With the curtains open you can see from the room who is stealing your bike.🧐

Poes has a double meaning in Dutch too, but we don't make a big deal out of it. Because it doesn't sound foul to us in any way. Never new it is perceived like that in Afrikaans. And for the sarcasm, I think you didn't encounter the right people yet, Dutch people can be pretty sarcastic, it's just not for everyone.

When I walk around in other countries and find every house firmly locked often including metal safety curtains (France, Germany) in front of the windows I feel very unsafe on the streets. Being able to see people whilst your out on the streets especially at night gives me assurence.

7:27 There’s also the reverse of the cause and effect that’s usually mentioned. The dutch transparency between inside and outside spaces, also means that people inside are aware of what happens outside and those with ill intent will know themselves observed. In this way Dutch streets are an extension of people’s living rooms. More so than in most other places I have been to. In other words: being safe outside in the Netherlands is partly a result of people not keeping everything shut and themselves invisible.

Sarcasm, we love it. You just bumped into a grumpy guy.

You should watch 'Jiskefet' (meaning 'garbage bin' in Friesian) if you're interested in Dutch humour, whatever that may mean. A couple of my favourite Jiskefet sketches are 'Prostitutie op het platteland', 'Humor op het platteland', and 'Ons genoegen'. Great video by the way. You've given me some interesting insights!

Hearing the Afrikaans language is like music to my ears. Keep talking it. Very nice video. Thanks for sharing your experiences here.

Het lekker gelag want dis so herkenbaar. Wat my na 20 jaar nog steeds 'surprise' is dat mensen hulle groente/eiers/fruit langs die pad sit met n potjie waar jy geld in gooi en vat/koop wat jy nodig het. In die aand kom hul dan die geld en oorgeblewe goed weer vat tot die volgende keer. So nice.

Heb zelf in mijn jeugd in Zuid/Afrika met plezier gewoond...prachtig land en jammer van de onveiligheid. Heb ook nog de Tafelberg beklommen op me 12ejaar....Zeeland heeft het meeste zonuren van Nederland....fijne dag

Loved this video! As a Dutchie it makes me realize (again) that being safe is such a privilege. It gives as the space and time to actually think about mundane things or other priviliged things such as how to spend/to save our money best. Also, loved Zuid Afrika, such a beautiful country.

That's a lot of shocks, miss Barnard. A shocking amount.

Thanks for pointing out the normal things we almost take for granted… we should appreciate them (more)… and very nice you ended in Afrikaans… wouldn’t mind if you share some live experiences from South Africa… always nice to hear what happens in other parts of the world.

Hello Marté, thank you so much for this video. Good to hear you like it that much. I really hope it'll stay like that, because of being Dutch and having lived my whole life here, todays Netherlands isn't anymore as it used to be. But for you coming from South Africa I can imaginaire it's a huge difference, for instantie the feeling of walging alinea in a park. I rally hope both of you are gonna like it overhere. And now, up to learning Dutch. Maybe it shouldn't be that difficult because you speak Afrikaans. Have a nice day. Een fijne dag. Groeten Henk. P.S. I also luve in Brabant. Lovely province .

Living in Brabant is a good life. More relaxed than in the busy Randstad. Yes, the Dutch are happy to show their interiors, but if you want to visit the people living there, you need to make an appointment two months in advance.😂 Directness... coconut culture! Enjoy the Netherlands🎉

If going for a walk during the day surprises you, you will be surprised how many women walk or bike around at night.

Het kinderliedje: Poesje mauw, is met een puberaal brein zeer dubbel. Poesje mauw, kom eens gauw. Ik heb lekkere melk voor jou.

Out of 17.7 million people you manage to find the only one who doesn't speak sarcasm, that's very impressive!

