The Undutchables..

Lately, I've noticed I've been getting away from the concept at hand- as much as I want you all to know what I'm doing here in Holland whether it be venting or partying, I also want to tell you more about the country, things that still baffle me day to day, the dutch people.. etc. When I first arrived here, I had no idea what to expect as far as Dutch culture and the people were concerned- let's be serious, assuming that all dutch smoke pot, wear clogs and hang out at windmills is just ignorant- just like assuming that all Americans eat shit food, are overly loud, overly complimentary, and college parties are always topless and with kegs.. It's amazing the stereotypes that follow a culture from place to place.. After 5 months (TODAY) I can honestly say that I am as perplexed about the Dutch as I was the minute I walked off the plane.. Who are these people? My friend Kristian and I recently had a conversation about superiority. To my dutch friends: this is no way insulting any of you, you know I love you all- its to the random guys that I meet at bars who are arrogant, smug, and superior. But I think that is the life lesson that is instilled to the Dutch, they can be ANYTHING, they can do ANYTHING, they can go ANYWHERE.. For instance, on the T.V, the actors are mediocre at best- I see more gorgeous people walking down the street in a five minute span than any of the people on dutch shows or movies. The dutch are taught multiple languages- dutch fluently, mostly english fluently, german, french, latin, etc.. They are usually extremely active- hockey, football (soccer), rugby, etc. They are cultural- they go to Croatia, Greece and Spain on Spring Break.. One of my pet peeves is this though- I am currently "attempting" to learn dutch- and it is extremely difficult because we pronounce all of the letters different, for instance, instead of je it would sound like ye.. So when I'm asked to try to speak the language, there should be some room for a few mistakes. All night long I listen to these guys go on and on about their english, and I help them, and correct them, never making them feel bad or laughing at them. However, if I try to speak their language, and its not 100% correct- game over. It's obnixous and frustrating to be criticized when I just spent the last 2 hours listening to you screw up my lanugage without a word. As far as practicing dutch with the kids, or with my friends- I know there I won't have to feel inferior.

Another interesting topic is the Police.. not too long ago, I was driving with Kristian to Tapuit and was asked to go through a checkpoint. Those of you from America know how that can be, whether you've done something wrong or not, a feeling of dread always comes over me- "license, registration, blah, blah,blah"... So, I pull into the line, the police officer speaks in dutch, which I reply in dutch that I speak english.. he says that he wants me to blow into the machine without even asking for an ID or registration for the car. I hadn't had anything to drink, so he congratulates me on being a safe driver- and hands me a B.O.B keychain with a big smile, wishing me a pleasant evening. WTF. When is the last time the American Police gave you anything other than a slap on the wrist, a ticket, or a bunch of attitude. Likewise, I went to pick up my cousin from the airport after our Dublin fiasco.. I was asked to move to the side of the arrivals and 6 police officers come over to the car- needless to say I was a little freaked out.. they asked me to get out of the car for security purposes that they were doing random searches for drugs and weapons. At that time, I had just gotten back from Dublin- my passport was at home, NC drivers license had been stolen (lost?) in Ireland and the only other form of picture I.D that I had was my dutch gym card, and my college id.. they didn't even flinch. No drugs, no guns, no problem- have a great day! They always seem to be there just when you need them, whether it be breaking up a random fight at the end of the night in Haarlem- but they never seem to harass or bother you, simply do their job and let you go on your way.. Bravo Dutch Police.

Busy week, Eva is in the States for a conference in Sunny California while I'm in dark and dreary Holland (I'm a tad bit jealous..) My dear friend Marichen is leaving to go back to South Africa on Thursday and I will miss her terribly- one last soiree at Tapuit where we started it all on Tuesday night.. I hope we can compose ourselves without it being an overly drunk and emotional evening.. god knows we've had enough of those. Just a few more weeks and I will be in London- so excited! Planning on seeing as much of the Museums, and touristy attractions as I can- meeting up with my good friend Kaitlyn and her british boyfriend Ashley, and hopefully seeing Lucy and Thomas McAfee and the newest and coolest addition to the McAfee family, Trace. C'mon Feb. 22nd!!