Europe 2001: A Travelogue
More Comments from Adam
17 September 2001, 12:57 p.m.
I thought I would spend some time as well musing on Rotterdam and our new location. I am sending this to Monica as well so that she can edit, add, or whatever and post all this on our Website for the world to see. First, I will talk about terrorism and the European reaction, then about differences I see between the U.S. and the Netherlands, and finally (probably tomorrow) about some of our weekend activities and what I learned from them.
First, to the topic that is consuming us all: the terrorist attack. I have been really overwhelmed (positively) by the sensitivity of the Dutch and of all the international students at RSM. A few representative incidents:
1. On the day of the disaster, many of the students were gathered in a room downstairs where they were broadcasting live coverage of the devastation. I burst into tears from shock when I saw the footage. Afterwards, so many people inquired after my wellbeing that I was almost embarrassed at the outpouring of good feelings. Of course, young people connected to the financial community are a prime source of folks who will know people who lost their lives, and the sense of community solidarity here has been really impressive.
2. Last Friday, I went to visit Monica in Leiden to tour around that area and to meet her officemates. I arrived at Centraal Station (Central Station) in Rotterdam by tram at noon and saw that there was a train at 12:05 p.m. to Leiden. I went to buy tickets, only to find the office closed, and the woman outside saying, "Tree minuten." I wondered what was going on; everything in the ordinarily bustling station seemed to be stopped. Then I remembered that the entirety of Europe paused for three minutes to remember the fallen in America. It was eerie but also beautiful in its own way. Apparently, even the trains stopped for this event. All was silent, and the people seemed truly reflective and not at all annoyed or impatient. At the end, an announcement declared that the time was up, and everything continued its usual bustle.
3. This Sunday, Monica and I were sitting in a restaurant lobby (good Thai food!) waiting for a table. A nice couple there struck up a conversation, and, when they found out that we were American, inquired as to the health of our friends and expressed their regrets. As is typically the case with the Dutch, they are of indeterminate foreign descent (probably Turkish). In expressing their sympathies, however, they were just folks. Anyone who says the Dutch are reserved and passionless have never lived here for longer than a week, I think.
Next, to the topic of difference.
What is difference, exactly, you ask? Well, I have come to realize that the Vincent Vega character says it all in Pulp Fiction: "You know what's funny about Europe? It's all the little things."
Little differences include:
- the fact that stalls in the bathroom go all the way down to the floor, so you can't pass toiletpaper between stalls...
- the fact that bathroom stalls are all white...
- the fact that public transportation is ubiquitous and cars are tiny...
- people's significant investment in friends and activities and insignificant devotion to work...
- the agrarian nature of the suburbs, complete with cows, sheep, and canals between the fields...
- the ever-present windmills, 800 of which have apparently been preserved...
- the erotic shop on the corner of our apartment and the generally relaxed attitude about sex...
- the universally-present "shoarma" shops (just like it sounds, shwarma) with the identical presentation of friend food in the window...
- the belief that fries should be served with mayonaise or curry sauce...
- the really bad selection in the grocery...
- the fact that few places take credit cards (they all take ATM cards, but we don't have a European account that works with it, so we have to pay cash a lot)...
- the multiculturalism of this country...
- the open-air markets...
- and the often really intensely bad cooking.
I think I have a much better sense of the Netherlands after having lived here. For one thing, no Dutch people use umbrellas. Even in a torrent, you are unlikely to see a local pop open an umbrella. It's not that it doesn't rain heavily here (although mostly it just dribbles). It does rain heavily. But it rains so much that most Dutch people, in our friend Doreen Pinkus' statement, "just ignore it and always forget their umbrella anyway." Monica comments that this fact explains why bad hair seems to be the predominant fashion of the day here.
We are getting used to apartment life - in particular, the fact that we have no stove and a very small fridge, which I understand is very common around here. The Dutch seem to eat out a lot, although most of the restaurants are in one central downtown area. They have pretty good ethnic food here, but we have struck out with the Chinese restaurants so far. Next on our list is Turkish and Indian restaurants.
I have heard people say that the Dutch are very direct, and I have seen evidence of it here. Several times, I have seen people arguing heatedly with service businesses, for instance, which I understand is not considered fighting here but is rather considered debating politely. Folks seem polite but not overly effusive until you get to know them a bit. I have also seen a lot of truth in the jokes the Dutch make about the fact that they "eat lunch at noon, dinner at six, watch television at 7:30 and are in bed by 9:30." When Monica and I hit a lunch restaurant at noon, there is inevitably a line, but if we arrive at 12:45, we are likely to be the only ones ordering (everybody else is done and having coffee).
Monica and I decided yesterday that Rotterdam is not nearly as "soulless" a city as people around here think it is. Sure, the architecture is 1950's and not that beautiful (although you should check out some of the cool bridges). Sure, the main center empties out in the evenings. We think the real life of the city, however, is the ethnic diversity that is ever-present. My advertising class says that the diversity and English proficiency is what makes the Netherlands a preferably jumping off point for European marketing expansion (preferred over the UK). I tend to agree.
I have also definitely noticed that the Dutch are more individualistic and less structured than elsewhere (as advertised). People wander across the street or perch wherever they want in whatever state of dress or undress desired. There is an underlying social cohesiveness that is based on the love/hate relationship with the government services, but I sense that people put up with some socialist inconveniences in part becaseu of the relaxed atmosphere. The Netherlands is also proof to me that economically balanced socialism works in a multicultural country.
Okay, I gotta run to class. More later. Hope this was interesting.