Hey Marté, enjoying your vlogs very much. You’ll get used to the Dutch ways and in the long run you’ll adapt. In fact language wise we’re not that different, but cultural we are. I have no problems understanding the Africaan language which is pretty much old Dutch😊

Maar droge humor en sarcasme zijn nou net twee vaste ingrediënten in Nederland ! 😊❤

Beste Marté, Dat was een hele leuke culture shock video. Je hebt al meer dan 300 likes dus ik ben benieuwd naar de volgende video! Vriendelike groete, René

You are right. I live on the north west coast and we get a lot of rain

Double meanings, well, if you are not carefull you can't stop laughing because you say something, normally quite innocent, it can have a double meaning, you can have so much fun with it!!!over nothing strange, just an innocent sentence. 😂😂😂😂. Thanks, i loved your reaction! Tot ziens en groetjes vanuit het dorp Klaaswaal in de Hoeksche waard, niet zo ver weg van Brabant, de provincie Zuid Holland. Bye!!!

It was fun looking at this clip. Ill send it to my SA friends and will hear what they say about it;-))

Dan zou ik maar geen tompoes (tompouce) eten 😂

I have an Rwandese friend and once we talked about the difference of thinking ahead in Rwanda or Europe. Africans don't think ahead that much, a week is far ahead. But if you live in a climate where it freeze -10 C for weeks in a row, you better think ahead and collect some firewood. That's why we think different.

Like your video very much, and poes 😂😂

That app to inform people of the cheapest moment to use electricity has a purpose: to lessen the peak load on the electrical grid. At times the grid is near its max capacity, so we currently can not add new users to it. If people were to spread the load and lessen the peaks, we could add new businesses that are waiting to be connected. Most dutchies will directly understand more than 75% of Afrikaans once they get used to the accent. I once heard Pik Botha on the news sometime in the seventies and ask my dad why an obviously powerful man would speak like a small child. Of course, I was a BIG boy at the time, who had learned to speak properly. I must have been about 10 years old, which would put this in 1977. 🤣

Ik heb op mijn navigatie ook de taal op zuid Afrikaans staan. Het is echt een mooie taal. Neem op de cirkel de tweede afdraai. En aan het van die pad draai rechts. Groetjes uit Spakenburg, Nederland

Lovit! Asb maak 'n part 2

Like your video! Have some SA friends and co-workers and they feel mostly the same about our country.... I especially like the parts spoken in Afrikaans, as I really like the similarity to our dutch laguage but more authentic!

baie baie mooi, dankie voor de video

😄 leuke video. Mooi om te horen hoe je tegen Nederland en de Nederlanders aankijkt.

Quite counterintuitively, the driest and sunniest places in NL, are directly at the coast. Clouds collect and rain out after that. Say some 10 -50 kms inland. There can be huge daily differences, but on a whole I'd say that the similar North to South is more or less similar. There is a distinct difference between coast and the East. That said, it has been raining mostly non-stop from last October until a few weeks ago. Exceptional. We have weather. Not climate.

Ons imigreer enkhuizen toe noord holland, dankie vir die deel

Interesting you found the Dutch weather better than expected, since we just had the most rain in history from sep 23 to march 24 :) this wasn't normal even for Dutch standards

4:31 Amsterdam-Antwerp, twice the distance, has a difference in altitude which leads to 15 minutes difference in sunset time. No you do not get significantly more sun. In the long year average it is possible to mesure a slight difference between regions, but you can not feel it because the randomeness of the weather.

I like the Dutch directness - perhaps, because I am from neighboring Germany 😀.

The most sunny region in the Netherlands is the southwest (Zeeland), it gets approximately 2050 sun hours a year, whereas the east of the country gets like 1750 hours a year.

Specific execution of sarcasm seems to be fairly culturally grounded, and especially when using second languages it is lesser perceived. But many people do love sarcasm (of course many also don't). I'm sure you'll get plenty of fun moments in the future, I'd just be careful initially. Dutch sarcasm I think is very tone based, rather than a deadpan delivery.

poes is actually sometimes used with a bit of the same meaning here, but seen as more old fashioned and not as vulgar.

welkom to the Netherlands how you have a good life here oo and dont worry we do have sarcasm here :P

When I hear the word SHOCKS I aways thing it is negatief ....... But I am glad that they almost all of them are positive,

I had Spanish relatives over and they were surprised too that they could look into the houses, that's not usual in Spain.

lol imagine hearing the neighbour calling the cat to come home. Poes, poes, poes, poes, poes! Poes is also a word for lady parts in the Netherlands. fyi.

