherlands does not even come close to the NATO norm..
Hi Robert and also Jovie,
This comment really hits home for me. I spend a lot of time in the Netherlands and I find there is a strong focus on quality, and little details that make things more thoughtful and beautiful. Yes, there are some nice parts of the US, and we innovate like crazy, but many areas look like trash. Recently I was driving with a friend to Maastricht, and we stopped for gas. I thought, maybe the gas station will have a decent cappuccino, but I won't get my hopes up, as in the US gas stations have the most awful coffee machines. I then enter an immaculate gas station shop, and see three high-tech coffee machines. Same when I go into the train-station market. Wonderful, healthy food for decent price and not so much junk. It's amazing.
@@michaeldamian5750 the Netherlands has a massive coffee culture with some of the highest consumption of coffee on average in the world. Shit coffee will therefore not be tolerated anywhere ;)
@@inflatable2 I'm from the Netherlands and like Jovie said, you can clearly see here that much of the tax money is well spent. Private people would not take care of things like infrastructure personally which is why the government takes care of that in the name of the people. Infrastructure innovation and maintenance being a massive problem in the US, here it's considered to be one of the best in the world with well maintained and highly dense highway network and efficient public transport. As to the NATO norm... Why would we overspend like the US does? We participate in almost all UN missions and make considerable contributions in Aid missions around the world most recently in the Bahamas.
It's not a terrible climate at all. We don't have hurricanes, cyclones, freezing winters. We had a summer that lasted 7 months last year...
Wait until those anti-envirenmentalists manage to divert our Gulfstream. They don't care a damn for climate change, one day that might proof stupid. If those ocean currents change, the weather changes dramatically. Just like El Niño. That way Europe can get the New York winters, too. Roughly the same lattitude, is it? I do not want to scare you, I don't know the climate models. But what I know is that Europe is a whole lot of warmer than the US across the Atlantic. So if those currents would change, we are in for changes. Find out yourself what caused El Niño, find out what is known today. Predictions are tricky, remember the weather forecast. But it is not gambling any more.
@@voornaam3191 I was talking about our climate at the moment. Not starting a discussion about climate change.
@@Whistler4u Wow, you are living in the now. Good-on-you. Yes, the future is not interesting. Sorry that I exist and think, too. Must be confusing, getting real reactions.
You raise a valid point. The weather is "terrible" for me as a mother of two small kids who want to play outside but the wind and rain make it difficult. Last summer was a dream, I hope this year it is the same! Now that I think about it, I didn't think the climate was bad before I had little people who needed to be entertained with daily trips to the park and walks 😂
You raise a valid point. The weather is "terrible" for me as a mother of two small kids who want to play outside but the wind and rain make it difficult. Last summer was a dream, I hope this year it is the same! Now that I think about it, I didn't think the climate was bad before I had little people who needed to be entertained with daily trips to the park and walks 😂
Watching your video makes me more aware how lucky I am being born in the Netherlands. Living in this country and in our "system" makes that you easily take things for granted because of how normal they are in everyday life. After your video I appreciate it all a lot more.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed the video and appreciate your wonderful country more :) Enjoy the sunny Friday!
I was realizing this too
I was thinking exactly the same and hearing opinions from foreigners makes you think about the things we are always complaining about, like taxes and the weather. It makes you realise we are pretty much spoiled compared with other countries.
The problem these days that you have people who preach that our country is shit. Especially you have them in politics. Complaining dutch people who feed fascism right now for example Geert Wilders, Thierry Baudet they are complaining like crazy. But those people who voted on those never really seen the world on how GOOD we have it here.
That’s why people here are always complaining. We live in paradise and are afraid to lose even small parts of it.
We tip like tipping should be: good service, good tip. Not because we have to.
I fully agree! Thank you for watching and commenting!
@@JoviesHome thank you. I worked as camp counselor for two seasons in the USA. Only thing i hated with a passion was tipping bad waiters. I realy did.
And welcome in the Netherlands btw. 😀
If you are not happy with the service, ask for the manager. Problem solved. Don't forget you don't only tip the waiter or waitress, but also the busser, cook etc. Prices of food in restaurants are also lower than in The Netherlands.
Indeed, mandatory tipping goes against the nature of tipping. Is tipping in the US only socially mandatory in restaurants or also when ordering takeout or buying food from a mc drive?
And if it has decent pricing, we're dutch and all .. hehe.
But yeah, nice smile and service and even we dutch feel obligated to give a tip.
(with high prices, not so much ... we're already tipping just for paying the bill).
American who doesn't call the Netherlands "Holland"! You are great;)
Did she say Gelre? No, she just said the Republiek der Vereenigde Nederlanden. With a king, because we need a leader, of course. Can you explain that to Americans?
Oh look a provincial person
@@CHRISZIOMusic Yes, la Provence is magnificent.
@@CHRISZIOMusic Yes, and I live on the brink of Gelderland and Overijssel. My town is older than Amsterdam. Another reason not to call us Holland. Those Amsterdammers are newcomers, after all.
Actually, it is a kingdom, and not a republic.
Oof, if you feel like we're agressive drivers, never go driving in France or Italy... Just a friendly warning...
Every thing else.. Yes, that's pretty much us.
Thank you for watching and for your comment! I actually just drove to France yesterday (my aunt lives there) and you're right, the French were crazy! And once when I was in Italy a local person told me "Traffic lights? Those are just a suggestion!" 😳😂
@@JoviesHome Ha, try rural Greece...
@@JoviesHome
"Traffic lights? Those are just a suggestion!"
True, they always started honking at us when we were stopping at a red light
@@sugoruyo
Not necessarily worse than rural southern Italy in my experience
Compared to the USA we are agressive drivers....
Quality of Belgian roads is a meme here in the Netherlands.
Not only in the netherlands! Its a meme in Belgium to.
LOL IKR
It was a meme before memes even existed. :P
You know you are entering Belgium , when your car starts going up and down
Great observations. I don't mind paying my taxes; it gives us a comfortable country to live in.
Thank you Michiel!
Most of your tax money is wasted.
You could buy the things yourself to give you comfort.
Did you know, Brussels parliament moves once a month to Strasbourg and back?
Complete with all the paperwork and stuff?
I heard this story about this politician, brought to the airport by a limo.
When he reached his destination, the same limo, and the same driver picked him up at the airport.
Such things happen when you work at a place with unlimited money to spend, and no one to hold you accountable.
We can complain so much about things that we have or getting in the Netherlands. But we are spoiled and want it better and better.
This video shows that we have such a good life in the Netherlands and that the government take care of us so good
Exactly. Zeiken om het zeiken.
Do you honestly think the government cares about you? Or are you guys are lucky to have good people working in the gov?
@@diornoire1332 both
Totally agree
Het aantal vakantie uren bedraagt vier maal de overeengekomen arbeidsuren per week. Bij een fulltime dienstverband (van vijf werkdagen per week) heb je recht op vier weken vakantie: 4 x 5 dagen = 20 dagen. Bovenwettelijke vakantiedagen zijn de dagen waar je op basis van een toepasselijke cao recht op hebt.
Tipping is not standard, but often when the service and food have been good, we do round up the bil, lets say you had to pay 76,50 euro, it is not uncommon for people to say to round it up to an 80 euro.
You're absolutely right and I love tipping/rounding up for good service. But in America waiters/servers are generally paid BELOW the minimum wage because they work in a "tip" industry. So a restaurant might pay a server $2-3 per hour and then it's up to the restaurant guests to leave 15-20% tip on top of the bill. And that's for "average" service! When the service is really excellent, the tips go 20-30%+. And that's what I was trying to say here. I don't think it's right that a business doesn't pay it's employees a proper, living wage just because the customers will leave tips.
