The Netherlands has become one of my favourite destinations. Steve’s work takes him there regularly and I’ve tagged along to a few different centres. Amsterdam is busy, eclectic, and energizing. Rotterdam is modern and smart, Delft is adorably charming, and Utrecht offers a mix of it all. I’m actively fantasizing about spending several months in this fantastic country. In the meantime, here are five things I noticed in the Netherlands that make me want to live there.

5 Things I Noticed in the Netherlands

The Bikes! – A healthy, active lifestyle

Coming from a prairie winter city that is struggling to embrace cycling culture, experiencing the “bike-first” environment of the Netherlands makes me tear up.

Until you’ve visited, it’s hard to appreciate what a bike-first culture looks like. Depending on the city you visit, 36-45% of citizens use a bicycle as their primary mode of transportation. The infrastructure for cyclists is remarkable with dedicated bike paths everywhere that often given priority to cyclists over motor vehicles. Cycling is just a very efficient way to get around.

And I LOVE the bikes. There are family-style bikes that are the equivalent of the station wagon with multiple baby seats and ample storage; there are beautiful commuting bikes, delivery bikes, and every other variation.

Most everyone speaks English

I am always a bit embarrassed to reveal that I’m essentially unilingual. I can speak survival French, but otherwise, I depend heavily on Google Translate when travelling. About 90% of the Dutch speak conversational English. Really good English – with a barely detectable accent to the North American ear.

Locals will say their excellent English speaking is due in good part to the country’s decision to forego dubbing English-language TV and movies into Dutch. All programming is in the original language with Dutch subtitles. They will then point out that Germany took the dubbing route and that is why English is not as common or spoken as well in that country. Whether that’s the reason or not, undeniably, the Netherlands is very easy for English speakers.

People are straightforward and transparent

Just as Canadians are said to be polite and endlessly accommodating, the stereotype of the Dutch is that they are exceptionally blunt. In my experience, there does seem to be a value of transparency and straightforwardness in the culture. It can be a bit off-putting at first, but it’s a lot more honest and effective. To be clear, no one is rude or insulting, just plain speaking.

For example, I took a class Steve was teaching on our last trip and I was in a group composed entirely of locals. We had to do a role-playing exercise and in a debrief afterwards, one of the participants suggested he handled the position he was given in a way that ended up suppressing contributions from the rest of the group. This was accurate in my opinion, but I just smiled weakly and tilted my head in an awkward “perhaps” expression.

One of the Dutch group members immediately stated that indeed, the fellow was acting in a way that inhibited the others in the group and then gave a couple of examples. The two nodded in agreement and we moved on. Wow! That would never happen in a group of Canadians—we’d be afraid of hurting someone’s feelings or at best would say something positive first and then get to the critique. Then, we’d apologize.

The transparent nature of the culture is also evident in the way you rarely see drawn blinds or curtains in the windows of residents. The way many homes directly border the sidewalk on the street (no yard or lawn), pedestrians often have a full view of someone’s living space. I’ve walked by people sitting in their living rooms, in their underwear, eating snacks and watching TV with their feet up. They were about two feet away from me!

I’m not ready to embrace that kind of openness myself, but I do like the idea of that kind of openness.

Amazing men’s shoes

Regular readers know that Steve has a shoe problem passion. The shoe selection in the Netherlands is why Steve will never refuse a business trip there. Women’s shoes in the Netherlands are not that much different from those I’ve found elsewhere, but the men’s shoes are distinctive. If you like flashy shoes, the Netherlands is the place to shop.

Easy access to other countries

Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam is one of the airports with the most direct flights in the world. Couple that with the excellent train service in Europe and weekend getaways to an array of fun destinations are easy.

Virtually anywhere we want to visit other than a handful of cities involve connecting flights out of Winnipeg. In my fantasy life in the Netherlands, we’d be visiting someplace new every week.

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