A wise man once said things are probably
different like all around the world and undoubtedly it has proven to be so. So today
we're going to look into one of the examples and we're going to explore the land below
sea level also known as the Netherlands. [ intro song ] Location. Kingdom of the Netherlands
is located in the northwestern Europe . It borders Germany on the east Belgium on
the south and the north sea on the northwest. The country is remarkably flat! Nearly a quarter
of its territory is below sea level. So there are large expanses of lakes, rivers and canals. The four
largest and most populated cities are Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht and the Hague. But at the moment
we're situated in a small city called Enschede! Even though it's small it's not different from
the rest. Old yet modern, diverse yet traditional Open-minded yet simple. The university of Twente is
a public technical university one of the greatest establishments located in the city. But within
25 minutes of biking from here is where i study Saxion University of Applied Sciences! Besides
that Enschede also has a main square, a Primark, the rijksmuseum, a couple of Albert
Heijns and Lidls and lots and lots of bikes. Oh and also an art school. Who are the
dutch? Let's look at their typical attributes. They are direct. - Yeah i know right!
- Yeah right, i also think so. Okay Erika this is your chance to make a
new friend you just had great small talk. they seem to like you they we have stuff in common. There's nothing to lose. I have some friends coming over
tonight to play some board game feel free to join? - Naa, I'm good Yeah, no worries it's fine it's okay don't worry, i'm not crying
you're crying. Decently punctual Let's go? Appointment driven. - Okay this was
fun when do you want to hang out again? - Uh let me check my agenda... Um i'm kind of busy do you want to do like friday afternoon lunch? - Oh okay um... - Yeah I think Friday works
for me. Often multilingual - I don't get it it's so useless - I can have a look for you So do you want it in french or Spanish or German or Dutch? Don't worry i can
translate it for you. And creative? Typical Dutch behaviors. what should we expect from
dutch culture and things to keep in mind. Greetings if you are on the street and eye contact was
made, a kind hello is most times expected. i'm so confused that i talked to him before? why did he say hi to me? Now
I feel really awkward by not saying hi When Dutch people meet for the first time, they
shake hands! the handshake should be made with the right hand and should be firm and short. Bikes! the Netherlands are known for biking. everywhere you go you will see bikes this is the number one
vehicle of transportation. But they do be stealing bikes here. So make sure to have a good lock on it. On average a dutch person has two bikes. one that's broken and needs to be fixed
and the other one that's replacing it. when you're biking it is very crucial to signal when you're turning. So here are the most common ways how to signal demonstrated by my lovely assistant Cristina. The casual. The low point. The finger gun. The high five. The wave. And the "i don't feel like it because there's no cars and
you're just a pedestrian, so if i run into you it's going to be your fault. " Big Windows. Most buildings and houses
have very big revealing windows. Sometimes as a foreigner it's difficult to
resist the urge to look inside when passing by. The weather. the dutch are pretty happy
especially when the weather is nice and sunny. But they also love to complain about it if
it's not because of how unpredictable it can be. Trains. You can go almost anywhere
in the Netherlands by train. almost. The train system here is great! except when the train gets delayed or there's construction or it suddenly stops. But it's okay who cares about
being late anyways. The Sirens. Every first Monday of the month at noon. The public warning sirens
are tested. The very first time i heard them i was peacefully at my desk doing homework and i didn't
know what to do or what on earth was happening but then exactly after 1 minute and 26 seconds it
stopped, so at least i warned you. This portion of the video is not sponsored by dopper. have you ever wanted to drink water? well in the Netherlands the water is safely drinkable from the tap. Moreover if you're looking to fit in with the Dutch, buy a dopper water bottle it comes
in different colors, it serves the purpose and also it turns into a little cup! filled up at home or in the streets. Food culture. Traditionally Dutch cuisine is simple and straightforward with many vegetables and little meat [because it's kinda expensive] Nevertheless the Netherlands
are well known for their: cheese, stroop waffles and the simplicity of having everything pre-cut and packaged or ready to be cooked like this soup! But they have lots more to discover. Such as the variety of fried frozen mysteries kroket, bitterballen, lekkerbekje? Fried cheese souffles, fried noodles, sandwiches? And some good old unfrozen oliebollen! Some honorable mentions are Licorice, pancakes big or small and peanut butter mmm peanut butter ehhh... When it comes to breakfast and lunch it is typically a very fragile bread with toppings such as cheese ham or sprinkles. While dinner is something like meat and potatoes with seasonal vegetables and on Thursdays is the
courage to be vegetarian. Traditions and events. The Dutch have accumulated many unique and not
so unique traditions and national holidays. And here are a few you might need to know. Sinterklaas. it is celebrated on the evening of December 5th. Especially with families with little children. It often involves gifts, carrots in shoes and many kinds of holiday treats. And the main man himself
Sinterklaas and the controversial black pete... King's day it's a bit of a confusing and
random holiday. Originally princess day was celebrated in holland on Wilhelmina's birthday 31st of august then the next queen Juliana, celebrated queen's day on the 30th of April. Then Beatrix also celebrated queen's day on 30th of April. While her own birthday was in January And now King William Alexander has followed this tradition. He was born on the 27th of April and this became the official king's day since 2014. Except if it's a Sunday then it's celebrated
on the preceding Saturday. The dutch go all out on this day wearing a lot of orange making a lot of noise and holding flea markets and parks and streets without requiring a permit? okay... Birthdays It all starts by putting up signs, balloons, posters to let your neighbors know that someone's having
a big birthday party this week. And on the big special day of the party guests will pull out their chairs make a nice and not so geometric circle and talk about everything and nothing Also keep an eye on these sprinkles for newborn babies Since there are many traditions and events
i'll probably won't be able to fit in all of them in this video so let's just
speed it up and look at my highlights Dauwtrappen. a lot of cycling are walking in a group on the
1st of May. Hanging backpacks on dutch flag to celebrate the passing of exams. The blooming tulip fields from March to May. Carnival. Carnivaal? Carnival. and redhead day? I think that's enough. This video summarizes the culture experience i gained while living in the Netherlands. i have spent quite some
time here making Dutch and international friends, visiting new places, discovering new hobbies and gaining new skills, so i have lots of memories attached to this place. And that's it bye! :)
