I have just come back from a long weekend in Holland. For a long time now, The Netherlands has been in pole position to be my favourite European country. What's not to like? It is one of the greenest countries in the world. The men are extremely easy on the eye ... they are gorgeous and fit from all that cycling and swimming. And the women are not bad either:) On a serious note, not that that wasn't also a serious note, the Dutch are some of the most pleasant people I have come across. I go there a lot with Kush, and it always strikes me how much they like kids. And the country is flatter than a pancake squashed by a bulldozer into the size of a postage stamp, but how lovely is it? Amsterdam is an edgy city that feels like a city without being overwhelming. Den Haag is laid back, surprisingly so considering that it is the "world city of justice". Everything is close to everything else, in one day, you can have breakfast in Amsterdam, coffee in Haarlem, lunch in Delft, dessert in Leiden, tea in Den Haag, dinner in Rotterdam and a midnight snack back in Amsterdam. The architecture is perfect for the country. The people are outward looking ... it always strikes me that such a small country managed to influence the course of history in Africa and Asia. Even now, long after the glory days of the Dutch East India Company, the Dutch punch way above their weight in international relations, and are generous in their development aid. The Dutch government is a big funder of the organisation that I work for in Geneva, and I particularly love the agency Hivos which funds arts and culture projects in developing countries.
Then there is the art ... I have written before of my love for the artists of the Dutch golden age. I am therefore really happy because I have been offered an incredible opportunity to spend two months in Amsterdam next year, going through all the museums in Amsterdam and beyond and tracing and writing about the presence of Africa and Asia in the work of the artists of the golden age. So I get to spend time in Holland, and I get to write about art. How cool is that??
2 comments:
You are spot on, Petina. I have been to the Netherlands twice on business and each time has been very pleasant. The people are polite and very friendly.
Based on my brief stint in the country, I wuld say they are the least racist country I have personally know. The Dutch that I have met seem to take to heart that adminition by Martin Luther King Junior to the effect that it is not the colour of the skin but the content of a person character that matters.
In business meetings, they listen to what you have to say without scowling. In a country I will not name, I have had the hilarious experience of some first-year university students on industrial placement scowling at me and feebly challange me. In corridors, new colleagues, and not particularly bright, initially mistake you for a janitor. I never experienced that in the Netherlands. On that account alone, I really love the Dutch.
The whole country has wonderful appearance of a well-manicured lawn. There is no dog poo on walkways, no rowdy drunkards or yobs terrorizing neighbourhoods. It is a very pleasant country.
Envy you your experience.Thanks for the info and do have a splendid stay.
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