You're absolutely right and I love tipping/rounding up for good service. But in America waiters/servers are generally paid BELOW the minimum wage because they work in a "tip" industry. So a restaurant might pay a server $2-3 per hour and then it's up to the restaurant guests to leave 15-20% tip on top of the bill. And that's for "average" service! When the service is really excellent, the tips go 20-30%+. And that's what I was trying to say here. I don't think it's right that a business doesn't pay it's employees a proper, living wage just because the customers will leave tips.
You're absolutely right and I love tipping/rounding up for good service. But in America waiters/servers are generally paid BELOW the minimum wage because they work in a "tip" industry. So a restaurant might pay a server $2-3 per hour and then it's up to the restaurant guests to leave 15-20% tip on top of the bill. And that's for "average" service! When the service is really excellent, the tips go 20-30%+. And that's what I was trying to say here. I don't think it's right that a business doesn't pay it's employees a proper, living wage just because the customers will leave tips.
@@JoviesHome Where people work for $2-3 per hour please? I have a restaurant and have to pay minimum wage $11.50 per hour. As to tipping 20% I do it but hate it. It makes me want to go out less.
People usually tip around 10%.
This is one of the few cases where I would ask the American to speak louder.
thank you MrAronymous 😂
Well don't rule out the Dutch because they like to be heard too. And I can tell because I live abroad as a Dutchie. 😎
😂😂😂😂😂
An American here...been living in The Netherlands/Germany for 39 years! I'm with you on all your points! Personally...I don't like to drive in Europe at all (regardless of the country) and I've become so spoiled with all the benefits of Dutch/Germany health care and the whole social systems of both countries that I've never thought about going back to America for one second! :)
Greetings from Lobith-Tolkamer
the only question i have with driving in the Netherlands?? Where did you live in the USA? for my work i spend a huge amount of time in Portland,OR, San Diego, CA and New York, NY but personally i think the drivers over there are way more agressive and dangerous
I lived in Scottsdale, Arizona and studied in San Diego. For me the most dangerous thing about driving in the US is, you know, the guns that people wave around in a threatening way when they have road rage. I don't miss that at all! Thanks for watching and commenting!
I feel spoiled too and never want to go back either! Every time I go for a visit, I breathe a sigh of relief when my flight lands back in NL!
@@Timberjagi I grew up in Michigan, sometimes on I94 in the morning toward Kalamazoo, I never came across a soul. But that was 45 years ago, things have probably changed in America...I was in NY once (2003) heading toward the "Holland Tunnel", now that was a disaster! :/
@ Holly Boerse.Sometimes I look at someone's personal FB page (curiosity) and was a little surprised about your spider post. In the 80's I was visiting a friend in Gelderland and an American family temporarily lived next door. My friend and I were just talking when we heard a terrible scream. Running next door, the American woman was in total panic: a small, innocent little Dutch spider was sitting at the wall, nothing poisonous, not biting. I caught it in a second and brought it out of the house. Flies were the only thing the spider was interested in. In 1972 I visited the U.S. My host in Oklahoma was a Comanche Indian. He showed me a tiny green spider that most certainly was very dangerous.
Hi Jovie! I can relate to whatever you're saying about Holland; it's always interesting to see/hear the perspective of a foreigner. The driving I found funny to hear; I do agree on the fact that Dutch drivers can be a bit aggressive compared to the States, however ... I'm sure you will change your mind when you see how they drive in other European countries such as France, Italy or Spain. They bring "aggressive" to a whole other level by pushing, flashing lights and giving the finger when you're not driving quick enough. What your examinator meant by "too polite" is probably the fact that you gave way in situations where you should've taken priority. This makes for unclear and even potentionally dangerous situations. I am very sure your examinator didn't mean you should drive aggressively. Aggressive driving is prohibited under Article 5 of Dutch road laws.
About food ... yeah ... we have a few typical simple dishes, but Dutch cuisine is pretty much non-existent. Having said that ... I wouldn't consider that a disadvantage. The upside of this is that Holland is about food from every country in the world; we embrace everything. The restaurants in general are of high quality and high diversity; something you will not find in Italy or France for instance. You will be stuck with native food for pretty much every restaurant. This is fine or even nice during holidays, but for every day food ... I'm pretty happy I live in The Netherlands with plenty of good places for good food.
As a Dutch guy I value the same things as you mention. Things that many people here take for granted. Things that I love about The Netherlands that you haven't mentioned yet ... not that you asked, but anyway here goes:
- The Dutch have a special kind of pride about their country. You can see this in (sport) events. Max Verstappen, the Dutch football team, ice skating, athletics ... etc. There's an orange mass of people cheering for their heroes and taking pride of the fact that they're Dutch.
- Holland is free and everyone is equal by law! You can pretty much say or do anything with any consequences with only a few reasonable limitations.
- It has a reasonable stable political system. War and terrorism is a very low risk within The Netherlands, even with the shooting of last month in mind.
- The Dutch legal system feels like a system I can trust. It is fair. Also the police in Holland are considered to be "your best friend" ... I personally respect them very much for good reasons.
- Minor thing ... but still ... there are only a few dangerous animals here. The ones that are will not be easy to find.
The things that I don't like:
- Very personal opinion, but It's flat everywhere. I personally would've liked that The Netherlands has mountains. Not that this can be changed ...
- Can't think of anything else actually :D ...
Thanks for the vid!
Hi Dinand,
I'm so happy you shared what you love about The Netherlands, thank you!
I am currently in France visiting my aunt and I drove here. You're right, they are aggressive but it's aggressive in a different way. In NL I find that drivers don't leave much space when changing lanes (I referred to that as aggressive, maybe wrong choice of words from my side). Meanwhile in France they seem to be very curious about what I have in the trunk of my car -- they're always getting so very very close, I assume to try to see what's inside 😋😉😂And you nailed it on the head about my examiner, I failed because I gave priority to an old lady who was crossing the street (illegally). I mean, come on! She was old and carrying a load and it was raining. I didn't have the heart to make her wait 💛.
You are completely right about the choice of restaurants from different places, that is very nice indeed. I need a Dutch grandma-stye restaurant though where I can try some real stamppot!
Your points about why you love NL are 😍👏👌thank you for sharing! It looks like I'll have to film a part 2 and include some of these because I couldn't agree more. I love seeing the sea of orange in the crowds at international sporting events - even I feel proud!!
Legal system that is fair ... you're a man after my own heart! I'm a lawyer by education 👏😀
Dangerous animals? I used to live in Arizona where I had to check my shoes for scorpions before putting them on, and rattle snakes before getting in the car. So YES!! It feels good that I'm only "worried" about an annoying fly entering my house through an open window 😂
I miss mountain landscapes too. But I've grown to appreciate the green pastures with grazing animals.
Thank you so much for watching, commenting and supporting my channel. I hope you'll consider subscribing and coming back for future videos. Enjoy your day!
😂 living in the soud ( Zuid-Limburg) Valkenburg, Vaals, Simpelveld children go to school on there the bike. Its not flat here 😉 love love Zuid-Limburg ❤ The beauty of the Netherlands
literally laughed out loud at your comment about how you know when you're in Belgium when you're driving... I'm Belgian! :D I
Thank you for watching and commenting! I'm so happy that my video made you laugh 💛
Jovie's Home drive to Germany! You notice that as well. Especially when it rains... the rain comes up from the road again which causes that you have less of a view and have to drive slower for your own safety... not al roads are like this there but I have seen a lot lately.
I know few, if any, Belgian roads have 'cycle roads' besides them, but why do you think dutch roads are so much better?
Just curious...
That's because we ROCK at civil engineering. It's a direct consequence of living below sea level.
