PhD Talk for AcademicTransfer: 20 things you need to do when living in the Netherlands

This post is part of the series PhD Talk for AcademicTransfer: posts written for the Dutch academic career network AcademicTransfer, your go-to resource for all research positions in the Netherlands.

These posts are sponsored by AcademicTransfer, and tailored to those of you interested in pursuing a research position in the Netherlands.

If these posts raise your interest in working as a researcher in the Netherlands, even better - and feel free to fire away any questions you might have on this topic!

This summer, I am focusing on topics related to moving to, living in and working in The Netherlands.
Why? To celebrate the release of FactCards.nl! On this website, you can find all information you need as a foreigner coming to do research in The Netherlands. And even for me, coming from neighbour country Belgium and speaking the same language (well, sort of...), those FactCards would have been really useful and could have saved me from a few headaches...

In this post, I share with you the 20 things I enjoyed most about my time in The Netherlands, and things that I still enjoy when I come back for my research stay during the summer.

1. Bike

Who needs a car if you can bike your commute? When you live in The Netherlands, one of the first things you need to look for is a decent bike. Your bike doesn't need to be a shining new one, but you do want to have a bike that is right in size for you, and that has some gears to help you bike up hills/bridges. Get yourself some bike bags to transport your groceries on your bike, and you're ready to go!

2. Visit Keukenhof

If you are in The Netherlands during spring when the tulips are in bloom, you just need to go and visit Keukenhof. The wealth of flowers in and around the Bollenstreek is simply overwhelming. I just wish I'd gone more often during the years I was in The Netherlands (I did go 2 out of the 4 years I lived in Delft).

3. Visit Amsterdam

The iconic capital of The Netherlands has much more to offer than drugs and the red light district. It's a stunning city with beautiful architecture and charming canals. The museums are world class, there are plenty of great places for dining, sipping coffee and hanging out, and of course you need to enjoy the presence of the water everywhere.

4. Travel to the neighboring countries

The Netherlands is very well-connected to its neighboring countries. You can take the train right into Belgium, France or Germany, or take the boat to the United Kingdom (or connect in Brussels to the Eurostar train) (keep in mind that you might need an additional visa for visiting the UK!). Snatch a cheap flight on Ryanair or EasyJet and go explore another city somewhere in Europe. Enjoy it where you are there, in the center of Europe!

5. Buy yourself some flowers

Flowers are cheap in The Netherlands, so indulge and get yourself some flowers every now and then to freshen up your house. Tulips in spring, roses in the early summer - you might want to buy them from your city's market to get a great deal.

6. Swim in the North Sea

Ah, the North Sea - there is not a sea or ocean in the world that smells like the North Sea. It's not the beautiful Mediterranean sea, but there is nothing like walking on the empty beach in November or swimming in the very salty water of the North Sea. Enjoy a day at the beach, and enjoy all the attractions of the beach towns.

7. Sample international cuisine in Rotterdam

Rotterdam is the melting pot of the Netherlands. While Rotterdam might not have come out of the wars of the 20th century without wounds, it is arguably the city with the most modern feel of The Netherlands. Marvel at the highrises, then go sample some international cuisine - Rotterdam caters to all tastes.

8. Go to the Hoge Veluwe

The Veluwe feels far away from everything else in The Netherlands, and it makes for a perfect weekend getaway. Stay close to the national park, bike around the park and visit the Kröller-Müller Museum. Watch the wildlife and hills that are so distinctly different from the flat and mostly urban landscape of the rest of the Netherlands.

9. Sail

Head to Frisia, hit the lakes and sail - or learn to sail. Water sports are the most popular sports in The Netherlands during the summer. Head out for a day and sail the waters, feel the sun on your skin and the wind in your hair - sailing might be one of the most relaxing activities you can do.

10. Go to a summer festival

Europe and summer festivals - it's a match made in heaven. Chose a summer festival according to the style of music you like best, camp out and feel the unity in music while rocking out to one of your favorite bands.

11. Join a sports or hobby club to make friends

While making friends in The Netherlands might take a little more time than in other parts of the world, you can help your luck a little bit by joining a sports team, a music group or by singing up for evening classes.

12. Go watch a soccer game on a big screen

The Dutch go crazy when their national team plays - especially in the world cup or Eurocup. If it's a sunny game day, don't miss the atmosphere and go watch the game on a big screen. Have a beer and enjoy the orange madness.

13. Travel by boat or bike

The Netherlands are an excellent location for slow travel. Towns and cities are close to each other, so you don't need to worry about long stretches without shops or restaurants when you travel slowly. Travel by bike along the excellent biking facilities of The Netherlands, or travel by boat along the rivers and canals.

14. Walk in wooden shoes

Just because we need to throw in a little cliche here too: go for nostalgia and get yourself a pair of wooden shoes and walk around in them, reminiscing the old days.