About the weather: the difference are the rivers. I lived in Maastricht and every time I went to Utrecht or Amsterdam I was freezing the whole day. (Because I keep forgetting to take something warm with me). The windows without curtains is a centuries old tradition. There are two explanations. The first one is that people wanted to show of their wealth. The second is that in this Calvinistic country, people wanted to show they had nothing to hide. And about sarcasm, that’s also different above the rivers. In the randstad people can be very sarcastic. When I moved back from Maastricht, it took some time to get accustomed to it again.

Regarding Dutch thrift, the former CEO of one South Africa's banks, a Dutch citizen, 9ne described Dutch people as being like a Scotsmen with his generosity removed.

ok . baaie dankie voor de complimenten . . . Ik ben Hollander dus ik ben ook 'direct'. . . . : Noem in een volgende video a.u.b. alleen negatieve kanten van ons land zodat de stroom (werk, school, politieke, etc ) immigranten, een klein beetje gaat afnemen zodat de 6 hierboven genoemde punten in stand kunnen blijven . . .

On the contrary, I find the Afrikaanse words far more direct, like an elevator is a 'hysbak' (hijsbak). In Dutch a 'hijsbak' is an elevated platform for window washers or construction workers. I had a good laugh, when I heard the word 'skootrekenaar' (laptop) for the first time 🙂

Congrats on getting a bike stoien, you are now officially Dutch! And don't worry about peeking into homes, the curtains are open for a reason after all!

Uhh my curtains are definitely closed!! 😉

Its very simple,as your bike is stolen, you steel also a bike back .😅

Go out fot a bike ride on Ameland, Terschelling etc.. by nice weather.

I'm Belgian living in the Netherlands. Efficiency isn't a topic I can agree upon. When I had to register in cityhall it was so hectic. For my wife (who is from Taiwan) is more paperwork. In belgium we have it all digital. The only benefit is that they take English as a legal language which in belgium can Dutch, french and German

Sarcasm is mostly done (A LOT) between friends, not a lot to a stranger..... because you might not know/like the reaction....

From experience, expats and energy bills are an unfortunate combination. Most in the world are unable to fathom how high energy costs are in The Netherlands, not adjusting their usage habits, resulting to massive massive annual bills.

I am form Indonesia ❤ Nederland

Kat and poes can both be used, kater is explicitly male, poes is often female. Poes is often used with the diminutive poesje, for larger cats people are more included to use kat. There's absolutely a double entendre there, but as other double entendres, the context is leading.

Welcome home 😅

Yes the south gets more sun I think. Greetings from the deep South ( Limburg )

12p joost klein Nederlandse ❤🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

Ah, that leaving that phone in the aisle, don't try to replicate it. We absolutely have opportunistic thieves here was well. I once forgot my handbag on a shopping cart. When I got back to the store, my bag was handed over to the supermarket staff, but not before taking out my wallet and phone. And the weather, I have decided recently to go against the grain, and love our ever changing weather. I got so sick of the constant complaints, in particular on social media. Historically it is indeed to show you have nothing to hide, but it certainly also has to do with wanting as much as possible natural light in our houses. Sarcasm is certainly a dialect here as well, but probably it might be that your sarcasm just didn't land with him.

😁 Have you gone sailing yet? Learned what a jib is in Dutch?

'Peeping in' as you walk past is something different then 'stop and stare' You are ok with peeping in

Like your sarcasm - I presume the shop assistant just had an off day.