@@CommDante Because a LOT of Belgian roads are just giant concrete slabs glued together with tar.
The last couple of years they have been improving their roads and actually repaired some, but a giant portion still sucks compared to the well-maintained, asphalt roads the Netherlands has.
I had to laugh, you are sooooo American! Especially when you started talking about the 2 not so nice things.
You were almost apologizing before you told us :-)
You must know by now that here in Holland we tell people straight: I don't like this or that, try it one time.
About the driving: I'm from the Netherlands and I lived in the US for 2 years (Memphis) and I hated the behavior of some drivers. I always remembered the Dutch driving to be much more polite. Until I went back, the aggressive Dutch driving shocked me. I had forgotten...you are correct.
@Martin OnTheWeb WHAT? At least?
I totally agree with you on the 'hate' on driving in the Netherlands. You have to know the rules and adhere to them, then everything goes smooth sailing. If your don't...... My husband is quite agressive as a driver. He especially mentions the difference between people who drive often and those who only drive in the weekend. The term for those people 'zondagsrijders'. You don't want to be a sundaydriver when he's in your vicinity. Otherwise he's really nice. :-) Another point I love how you don't want to be a political vlogger but allmost every point on your lovelist is the result of political choices Dutch citizens voted for in the past. Which brings me on another point you might love or hate about us. We love to work on solutions and tweeks of things that might be better. If that requires some debate, bring on the debate. Being political is a joy.
Your husband is funny with the zondagsrijders!
And you totally caught me - I love the political choices of the Dutch people. Which means, that the way Dutch are raised, taught, think, are generally care about the welfare of the society as a whole is truly inspiring. My channel is meant to be an "expat mom" channel and that's why I'm trying to stay away from being TOO political. In these times when all I see is devastating political news coming from the USA (and other places too) it's just too dang depressing to participate in debate. I mean, I love a real debate but lately people don't care about "science" or "facts" (i.e., "climate change isn't real because we had a cold winter so there isn't global warming. I don't care what the scientists say, the ice caps are not melting") 😶and trying to convince those people otherwise is impossible. Instead, I'm trying to share all of the WONDERFUL things I've experienced in The Netherlands so that maybe some of my American viewers will think twice ('hmm, affordable healthcare sounds good; maternity leave sounds good, few homeless people on the street sounds good") and will lead them to think about the political choices they have to make in the near future.
Thank you for your comment and for watching the video!
Appreciate your positive remarks. Of course we all have our opinions which are not necessarily the same as facts. But the fact that people in trouble anywhere in the world mention the Netherlands as the place they would love to live is a sure sign our country is great. As far as the weather. Put the right clothes on. As far as traffic is concerned. A very low mortality rate. As far as healthcare: my wife received two artificial knee replacements recently and we have not filed for bankrupty😉
I have been living in the Netherlands for nearly two years. What I love about the Netherlands - 1. Riding my bicycle! There is good bike infrastructure to where ever you want to go, including IKEA.. 2. There are so many parks, most have very cool, unique playgrounds. Larger parks have a little farm with cows, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens or other animals where the kids can go into the pasture and interact with the animals. 3. Kids have a lot of freedom and get places on their own by bicycle without relying on Mom or Dad chauffeuring them around. According to a recent UNICEF study on well-being, children from the Netherlands are the happiest kids out of 29 of the world's richest industrialized nations.Apr 9, 2017. That is because children have a great deal of independence. 4. I see lots of people out and about biking, walking, hanging out in parks, sitting in outdoor cafes having a cup of coffee, wine or beer., or sitting on benches in front of their house hanging out with neighbors. . At least here in Utrecht, where I live. You don't see many people out and about in the USA. People are tethered to their cars, isolated from one another. 5. The trains are AWESOME! They are frequent and run on time. There are few places you can't go by train and you can take your bike on the train. 6. The weather, I come from Boston, Massachusetts which has snow for five months out of the year. We had maybe two days of snow here in Utrecht this winter. There was not enough snow to bother shoveling. Rainy days, I put on a raincoat and rain pants if I'm going to be out for a long time on my bike. 7. I am past college age, but college is very low cost, like maybe $2000 a year if that, plus there is a housing subsidy for students, 8. Health care is affordable for everyone. 9. There is no stress here over affordable health care or education costs. 10. School funding does not depend on the neighborhood you live in. All kids go to schools that aren't falling apart.
Thank you so much for this! I agree with everything you say! Maybe I should do a Part 2 of this video because it was difficult to limit myself to only 10 things ;)
That's funny. I just had my first IKEA experience in NL. Went there by bus. First thing I noticed (besides the short distance from the bus stop) was the stand of bike racks near the entrance. Full. Never saw that before. Also, thanks for liking the weather. I am from California and have moved here from Spain and I'm the only person I've met who prefers the weather here to that in Madrid.
"5. The trains are AWESOME! They are frequent and run on time."
The devil finds work for idle hands to do ... one of the main complains about dutch public transportation are that they're so often NOT on time. (If it's ones a month 5 min late, it's already 'too often too late ' to most, I'm guessing >_< ).
I find it quite funny you saying that, and shows how spoiled we are. (In contrast, Dutch Railways/NS did change their schedules few years back so you don't need to care about 'when' to to catch a train any more ... most are bound to come within 5-15 min these days).
It also shows a lot of other stuff elsewhere, but not going into that now.
@@CommDante Yeah I guess there are some delays of 10 minutes sometimes.I forgot about that, The trains are so frequent, that there will be another one anyway in 15 minutes, if that. Back in Boston where I'm from, delays of an hour were not uncommon. There might be only one train a day or maybe two if you are lucky, for your destination. It's happened to me that the train will stop in the middle of "nowhere" for who knows why, for half an hour before starting up again. The tracks in the US on a major route between Boston, New York City and Washington, DC, a major corridor, are badly in need of being updated. As they are now, trains can not go as fast as they are designed to go. So coming from that, the trains here are amazing.,
@@rebeccaalbrecht771
He he, thanks for sharing.
There are still some countries in the world where a train arrives 'sometime on tuesday', running only ones a month .... with no idea of an actual time, other than 'some tine on Tuesday' ... shows how silly it is to complain about a train being 5 min late when the next one arrives 10min after that! ;)
Re. the holiday pay: Spain and Italy also have something similar. Basically, they get an "extra month" paid (usually 1/2 in December, and 1/2 in summer). Also, Israel has something called "dmei havra'a" (health pay) which is a right to anyone who has worked over a year in a company. It starts at 5 days payment, and on as you work more years - this is just a payment given in July/Aug, independent of vacation days taken/allocated, to ensure people actually do take time off..
Im Dutch myself and honestly I really do not like Dutch food, however I do enjoy that we have cuisines from many different cultures here, it has allowed me to learn to eat many different things. Maybe thats more personal for me and I definitely agree that the food is better is many european counties, but at least we can get a bit of a taste of those things at home.
Do you like pancakes?
Poffertjes?
Stroopwafels?
Drop?
Erwtensoep?
Any type of stampot?
Rookworst?
Herring?
Smoked eel?
Rijstepap?
Blanke vla?
I'm sure I messed up somewhere, but Dutch cuisine isn't as boring as many people think.
It's not all stampot or deepfried.
And stampot can be made with raw vegetables instead of cooking the life out of it.
The fish we eat isn't all raw or pickled.
And some Dutch foods are eaten all over the world without people realising it.
#9) We do holiday pay in Norway as well. It's somewhere around 12% of the previous year's income (before tax, not including that year's holiday pay, obviously) and it generally ends up being paid out in the month of June regardless of when you are actually taking your obligatory 5 weeks (6 if you are over 60). It's essentially your employer "saving" up for your holiday for you.
