Driving in the Netherlands: Part 1

This week I had a business trip to the North of the country with a few colleagues. The plan was to rent a car, drive there in the afternoon, and then go directly home afterward. I live at the southernmost tip of the country so my options were either have them drop me off at a train station and take the train the rest of the way or drop them off and drive the rental car myself. I have never driven here so I would have preferred the first option but there is currently construction on the train tracks that would have caused major delays. Thus I chose the second option and requested an automatic transmission. No point in making it harder than it needs to be the first time you drive in a foreign country, I thought. Unfortunately the car rental company took that as a preference rather than a necessity and gave us a manual transmission anyway. My colleague drove us to the meeting and then on the way back he gave me a refresher course on driving a manual transmission at a rest stop. Things were looking pretty bad until we figured out I was trying to start in third gear instead of first. After that it went a lot better and we set off on a not-too-busy piece of highway. The best part about highways is that there is no need to shift gears! He was a super-good, patient teacher. I’m sad that parents are not allowed to teach their children to drive here because he would be such a good teacher for his daughters. It was like he could anticipate exactly what I was about to do wrong and calmly explain how not to make a mistake in time to prevent it. Next time I complain about Dutch people, someone remind me about this.

-Nancy

Autumn in the Netherlands

For some peculiar reason, daylight savings time ends one week earlier here than in the US so we have a peculiar time offset until Sunday. Now it is light out on my way to work but the sun sets before I leave the office. We are down to 10 hours of light per day and it is only October. I have started taking a vitamin D supplement but I think it is going to be a rough winter for me. However, right now it is beautiful and sunny and warm with gorgeous autumn colors.

The courtyard of our apartment building.

-Nancy

Fietsparadijs Limburg: Commuting

I think that Hendrik already mentioned that we live in a bicycling paradise in the context of weekend rides. It is also fantastic in the context of commuting to work by bicycle. Almost every road has a bike lane (the red lane pictured below). The bike lanes are clearly marked (lines + a different color of pavement), are really only for bikes, cars can’t park there, and sometimes there is even a median between the bike lane and the lanes for cars.

The Dutch drivers are very respectful and mindful of cyclists, presumably not only because there are tough penalties for hitting a cyclist but also because most Dutch people are first and foremost cyclists and then drivers, not just practically speaking but also as part of their cultural identity.

My commute to work involves cycling (5 min) + train (25 min) + cycling (15 min). I have a folding bicycle, which I can take on the train with me as “luggage.” I have nice bike paths for almost the entire route, including through the chemical plant and when I do have to go on small roads with no separate bike lanes, the cars are always respectful. The photos are both from my commute. It is almost the perfect setup, except when it rains…

The Cycling Dutchman: How Many?

Today, we address the important question: How many people can you transport on one bicycle?

According to our observations the answer is three adults or one adult and three children (assuming no extra trailers being pulled, which is obviously cheating).

We often see bicycles with one rider and one person riding side-saddle style on the luggage rack, but yesterday we saw a bicycle with one fully grown rider, one fully grown adult on the back luggage rack and one fully grown adult sitting on the handle bars facing backwards. The bicycle was rolling along over a cobblestone road at a stable, speedy clip as though it were all perfectly normal. I was impressed as I would consider any one of those things (front passenger, rear passenger, cobblestones) to be an advanced cycling skill, not to mention how could the riders see where they were going?

A for the bicycle with one adult and three children, this requires two children’s seats, one on the front and one on the back as well as a hands-free wrap-style carrier for the baby. When I asked a Dutch person about this, I was assured that as soon at the baby was old enough to sit upright, the mother would likely add a second rear child’s seat to her bike.

In conclusion, the Dutch can fit more children on one bicycle than Americans can fit in a mini van!

Like a Dr. Seuss book

It feels like a weekly occurrence that I see a new, preposterous vehicle meant for a very specific purpose in this city. Here is the latest:

This is allowing him to wash the underside of the building, as well as the 20 foot columns. Maastricht has an army of people, busy doing tasks like this that I’d never even thought of. As a result the city is bustling and clean in a strange way.

-Hendrik

Our First Conversation in Dutch

Last night we had our first proper conversation in Dutch! We were both in Utrecht because Hendrik was teaching and I had a training course on polymer rheology. My course ended early so we went out for drinks with a few of my colleagues to a Belgian bar in an old church.

After drinking a trippel, I got up the courage to practice Dutch and we had a conversation that was at least 50% in Dutch and I understood at least 50% of what was said in Dutch! Hendrik understood even more! We are quite proud of ourselves.

Bespeel Mij

About a month ago, a grand piano appeared in the train station with a sign, “Bespeel mij, play me.” Ever since, the station has been filled with music ranging from questionable to high quality, all with their own charm. I go through the station every day and there has hardly been a time with no one playing.

This morning there was an eight year old girl playing Für Elise. Even though she could barely reach the pedals, she played beautifully and was certainly better than I was even after eleven years of lessons. Luckily I was traveling with Hendrik so we were there 15 min early (as opposed to my habit of arriving as the train pulls in) so we had time to stop and listen.

Last Thursday, we had dinner with my colleagues in Geleen and did not get back to the Maastricht station until 11:30 pm so I didn’t really expect anyone to be playing. We were traveling with another American and as the three of us walked into the station, we heard the opening notes of none other than the Star Spangled Banner. It was surreal hearing that music in a foreign train station in the middle of the night after being away from the US for so long.

I love having the piano at the station and the endless surprises it brings. Maybe some day if the station is abandoned I will see if I still remember how to play a C scale.