Aha a new Brabander, welcome !!!

just wait until someone says someone was ´poeslief´

Lol I'm from a region a little bit north of Brabant and in Brabant they canNOT handle the level of directness that is common in our province. Let alone the directness from even norther regions 😂

I say it once more: windows are for the inhabitants to look out and to let light in. NOT for outsiders to look in !. 😉

2nd point (Safety), has a lot to do with community or sense of belonging. There are parts of the Netherlands that are less safe than others but as a whole people aren't trying to better themselves at the cost of others. Also I know that there is a lot of talk about bike theft online, but I was born and raised in the Netherlands. Have never lived anywhere else longer than 6 months and never lost my bike.... This most likely also is related to the community u live in. Sarcasm is used often but much, much more between family member, friends, acquittances and colleagues. As for language, I was curious if it would pop-up. Afrikaans is a derivative of Dutch so many words/sounds should be familiar to u. Poes = cat but indeed also vagina or pussy, it all depends on context. I hope u are settling in nicely in this beautiful little country

On the topic of words I was surprised that the word ‘kaffer’ is seen as such a foul word in ZA (and could even get you into legal trouble) whereas here if someone really messes up big time it is not unheard of to say ‘What een kaffer!’.

The poes thing took some getting used to 🙂

4 fun deals use social deals❤

😊

A "poes" is a female cat, Its also the female part of a women. You know, down there!

💯 💯 💯 😎😎😎

4:19 brabant here also actualy north brabant the eindhoven region

i know at least three families that moved here coz of the insucerity in their homeland of South Africa.

The Netherlands had and Russian caused energy crisis in 2022 with energy prizes quadrupeling and some people in poorly insulated house actually needing to sit with blankets in the winter because they could not heat their house over 15 or 16 degrees celsius. Prizes have dropped back most of the way but the goverment has increased energy taxes on gas so that stays very expensive (at 1.25 euro/ m3) . So saving on energy is really a big thing since 2022.

🤘😊

😀 A lot of Dutch are sarcastic also, but when you do business thenat we tend to be more serious. I think that happened to you in that time. Money is a serious business. 😉 "Poes" has a double meaning, but we tend to use different words to swear. Also, different regions in the Netherlands have different swearwords.

I am Dutch and in my opinion sarcasm DOES work but mostly with people you already know.... Apply sarcasm to strangers you get a weird look much more often....

Your idea about hours of sun is incorrect 😬 The west coast gets considerably more hours or sun than anywhere else in the country, can be up to 40%. The reason is that there is less obstruction for the sun to hide behind, apart from the ocean and that is. Also due to the presence of the ocean it gets less cold in winter and less warm in summer.

TOP

😁

There is another saying "Trust in God, but lock your bike." (Vertrouw op God, maar zet je fiets op slot.)

🙂

😂

Afrikaans voor knipperlicht is flikkerlig, erg onfortuinlijk voor Nederlanders :D

Very interesting. Sarcasm is not in line with Dutch directness. Saying what you mean leads to the best results.

Sound is very inconsistent when switching to your videos outside. You might want to check (yes I am Dutch 😂)

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Poes in Dutch means (among other things) female cat Poes in Afrikaans means teef in Dutch (according to google translate) Teef in Dutch means female dog in English strange it goes from female cat to female dog in two translations?

🌹🥰👌🏻🍀🍀🍀

I like to watch outside if I’m inside.

sarcasm abundant here.... just depends on who you met probably.

😄

About the open curtains, a common explanation goes back to our calvenist past. Showing off wealth was vain and a sin, you're not supposed to do that. But other people looking into your home and see your wealth? That's on them, not on you. It was a way to show off wealth and feel spiritually pure. It certainly had tracking in the northwest, the Randstad region for example. Undoubtedly there other factors at play, good natural light, the idea of having nothing to hide, low crime, etc. But I do think the theory of showing off wealth is credible. Sarcasm though, we're pretty fluent in. But perhaps the social rules differ a bit of when it's appropriate. Or perhaps there was a mismatch between your delivery and their mindset, who knows. Humor can be hard to parse at the best of times. But sarcastic routines is 100% a known commodity in Dutch humor.

Hoekom word Engels gepraat en nie in mooie Suid Afrikaans nie?

😁 great video! With all that's going on here politically I wish more people would watch videos about our country through foreigner's eyes.

Most sun you’ll get in Zeeland, but that’s next to Brabant. Also een Nederlander versta Ek net genoeg afrikaans om jou te verstaan. So 😊❤