We as Dutch find driving in other countries like Belgium or France much more agressive
Hi Matthijs, I don't disagree with you. I drove to France last week via Belgium and ... 😳🙊
thanks for watching and supporting my channel, I appreciate it!
I'm Dutch and try living in Thailand.. It's mayhem on the road here. Lines on the road are guidelines at best. People drive 120-140 where 90 is allowed. Or they drive 60-80 through dense urban areas. As a people they are incredibly polite but as soon as they're behind the wheel they turn into speed monsters. I think they're first or second place in the world when it comes to road fatalities.
I like Dutch driving style because it's safe and efficient. People can drive there like they do because everyone is taught to be efficient on the road. The first thing my driving teacher taught me was to not drive too slow. She found that adjusting to traffic to maintain the flow was much more important than to adhere to the speed limit. This was back in 1999 and not much has changed since.
The one thing I like about Dutch traffic and traffic laws the most is that 'weak' traffic (pedestrians, cyclists) is actively protected, both by law and in practice through separate bike lanes, pedestrian islands, intelligent traffic light systems and of course education. Young kids learn how to bike safely without supervisor and... helmets. 😎 I've been cycling for as long as I can stand on my feet and the only time my parents brought me to school was on my first day. It's this personal freedom that makes for some really happy kids and I hope that other countries will copy our ways at least in some form.
And about Dutch food. Never liked it and never will although I do agree on the erwtensoep because that's yummy! But we have a rich history as a country and dito imported foods. Where the Brits have their curries we have our Indonesian and Surinamese dishes and they're awesome! I definitely call that Dutch food as well because it has been around for so long.
just found your channel. i'm german, living in the netherlands for nearly 30 years. my husband is english and we both LOVE to live here! i agree with all what you said😊 groetjes van limburg
Thank you so much for watching and commenting! It is a pleasure to live here, although Germany is pretty wonderful too!
Thank you so much for watching and commenting! It is a pleasure to live here, although Germany is pretty wonderful too!
Thank you so much for watching and commenting! It is a pleasure to live here, although Germany is pretty wonderful too!
Blij dat je het hier zo leuk vind, hopelijk blijft het zo!
(Glad you like it so much here, hope it stays that way).
@@MrDjTilo 🥰
I'm Dutch and one of the few people who doesn't like to travel. I've been to a lot of countries and every time I'm joking about the roads being half finished. Come on people, why is the sidewalk missing tiles?!?! On the other hand, The Netherlands is so small (400km2 / 250miles2 correction: 42508 square km approx 17000 square miles) that every little piece has been planned for. Feels a bit too organized.
Maybe because I am a "type A" personality, I love that everything is so organized!
YES about the roads being half finished! That's how I felt when I was in Los Angeles for work. Multi-million dollar homes everywhere but the roads leading to those home full of potholes?!
Rocky Slay , it is a bit larger than you state 😊, 42508 square km (approx 17000 square miles)
@@abbofun9022 Woops my bad. Made correction. Wiki is actually stating 41,543 km2. Did we make some new land again? Or did you include the tropical islands?
I'm from Ecuador, and I love that everything is clean and organized here.... People are always very polite at the stores and blueberries are cheaper than in Ecuador 😅
Thanks for watching and sharing Gabriela!
Oké. About the Dutch cuisine... I guess it’s not sexy, but you have to admit... we have the tallest people on earth here, so we must be doing something right!! 😉
There have seriously been studies about this, and they actually say that our food is a part of the reason why we are so tall! :)
@@ninakempenaar6085 Exactly ! Power foods. Stamppot etc ! Google Dutch traditional dishes Jovie ! Erwtensoep zum beispiel !
Sudan begs to differ lol
@@ninakempenaar6085 wow really? I didn't know haha
You do something right, you feed them with a lot of hormones, but the higher you come the less oxygene the brain gets.
I love your videos. As a Dutch person I'm used to all of this, and you take them for granted. It's nice to see someone else perspective on this, it makes me more appreciative on these subjects.
Thank you so much Silvia!
Thank you so much Silvia!
Thank you so much Silvia!
I agree, hope it stays that way!
Because of the bad weather, we privilege what is important in life and what is second or third on the list, namely take care of a warm and clean house and a good health and not having three cars and a mansion if you're just the two of you. This is the same thing in all scandinavian countries and in Germany, (basically the same population).
Thank you for your videos. Whenever I am gloomy about the world, like Corona? Your videos makes me happy that I live here. Xxxx
I’m thinking I might more to the Netherlands . Sounds like they really look after their people. I’m from Australia and I think we need to take a page out of your book - sounds great!!
Thanks for your comment! Do come for a visit first ;) Although Australia is a wonderful place too, I've heard. A few of my Dutch friends have gone to Aus for cultural/work exchange programs and have loved it.
With all the SJW/PC crap going on there in Australia I wouldn't blame you, you don't even have a 'basic right to speak you opinion' over there. At least that's a 'most basic law' over here... We usually tend to adopt UK/USA bs in the end though, so don't get your hopes up ... usually just takes a while before we end up just as bad....
Did you have an issue with any language barriers? If I visit will there be any problems communicating? Living in the States my whole life and only speaking English I always worry about language barriers. I love that bicycling is so integrated in everyday life. You mentioned about the awful weather, is it cold or rainy a lot? We just moved to California from the Midwest and we’ve gotten accustomed to 60 - 80 degree weather how does the climate compare to the states? Love your videos and your very charming, you paint a very nice picture of the Netherlands!
Dutch cuisine used to be potatoes, a piece of meat and vegetables. But since the 1980s this changed and now we eat just about anything.
And you’re right: people here drive like lunatics, they don’t understand what blinkers are for and the Me Me Me attitude that many people have, especially in the West, is atrocious.
We should not forget that over the past 40 to 50 years the composition of the population of the Netherlands has significantly changed due to the influx of immigrants from countries where general attitudes toward traffic rules are "a little different" from what we have been used to and those "medelanders" brought along their patterns of traffic behavior.
@@HaKi1950 that sounds like horse manure to me. Most of the ones that drive like 'tokkies' are as white as me.
@@Shalimar_trailsss Really Lidia. My wife used to work in Lebanon before the civil war, I in Morocco and another place in the M-E. Don't you tell us how they are driving there (I remember how a cab driver drove up a hill passing a car without seeing what was coming from the other side - a normal thing for drivers to do there. And in Cairo, Beirut, Casablanca etc. drivers use the horn constantly. Yesterday I was walking the dog when I was almost hit by a car driven by someone from, let us say, "that background". He came out of a side street racing into ours where 30 km/h is allowed and his speed was far above that. Had he hit me and my dog he would have killed us. So what do you think I think of your horse manure?
@@HaKi1950 This was one guy? Driving there? I'm talking about the bunch of people as a whole that are driving HERE...I'm sorry that happened to you, that's messed up...But in my opinion the people that drive here in an antisocial way are (young) white dudes...
@@Shalimar_trailsss Have you not learned to read? I said we have much experience in the Middle East and North Africa in big cities. I'd suggest you go there and see for yourself how "the dudes" there are driving before coming up with conclusions. I have many American friends but have also worked alongside many American colleagues. Some are very good friends till this day but alas I have also been confronted with typical American "know it alls" and they really made me sick!
I am about to go to the Netherlands and study for 1 year. I hope everything will go smoothly and I think I am gonna love this place.
Great video! btw, if a dutch driver cuts really close in front of your car, and you are not driving all the way to the right, they are trying to get you to move over. Otherwise they will generally leave more room. I 've done it myself, and seen several cars doing it to drivers which stay on the middle lane.