15. See the windmills of Kinderdijk

Now that we're talking about the typical Dutch cliches, we can't miss the windmills of Kinderdijk. Maybe a little bit too much of a touristic location, but hey, you just need your picture with the windmills to show your family back home that you really are in The Netherlands.

16. "Terrasje doen" in summer

When the sun's out, you gotta join the locals and sit on the terrace of a pub with a beer or soft drink. It's called "terrasje doen" (doing a terrace), and we even talk about "terrasjesweer" (terrace weather - when the weather is good enough to sit outside).

17. "Gezellig" in winter

The days are dark and short during winter, so it's the perfect time of the year to cuddle up on the couch under a blanket or spend evenings playing board games and indoor grilling with friends - all of it at a slow pace, with smell of comfort food around. "Gezellig" we call it in Dutch, ad it loosely translates to "cosy", but it's much more than that - you need to experience it.

18. Fine dining in Brabant and Limburg

The Southern parts of the Netherlands are closer to the Burgundian Belgians, so they know more about good food and fine dining (not saying this because I am Belgian...). Maastricht is a lovely city in Dutch Limburg, close to Germany and Belgium, where food is plenty and delicious. The same goes for Brabant, famous for baked goods, such as Bossche Bollen, and more extensive meals than the rest of the country.

19. Take a mountain of sandwiches for lunch

How does lunch look like in The Netherlands (and often Belgium too)? Well, you take a loaf of bread, take at least 4 slices of them, and put something between two slices. You can for example put cheese between two slices of bread and you have one "dubbele boterham" (a sandwich). Jam is a popular choice for breakfast (yes, you can just do the same for breakfast).

20. Visit a spa

Did you know we call a spa a spa because of the city Spa in Belgium, a famous bathing place for the rich and famous? Spas in this part of the world a luscious experience, with pools and saunas to enjoy (absolutely something I miss when I am in Ecuador). Perfect for a cold winter days, to rejuvenate and heat up in a Finnish sauna.

PhD Talk for AcademicTransfer: 20 Things You Need To Know When Moving To The Netherlands

This post is part of the series PhD Talk for AcademicTransfer: posts written for the Dutch academic career network AcademicTransfer, your go-to resource for all research positions in the Netherlands.

These posts are sponsored by AcademicTransfer, and tailored to those of you interested in pursuing a research position in the Netherlands.

If these posts raise your interest in working as a researcher in the Netherlands, even better - and feel free to fire away any questions you might have on this topic!

This summer, I am focusing on topics related to moving to, living in and working in The Netherlands.
Why? To celebrate the release of FactCards.nl! On this website, you can find all information you need as a foreigner coming to do research in The Netherlands. And even for me, coming from neighbour country Belgium and speaking the same language (well, sort of...), those FactCards would have been really useful and could have saved me from a few headaches...

From my side, I'd like to give you an overview of 20 things you need to know when moving to The Netherlands:

1. Gratis

First Dutch word to learn! "Gratis" means "free", so you see it a lot in the supermarket: 10% gratis, 1+1 gratis, ...

2. Ride a bike

A bike is a useful and necessary means for transportation. Many people in The Netherlands bike their commute, and you surely should considering joining them when you move to The Netherlands - by the time you reach the office, you've had some exercise, and you'll feel refreshed and ready to start the day. Don't bike too slowly though, you'd be a bottleneck in the traffic.

3. University buildings have closing times

Unlike in the United States where most university buildings are open 24/7 if you have door access, the Dutch universities and laboratories typically have closing times for safety reasons. Don't try to break into the building on a Sunday, or stay at night past closing time... the guards will find you.

4. Start looking for housing early on

Finding affordable housing in The Netherlands can be quite a challenge, and I wrote a post about this topic for AcademicTransfer earlier on. Start looking for housing as soon as you can, and you will find something.

5. The Dutch are not misers, but they use their resources wisely

What I appreciate a lot about the Dutch, is that they use their resources wisely. In their neighboring countries, this might be seen as being stingy, but in reality they are not misers (and donating much more to charity than the Flemish!). As compared to Ecuador, I see much less excessive wealth in The Netherlands (luxury cars, houses with tons of antiques, ...). Sure they exist, and sure there are superwealthy neighborhoods in The Netherlands, but most people are not big fans of excessive spending on material goods. Calvinist spirit or something...

6. Bread makes a meal

You take two slices of bread and put something in between (ham, cheese, spreads, ...). Repeat a number of times and you have a meal. When you are too busy, you can even have three of these meals in a given day.