The reason of the driving situation is because the country is very very very compact. There is a huge amount of roads on a small surface. People tent to drive very close to each other (and being good at it) because if everyone would be more 'patient' people would be in traffic all the time, which would suck.
Just as a heads up, the word "haat" is aeons more virulent in the Dutch lexicon than it is in the English one.
"Haat" in the colloquial sense quite literally denotes wishing death upon something or someone, both figuratively and litterally. Your best bet is to opt for the more diminutive alternative known as "een hekel aan". They fundamentally bear the same meaning of declaiming distaste for something but the latter makes you sound a lot less militant.
Just some friendly advice from a Dutchman.
Thank you! So how would you translate the title so it makes sense too? I don't hate anyone or anything in the literal sense of the word, as you may have seen !
I recommend changing the latter construct into either "dingen die ik wat minder vind " (things I'm not as fund of) or "dingen waar ik moeite mee heb" (things I have grievances about". Though there are a vast array of alternatives to use.
"Haat" has sort of become reappropriated as an everyday cuss word in the same way "shit" has. So don't hesitate to use it when you feel it's pertinent to the situation.
Thank you!
Jovie's Home Graag gedaan! 😁
@@waterblonk Your English is impressive. Born in The Netherlands?
Love your video's Jovie.I agree with you on all these topic's especially the driving.They are so fast!! However I've never seen an accident so far!I tired to back out onto the road and no one stopped to let me make my manuver, I just had to go for it. You got to be fast and stick to your decision and then you will start to drive like them.
Hahaha, I don’t need a sign that tells me I’m in Belgium... it’s true 😂
What is considered real American Cuisine to you?... the netherlands doesn’t have a real own cuisine, true.. but you can find “world food” in every city..
Altijd als ik België in kom is alles zo messy en onlogisch
McDonals, Krispy Kerman’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken. All super healthy (sarcasm).
@Matt R Yep, this is what WIKIPEDIA says and not reality. Most people in USA (I am moving back to Europe from USA soon after 3 years) live on cheap take outs. You compare USA to Europe (doesn't apply to UK, people there buy ready meals mostly, lived there 16 years) where people cook at home, making sure that the food is fresh and organic. Yes, in USA some people do the same, but only some and food in general is awful. Additives are worse than anywhere in the world and everything far too sweet.
@Matt R My experience in your country is enough to know about food. I am a vegan chef and ran my own restaurant until a few months ago. I think I can tell you more about people's attitudes to healthy food than you can tell me. If you read my comment I wrote "in USA some people do the same (cook at home like Europeans) but only some and food in general is awful". It seems we both agree on this one, but say it differently. I agree with you on young people's changing attitudes to food.
stampot, hutspot, andijviestampot, zuurkool, visticks met aardappel en spinazie, pannenkoeken, poffertjes, stroopwaffel, kaas, (Hema)rookworst ect...
#8 Tipping in the Netherlands is normally around €2,- on a terrace or for the delivery guy for your pizza or other deliveries of meals.
Thanks! I now appreciate my country a lot more!
ikr, feels good to have some positive views on you ones in a while.
white male...
About holiday pay: In Austria there is a 13th and 14th month salary. Yes, we get payed as if there would be 14 month. One of those payments is in summer and called Urlaubsgeld (vacation money), the other in winter called Weihnachtsgeld (Christmas money). :D
(Those virtual months have some different tax rate, so you might pay a bit more taxes on that, but its just a tiny difference.)
@4: foreign companies also love paying taxes in NL, because they're incredibly low. So called postbox companies, with only an address for example. To abuse the tax laws in NL :)
I love hearing you talk about your experiences in the Netherlands. I live here and because of your videos, I realised I'm lucky to be born here in the Netherlands
Welcome to the Netherlands. Im subscribed
We do have a Dutch cuisine; erwtensoep, boerenmoes met worst, hutspot, andijviestamppot. Stamppot dus in alle soorten en maten😊. About holidays, part-time work etc., Dutch people tend to work to live not live to work. I too don't like aggressiveness in traffic and not standing in line.
Sometimes I take for granted how good the Netherlands as a country works in comparison to other countries. But is a very Dutch thing to have an opinion or complain about it.
Freedom of speech is in our veins! And we gladly use it to tell our opinions! ;)
You are wrong about the amount of holidays days we get. According to the law you get 4x the amount of hours you work in the week. So on fulltime basis this is 4x40=160/8=20days of holidays. Not 25. Everything above this are the bovenwettelijke vakantiedagen which means it depends on your contract
yep, i do love paying my taxes. and I found it great to see it go up when I earned a lot. it goed to the right places!
We don't have the best weather in the world, but it is rather mild. No hurricanes etc. I loved your number 4, it reminds me how good it is here, thanks!
aww shucks, you're making me feel good about being Dutch!
Also, I don't think you should feel too scared about saying something negative about the Netherlands, most of us Dutchies have a list of complaints longer than you could ever dream of, and your two points are very mild, considering the things we tend to say.
I completely agree with you on the Dutch 'cuisine' point, we don't really have much of anything, and the things we do have are an acquired taste. Most of the things we do consider to be ours are winter foods, so very seasonal, as you pointed out as well. Stews and stamppot are definitely things we Dutchies like to eat during the cold months. I will say though, if you've never tried it before... try eating homemade hachee or jachtschotel sometime. It's been my favorite food ever since I was a little kid and I think it's very Dutch.
On the 'aggressive driving' comment: I failed to get my driver's license because I don't dare to drive on the highway. So I can completely relate to that. I don't think I could ever get used to it.
I'm so pleased to watch Jovie's videos and to reverberate all of the wonderful things I too enjoy about the Netherlands.
Some points may need some extra info. The 'holiday pay' is not exactly like that, because it's you're own money. Your employer holds back 8% of your salary and "give" it back to you once a year. (most of the time combined with the salary of April/May) The idea behind it is to 'protect' the employees from spending that money during the year, and ending up with no money to go on holiday.
However, a lot of people rely on that money to pay unexpected bills from i.e energy company's or maybe they need a new washing machine or refrigerator and so on.
Also the healthcare system is a lot more expensive as many people think it is. Most people only see the 110 Euro 'basic insurance' and some extra for dentist costs or physiotherapy.
But again there is a HUGE amount of money your employer has to pay to the government, and that money is taken from your Gross salary !! Most Dutch people don't look very carefully to their paycheck , but in the section "cumulative" you can see exactly how much money is reserved for holiday, and for healthcare
. And on top of that you pay the 12 x 110 = 1320 Euro (per person!) for just basic insurance.
Thanks Martijn! Even if the 8% is your own money, it's so cool that the system is set up like that. A lot of people I know would have a difficult time setting aside 8% every month and not touching it until a year later! So it's great that employers do that and then it's named "holiday pay" to encourage you to go on HOLIDAY, unless, of course, you need it to pay an unexpected/high bill. The principle of it overall is so cool (to an outsider).
And while you're right about the cost, let me tell you, many American families pay $1,000+ EACH MONTH for medical insurance and even then have a super high "own risk". My parents, for example, had an own risk of $10,000 per year EACH before their medical insurance would cover anything. And on top of that, they had to pay a monthly fee to have the insurance at all. So for me, the Dutch insurance seems so inexpensive, comparatively. Plus, the insurance companies can do all kinds of nasty things, like drop your coverage if you're too sick... it's so sad.
@@JoviesHome people should have the choice to want that ..And all that money's interest is going to the boss..So are they doing it for the people or to in ritch them selves
You may be right that it’s kinda expensive but me as a Dutch girl with the highest insurance I could get (i have expensive medicine that are only covered by that insurance) and once I was sick at night in a weekend and had to go to the ER and that isn’t covered, the maximum amount I had to pay was 300€ I also got sick in New York (they thought I might have a long embolism) and also had to go to the ER because the hostpital couldn’t get into contact with my insurance they send the bill to me, for a similar visit the bill was 5000$ if I remember it correctly.. that is insane, I am lucky my insurance paid for it but imagine not getting it paid and I know if you don’t have a job you can’t have health insurance in the US and that’s insane everybody should be able to get the same right on health insurance
@@twinkharrylwt226 Maybe you have seen it already, but the movie/documentary "Sicko" by Michael Moore (from 2007) shows the US healthcare system compared to Europe.....
It was very shocking to see for me as a Dutch person. The first part is about a carpenter who had cut two (top parts) of his fingers. He didn't had insurance. And in the hospital they gave him a choice, put the middle finger back for 60.000 Dollar, or his ring finger for 12.000 Dollar..... romantic as he was, he chooses the ring finger.
If you haven't seen it, here is the full 2 hour (!!) documentary in low quality but with Dutch subtitles : ruclips.net/video/QpMMNqzagCk/видео.html I highly recommend watching it ! (on a rainy Sunday afternoon)
What I like to know, and that's a question to Jovie , how much of this docu is real and how much is exacerbated ? I know the European parts are real.
Dutch people often complain about 'how expensive basic healthinsurance is'.
Do you know how much it costs to have 1 consultation at your family doctor? 1 consulation at a specialist? And then I am not even mentioning how much a simple surgery will cost. You may not go to the hospital every year, but most people come there at least once in their lifetime for something 'big'. Your choise....pay that amount of money at once or pay a little every month in advance....
For the stroopwafels: they arent as big as a coffee mug for nothing. If you're having coffee, put one on top of the mug so it will heat up, best way to eat them. You will love it!
regarding nr 4 as someone from holland: well as all systems ours is far from perfect as well. but i think overall speaking its a relatively good and fair system for everyone. i mean, yeah we complain about the high taxes as well, and not all is spend perfectly.... so sometimes its hard when you work hard and earn honest money to see others - who are too lazy or arent able - to work to get free money paid by your hard earned money.
But when you look at the greater picture it benefits you as well: it also means those people dont need to steal things to survive...meaning there is way less crime compared to other countries. as a result your children and yourself can walk on the streets - even at night - without being worried.. that feeling is priceless to me.
and indeed the overal condition of buildings, nature and things like that benefits you personally as well... its more easy to feel good as everything and everybody around you feels good as well. And yes, its a hard topic and not everybody agrees on this, but generally speaking we prefer the “take care of everyone system” then for example the “take care of yourself only” system in the usa... not to say that the usa system is bad, but it just feels better if the mass is as happy as you compared to you being happy and the majority is having a hard time to survive...
Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment, Robin!
Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment, Robin!
Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment, Robin!
As an experienced dutch professional driver, I do agree that there's a lot of aggression in dutch traffic. I've done 2 long roadtrips through the states, and despite the roads generally being in much worse condition, I found it much more pleasant to drive longer distances.
That's an interesting job. I bet you have some stories to tell! Thank you for sharing your thoughts, I appreciate it!
The Netherlands has a very calvinist background. It makes sense that consumerism wouldn't be as big here. In some other countries, you might want expensive flashy things just to make an impression. In the Netherlands, you would just be seen as a show-off if you try too hard to look good and especially to look rich. I'm not sure if you can call us modest, but we're definitely more modest than many other countries.
Thanks Marco, I agree! Thank you for watching and commenting!
There is actually a much broader Dutch cuisine. But due to the Burgundian era, it is often called the Burgundian Kitchen. This kitchen is more typical in the Southern Netherlands.
Also few Dutch today eat fish anymore. Partially because that was considered "poor people's food". The same applied a bit to the large variety of bean dishes.
If you want to taste some typical Dutch cuisine, I would recommend: Asperges (it is the season now), later in the year Mussels. Vispotje, Frisian ricetable (that's a bean dish). Hazepeper, Hachee with red cabbage, or red cabbage with bloedworst and mashed potatoes.beef stew with (Brussels) sprouts or witlof (Belgian endive) with ham and cheese.
You might notice that with Brussels sprouts and Belgian endive the vegetable in English is ascribed to Brussels. That's due to the Burgundian era. In that late medieval era Brussels was the capital of the low countries.
In general it might be a treat for your family to once visit a Medieval Inn where they serve a Burgundian feast meal. That might give you a clue that there is a bit more to Dutch kitchen, than stroopwafels and stamppot.
Some Dutch call the Burgundian kitchen as the "Brueghelian" kitchen after the famous painter Brueghel, who made paintings of people eating such meals.
Google: bourgondische maaltijd or bourgondisch feestmaal and you get many hits.
Also, have you ever explained how you ended up living there since neither you or your husband are Dutch? If not you should do a story time or draw my life type video!
Thank you! I'll try to put something special together this summer when my editor has a bit more free time ;)
@@JoviesHome Meh, lame .. could've just answered his question without 'a new video' ... and you claim to be a dutch citizen...:P
Wij doen dingen omdat we het willen, om de wereld beter te maken ... niet voor eigen gewin!
Hi Jovie, found your short videos very informative, please keep it up. We are a family of 4 from South Africa with EU passports and planning to move to the Netherlands within 2 years. My question if you don't mind doing a short video on the topic is about schooling. Our oldest son is in university and will enroll for a LLM degree in English which seems to be no problem and he will be spoilt for choice. Our youngest is currently 13 so will be in a very tricky stage of his education. How does the system work for kids who will be struggling with the language, what could we do as parents to support this transition? He is currently in a very strict private Catholic school, very different from what I assume happens over there.
We are proud of our country. The Netherlands isn't big so we will do anything to make living here as good as it gets, even when there are many rules and paying a higher tax.😉
Nu law our salary system is as easy as possible: if you are hired for 36 hours of work each week, one vers paid die ghose hours alsof on a holiday dat/week. The 8% holiday pay is what we save for during the working year, it's part of our salary. So the normaal salary pays all cost (houding, gas, water etc) and we go on holiday with the 8% holiday pay.
As a childless adult i sometimes feel i need to work fulltime (40) to take home the same amount of spendable money as my parttime coworkers (24) that do have children. Taxes are way better for parents.. i work and pay so they Stay home.
My and my girlfriend (who happens to be from America) are childless by choice, and while we don't have anything to complain it is a bit of a surprise that friends in the same (financial) situation as us can afford the same things, but they have two or more kids. "Kinderbijslag" we should get rid of that. ;-)
Thank you for watching and for your comment! I really appreciate it!
Thanks for your video, and I love how politely you brought up the negative points about the Netherlands. About that though, the Netherlands is a very dense place. The roads are narrower and every spot is used. When you leave a gap, people will think that you left that spot free on purpose so they can go there. You'll see the same thing when you go to New York, Paris or Tokyo.
C'mon, food is great here! Oke, ofcourse we include "Indisch eten" as Dutch cuisine because nobody in his right mind would eat volutarily ony traditional Dutch food. Even if one would know what that would be. So thank you indonesia and slamat makan organg blanda.
love this! quick thing since I see it coming back in vids, we don't have a tipping culture but at least in more high-end places it is customary to tip between 5-10% based on how happy you were with your service
Ok you are making me want to move to the NL! Especially as a nurse the universal healthcare system that actually works is like a dream! I almost cried a little it when you spoke about how the NL really focuses on supporting families and promoting family values. The US is sooooo behind the rest of the world on this. If we aren’t helping support our families and our children then what does that say about us as a country?? And the no tipping culture just makes so much sense!!! I’ve never understood how it makes sense for people to live off how generous other are. Cause we all know there are so many cheap people out there! And I’ve never heard of holiday pay-totally blew my mind 💣
Well it might be eye opening to you, because it is a lot better then in the US, but I have to warn you, we believe there is still a lot wrong in our health system. Nurses are over half their time spending doing office stuff. Cause everything they do with the patients has to be documented for the insurance compagny. It takes away from working where it's needed, next to the bed.