7. No authoritarian systems

At work, the Dutch treat eachother as equals, and the team leader will coordinate how you work together, but will not be playing the big boss over you. Other countries might have clear systems of who has authority over whom and to whom you need to ask permission, but in The Netherlands I've been surprised many times by the confidence my senior coworkers put in me and how they trusted me with certain tasks without asking me to constantly report to them.

8. Everybody is heard during a meeting

Junior or senior member, everybody has a say in a meeting. It's called the poldermodel, the Dutch way of running meetings, and the disadvantage might be that, since nobody is really taking on the big authoritarian position, it can be harder to reach consensus - everybody needs to contribute and feel that they have been heard.

9. Always bring a gift when you are invited

Chocolates or flowers are always a success. When you are invited to somebody's house, or to an event hosted by a colleagues, you are expected to bring a small gift as a token of your appreciation for the invitation.

10. People go crazy over soccer games

When the Eurocup or the Worldcup take place, the country morphs into a sea of orange. People start grilling outdoors, drinking beers together while watching the games on temporary big screens provided in the big cities and party all over the place. They might look intimidating, those crazy orange Dutchies, but they are fun to hang out with, no worries!

11. You are expected to be independent

Since the system is not relying on authority, you are expected to work independently. You are not expected to report to your supervisor as a spoon-fed student who just spews out the results of an analysis, but you are expected to take initiative and move your research forward by yourself.

12. You are expected to set your own schedule

Nobody is going to make your planning, and you are expected to decide when to work and what to work on. If you work with other people or if you need to do laboratory work, you are of course expected to show up to work at the times when your coworkers are available.

13. Be punctual

I heard that in the very South of The Netherlands, you can have 15 minutes of a delay without needing an excuse, but in the Rotterdam-Amsterdam region, you are expected to be punctual. No excuses.

14. Be honest

No need to go in convoluted ways around people, especially those in a more senior position, if you need to get something done. Talk clearly, and tell people what you need, without asking them if they please could maybe do something whenever they have the time for it - the message won't go through.

15. Expect honest feedback

The Dutch are direct, which means they give you their ideas in a honest and direct way. Their feedback is not trying to be politcally correct, but they go straight to the good and bad points of your work.

16. Some regions are very packed - be courteous to others

Parts of The Netherlands are just very densily populated - and people here are used to live in densely knit cities. Be courteous to others, and everything works fine.

17. You won't impress your colleagues by working 120 hours

If you do so, they might think you have a planning problem or that you can't do your work in the normal allotted time. You'll see people leave their offices in time to go home for dinner at 6pm. You might think they leave early and are not working hard, but you should see the amount of work they get done during their working day...

18. Many people speak English...

Almost everybody in The Netherlands, and certainly everybody in the universities, speaks English. This makes your arrival much easier, and often English is the language of choice during meetings to make sure everybody can follow.

19. ...but you should learn Dutch

However, if you are staying for a few years, you should learn Dutch. It's part showing respect for the culture of the country, and part a way to really become part of the country and its systems.

20. It's fun!

As with every new place, I needed some time to adjust to The Netherlands, but after many years here, and still spending my summers here, I can say that I really enjoy living in The Netherlands and working at TU Delft.

Keukenhof

Keukenhof might be one of the largest tourist attractions in the Netherlands.
Sure, it is packed with tourists.
Sure, it is overly busy.
Sure, it might be pricey.
But... it is stunning.

The Keukenhof features the outside tulip gardens. These are of the finest gardens I have ever visited, complete with entirely landscaped parts, large ponds, a windmill, garden inspiration side "cubicles" and all sorts of vendors. Some of these vendors sell all sorts of plants, while others sell ice cream, waffles or bread with sausage. I had some poffertjes (small pancakes) there are they were very tasty.

The main roads in the Keukenhof connect some pavilions which all have their own theme. The tulip pavilion is probably the most impressive, but the pavilion with the orchids and the one with gerberas are also breathtakingly beautiful.

If ever you visit the Netherlands in spring, you definitely should go to the Keukenhof. It's too pretty to miss out on it.

A few places worth visiting in Amsterdam

Last Saturday, I celebrated my previous roommate's birthday together with my current roommate in Amsterdam. I don't live in Amsterdam, I don't know the city at all. I've been to Amsterdam about 5 years ago during a summer camp, and I never really got the "feel" of the city. But my previous roommate knows the city, and she took us to a few wonderful places.

Lunch at a canal

We had lunch on a pontoon on one of the canals. Even though it is still winter, we could sit outside, out of the wind and in the sun.

Puccini bomboni

Chocolate approved by a Belgian! They sell really really great chocolate in their chocolaterie, as well as delicious pie in their neighboring coffee place.

Nieuwe Kerk

We spent the majority of our afternoon marveling over the gems of Islamic art from the Khalili collection which are currently on disply in the Nieuwe Kerk. If you like art and have some spare time, it's a must visit.