Holiday pay is your own salary being 'reserved' for you, so that you don't spend it in one go. It's just a tradition, not a gift. You could set up your own monthly transfer to a savings account, and go on a holiday once a year from that, I guess.
@Contemporary Mama - I hear you. It's so difficult for me to refrain from screaming at the news when I hear US politicians saying "family values" left and right and then don't support maternity/paternity leave or medical assistance for low income families. It's like - put your money where your mouth is!! If you support families so much, DO something to show it. Kinda like offering "thoughts and prayers" after a school shooting instead of gun reform. Sorry, this is getting too political but I REALLY didn't realize how flawed the US system was until I moved here. And while there are also lots of things than can be improved here (as Linda mentioned about the nurses workload), it just feels so different than being in the US. The mentality here is much more "we/us" and not "me/I" and that has an effect in the policies, laws, etc.
In case you want to do so, visit the country a few times and get first hand information on what it is being a nurse in The Netherlands.
Come from a medical background (education) myself but nearly everybody I know went doing something else, myself included.
That 8% "holiday bonus" you were talking about is not a gift from my employer. Every month he takes 8% of my loan before taxes and saves that for me to add that later on to my May salary for my holiday. So basically *he* saves some money from my salary to be paid in May.
Compared to American drives, yes we are aggressive drivers. But try driving in France, Italy, Spain or even Germany. You’ll see a whole other level of aggressive. But I agree with you in that in the past 5 or 10 years the level of Dutch driving has become more aggressive. This also visible in the rise in Road deaths in the past few years. I just stick to the right lane and put the cruise control on 100km/h. On ‘long’ thrips in the Netherlands it may cost you 15 minutes extra, but you arrive in a very relaxed mood 😌
Hi Nico, thanks so much for watching and commenting! I am now in France visiting my aunt and you're right...French drivers are very aggressive too! Cruise control is one of my favorite car features...plus it saves me a lot on speeding tickets ;)
Hi Nico, thanks so much for watching and commenting! I am now in France visiting my aunt and you're right...French drivers are very aggressive too! Cruise control is one of my favorite car features...plus it saves me a lot on speeding tickets ;)
Hi Nico, thanks so much for watching and commenting! I am now in France visiting my aunt and you're right...French drivers are very aggressive too! Cruise control is one of my favorite car features...plus it saves me a lot on speeding tickets ;)
There is no such thing as long trips in the Netherlands.
Gert-Jan van der Lee Relatively speaking, of course 😉
The Nederlands and Sweden are quite similar. For your information Sweden has 12% vecation payment. We have at least 25 days of payed vecation, and everyone of these days will give you 12% extra payment.
The dutch weather is perfect. You have a winter and a summer🤔
yes, a so called soft or mild winter and a so called moderate summer. and rain is spread the whole year through with modest climaxes in july/ august and november. you may say that it's not impossible to live under it.
Winter? When?
Love to hear all the things you talk about and can definitely see what you mean. I've been to the US a couple of times and indeed things are different here and there. The climate is as is (and sucks at times), it also depends in the states where you live ofc so it's not just here. Keep up with the cool vids!
Mooi om te horen hoe goed we het hier hebben. Zeker van iemand die er fris tegen aan kijkt. Kritisch blijven is goed maar waarderen wat we hebben is ook belangrijk!
Nice to hear how good we are here. Certainly from someone who takes a fresh look at it. Staying critical is good, but appreciating what we have is also important!
Probleem is grotendeels om het ook zo minimaal te behouden...
(Problem mainly is to how keep that at least at a minimum)
The weather isn't that bad during spring and summer. What is driving like when there are a lot of cyclists around?
I'm always confused by people (and that includes Dutch people as well) who think the Netherlands has a horrible climate and horrible weather most of the time. I think it's great that we have four seasons that are all really different and beautiful in their own way. There is snow and ice in winter (okay, maybe not as much as some winter-people might like, but still), and warm beach-weather in the summer and pretty much everything in between. Plus that we don't have to put up with things like earthquakes, hurricanes, extreme drought and fires. I think the Dutch climate/weather is very underrated!
I liked your video nontheless!
Especially that last point, about not dealing with natural disasters.
People always mention how we are under sea level and how that threatens us so, but since the waternoodsramp we haven't had a single huge event. The little earthquales we've had in the north as a result of gasmining are a daily thing for people in Florida.
Overall our country is very hospitable climate-wise.
It's also an argument I see brought up by Americans that come from hotter states like California or Miami, but less from people in colder cities like Chicago and Seattle. But I can kinda understand when you're used to having our four weeks of summer for 75% of the year.
where is she from California? she could be shoveling out of meter deep snow..
Sorry but we do have earthquakes on a regular basis in the northern part of the country that slowly destroys the area, the province of Groningen. Schools, churches, farms, parts of villages, small businesses,family houses, its quite terrible, families living in their threatened houses are afraid of being killed by their own houses. Hey cant sell their houses anymore. They are stuck in this situation.Walls that get big cracks, we have alsof very old roman brick churches that werd built in the 1200s, (way before u white guys of western europe colonised the lands of the Natives, and built up whats now called the USA.) So Groningen is a precious area. Our gvnment is too much focussed on keeping the big company happy, that causes all these problems, SHELL. By soaking out the gas since 1957, 3 km deep under a soft layer of Clay .it is scandalous that gvnment plus SHELL dont stop this destruction. Many politicians of a certain party, the VVD, have been employed by SHELL before or after their career as a politician. We had the biggest gasfield in Europe . The whole country has profited from the gasfields after WW2. Now the gasfields are getting empty. But they still have not stopped the exploitation. So this whole area of Groningen is slowly getting destroyed. Scandal scandal..
@@marjan166 Like I said in my first post, yes we do have eq's in the north, but they are insignificant compared to real earthquake climates. Doesn't mattet how emotional or scandalous that is to you, its a matter of magnitude.
@@atomicNoodle if u studied the backgrounds of Groninger earthquakes u would know that the impact of a magnitude of let's say 2.5 to 3.6 scale Richter on a weak soil, ground, is much stronger than the same magnitude on a Rocky area. Like Italy. These earthquakes in Groningen are created by men, companies, politics. They sold this gas also to countries around us. Profit for Netherlands, decay for Groningen.
By the way, stroopwafels are available in the US. Sold as Dutch caramel wafers. Seen them in NYC and some other places. I even spotted them in a candy store in Provincetown. The band was Belgian Boys but imported from the Netherlands Lol
But driving why are you in the middle lane when by law you must in the right lane?
I'm usually overtaking the drivers in the right lane ;) I like to drive and overtake at a safe distance but have a NEED for SPEED 😂😉
@@JoviesHome euhh I hope you mean left lane, because you can't overtake people on the right......(well you can do it of course, but it's not allowed ;-) )
If someone is in the right lane and I am in the middle, it’s allowed to overtake, no? I don’t have to be all the way in the left (if it’s a 3-lane road) to overtake the driver in the right lane. Or am I missing something?
@@JoviesHome You're right. I misinterpreted your sentence. The way I was reading your sentence I thought you where overtaking in the right lane.
Phew 😅! I thought I was doing it wrong.
About Dutch weather: we did actually have 2 American size tornado's (1967), F5's. Before that, there was one like that at the Veluwe summer 1945, just after liberation of WW2, and before that there were 2 in the twenties. So they are rare but not impossible here.
Dutch cuisine = boiled potatoes + vegetables + piece of meat.... mayonnaise optional... and applesauce!!
Vergeet de jus niet 😉
@@karindwarswaard1507 I forgot the jus haha But I never put that on my potatoes. Too much flavor haha
I think our pet friendly environment is an extension of our focus on family. We're encouraged to see our pets as part of our household. So I don't blame you for the slips.
I'm born and raised in the Netherlands and your video puts things in perspective in terms of how well we have it here :) Thanks!
Thank YOU for watching!
No idea why, but I feel the need to say: It's good to be the king. ;)
Being Dutch: Agree with Dutch food, I don't like it either. Luckily we have adopted a lot of foreign cuisines so you don't have to live of kroketten and friet if you don't want to.
Driving in the Randstad is usually more hectic then driving in the rest of the country, they are more relaxed.
Yes: We complain a lot about the weather. It is a perfect opening for a conversation", that is because Dutch weather can change fast and as you say: you have to take advantage of a good day.
Thanks so much for watching and commenting! I appreciate your support :)
I had to do some digging into dutch food history for school. There used to be a larger variety of higher end/high brow dutch dishes but a lot of them have disappeared through the years because of the influence calvinism had.
There are some websites that collect older recipes, from the early middle ages til 1970's, that can give you an idea just how unusual those recipes could be to modern eyes.
You'll see a lot of nose to tail eating, species we don't eat today, strange spice/herb combinations and things you wouldn't think to combine now like fish in a sweet pudding.
I think it's safe to say that dutch cuisine has been rather simple and bland to some, since at least 1920, and the typically dutch dishes that have survived are nearly always low brow/farmers food.
Kroketten, although not a uniquely dutch concept, here do taste very dutch. Other countries have their own recipes for them but you can taste subtle and not so subtle differences.
Fried snacks in general really came into popularity in the 1950's and haven't left the spotlight since.
I love this! Thank you so much for educating me on Dutch food history - this is so interesting!
I love this! Thank you so much for educating me on Dutch food history - this is so interesting!
I love this! Thank you so much for educating me on Dutch food history - this is so interesting!
@@JoviesHome If you're ever curious what old recipes look like, google "historische recepten nederland" and there's some good results.
The lack of cuisine is also because the normal people used to be very poor, and there was not much variety, apart from potatoes and vegetables. Later more influences from other countrues came in.
You should have added that the 8 percent holidaypay (vakantiegeld) is normally saved up and then paid out at once, in May. It’s like having a double salary that month. If it were paid out every month then everybody would just spend it on other things.
i agree i am dutch the dutch food is not to good
I made 2 separate videos about what I love and hate about here, which was a mistake because the video about the cons got watched waayyyy more of course and people hated me for that 😅 Smarter to put them together 😊🙏
What about Vrije Schoolkeuze? That’s another thing I like about the Netherlands.
I think I'll have to make a part 2 of this video (and part 3-10) because there are SO many things I like about The Netherlands - including Vrije Schoolkeuze!
@@JoviesHome Kewl, kinda feels we're not all that messed up yet.
Clowns world.
I find the weather great, i like the seasons. And i can understand why the driving might seem stressfull at first...
We do have one of the most condensed infrastructures, at least in railways.
Aggressive drivers xD
Just start driving in places like southern Italy and talk back to me
Um, I wouldn't dare drive in Italy. An Italian once told me "traffic lights? Those are just a suggestion"! So, not for me! LOL. Thanks for watching and supporting my channel :)
@@JoviesHome
We've been honked at by Italians when waiting for red traffic lights they usually cross
I completely agree with number 4, the roads, healthcare, the police, the fire department. All of that is simply amazing in the Netherlands, and this is due to taxes.
By the way, it's adorable how nervous you are while being a tiny bit negative about the Netherlands. Don't worry, our pride is big but we're not monsters.
And as for the very last thing you said. Exactly. Seriously, I was born and raised in the Netherlands and I'm still not used to those people who just skip the entire line while you've been waiting for 10 minutes or so.
Re: #4, not enough people agree with you, but yes, I am proud to pay my taxes.
Agreed, I don't mind paying my taxes at all because I see what it brings us if you compare us to other countries.
Me too
Me three.
I live in Canada. The choice of veggies is ALL the seasons, ALL the time very limited AND expensive, compared to the Netherlands (my home country). In Canada we get 6% vacation pay. (but not those 25 days, actually I get no paid vacation at all, just the official Holidays)
Denmark has a 12% holiday payment by law😁 About driving: Try Paris or any Spanish city👹
Many of the Dutch viewers have commented about how great Scandinavian countries are - 12% holiday pay sounds fab!! Thanks for watching and commenting!
PS - when in Paris/Spain I'll take the metro/taxi and avoid driving at all ;)
In Belgium we receive an extra months wage just before summer Starts called " holidaymoney", we get that at the end of the year too, in december.. called " endyearsmo ey".
Not at least 25 days of leave, but at least four times your weekly houres. So working 40 houres a week, you are entitled to 20 days of leave a year.
Terrible climate, my arse. The Netherlands is located in what is nothing less than the best climate zone. Temperatures are never too cold and never too hot. And precipitation is likewise ideal.
How do you feel about the constant chilly wind? I agree about the temperatures when it is a windless day. Even the rain doesn't bother me when it is raining, you know, vertically. But mix in that wind and my opinion changes... Thanks for watching and commenting!
Yep, about the driving: on average we have to take around 50 hours of driving lessons to get a license.. its very strict
I live in Florida.
Pros: it's better than where I used to be.
Cons: it's Florida.
Aldo I am Dutch, I agree with you our best food is either deep fried or very sweet. There is not really a Dutch cuisine.
However about driving, I think that's more a difference between living in a big city or in the Netherlands "de Randstad" and living in more rural area. I live in the south-west of the Netherlands, drivers here are for the most part very relaxed.
I do live in the Randstad! It's so funny to hear that this is a "known" thing among Dutch people (another person commented something similar!) 😂 Thank you for watching!
Oh and I should have mentioned Oliebollen in the winter time ... YUMMY! But also fried...
Hard to believe you are at all affected by the "lack" of consumerism when you are standing in front of a wall of designer purses. yeah, right.
You got that one wrong. All surveys come to the same conclusion: There is NO country in the world, where so many different produce can be bought and at that reasonable prices.
As an Dutch person being in the states I know the verity is bigger in every single product.
What I mean is this. When you buy chips you can choose out off endless different flavors.
When you buy cereals you have ab whole ally only with that product.
You go to the market and there are 10 different kind off corn and 15 different kind off potatoes.
When you are in the south the choice in vegetable is endless with all that comes in from Mexico.
So I think so was hinting on that and not off different produce.
When I have friends over they always say when we are in the supermarket. Why are there only 3 kinds off this, why are there only 5 kind off that.
There is no choice.
Supermarkets or groceries like target and wall mart are very very big and you can get anything there.
Yes! Thank you, this is what I mean. I am now in France and they have an entire aisle of different yogurts at the supermarket; plus another aisle for cheeses etc. I love that we eat seasonal fruits and veg in NL, but I do miss having a huge choice and variety of non-produce sometimes (like you mention, chips and cereals etc). At the same time, the size of the supermarkets cannot be compared so in the US you can have so much stuff because the shops are so much bigger. Thank you for watching and for your comment!
Most if these things are European, not just Dutch. You gotta love Europe ♥
That's very true!
Actually I am Belgain, I explained Belgium healthcare to an American recently. Wich is in most parts the same as in the netherlands. Hé told me it was communism! I can’t understand, why a lot of Americans don’t see the difference between: responsible social meseaures and communism ?