Things You Need to Know When Moving to the Netherlands

In this video, I talk about the things I've learned about living in the Netherlands as someone who moved almost two years ago from the United States. There was definitely some culture shock at first, but I've learned a lot in my time here. italki LINK: go.italki.com/dutch and use the code "DUTCH" to get $5 off when you buy $10!
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I like to share my experiences of an American expat in the Netherlands. I describe both the unique and everyday aspects of Dutch culture, and life in Holland while enjoying every bit of it!
Blog website: www.dutchamericano.com
Instagram: DutchAmericano
Get in touch: [e-mail]
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[@Conclusius68]

If you move to the Netherlands and bring children with you, make sure they are able to swim. That's very important.

[@DutchAmericano]

Great one to add to the list!

[@gert-janvanderlee5307]

It's good for grown ups to be able to swim too. You don't float automatically on your 18th birthday.

[@ceesjanmol]

Especially as the Randstad is sinking!

[@eddys.3524]

Yep... it will keep your little loved-ones alive when they get close to water, which we have a lot of. BTW Any one who wants to live here should learn to swim.

[@SaintOtter]

@@DutchAmericano And home schooled swimming in the backyard... I'm not sure how valuable that is in real life. Rivers, channels and the sea... VERY different knowledge is needed for that. Better to learn to swim in a swimming school but still be aware that knowledge of the local situation is VERY essential.

[@buur8178]

As a Dutch person living in Germany for almost 10 years and what I miss the most is the humble hello on the street. As it also brightens my day. I had the experience here that I did it to a German woman and she looked funny at me and mentioned "I don't even know you".. Then it was done for me.. The hello thingy is I think a Dutch thing. I never was in another country where this also happened so regularly as in The Netherlands..

[@jeaninegetrouw1930]

Lol 😂as Dutchie living in Czech Republic 🇨🇿 i have the same experience in Prague but when visiting smaller cities people greet each other (without knowing each other) ! Very polite and nice 😄

[@mayratorres6215]

You speak very clearly and give great examples. I don't have to put subtitles on for your videos and its great because I always have to put them on since I have auditory processing disorder. Quality videos, very much appreciated.

[@romanalexandrov2880]

Hi from Prague, Czech Republic! We also have alarm tests here, but on Thursdays instead of Mondays. It's funny to see tourists' reactions during these tests: fear first (OMG! A war has started! An airstrike is incoming! Let's run for a shelter!), then confusion when they see that all the locals behave like nothing is happening and finally a relief =D Once I was walking through the city centre and the alarm started to roar. I noticed an American lady that started literally panicking, so I decided to calm her down by saying "It's OK. It's just Thursday 12 o'clock". Her instant reply was like "Is that how they announce 12 o'clock here!?") Another day I saw a group of Japanese tourists rushing back to the metro seconds after the alarm started to sound... Fun stuff)

[@Whistler4u]

Main reason to learn Dutch is understanding the stories at The Efteling.

[@CoasterTopia]

Die sprookjes zijn emotioneel een stuk minder waard als je er niet mee bent opgegroeid 😅

[@PendelSteven]

Actually, at every attraction there are translations into English, German and French. Most Dutch just pass by it and I have certainly pointed it out to other Dutch... But there are translations. Believe it or not.

[@dutchgamer842]

@@CoasterTopia Gevoelsmatig komt het toch niet over als je de taal niet van kindsaf meekrijgt. Latere leeftijd voelt het anders aan al beheers je het perfect.

[@sv122]

how awesome you have a sponsor!

[@DutchAmericano]

Thanks =)

[@eline.de.allerbeste]

As a Dutch person living abroad, a few weeks ago in my city there was a big football match and somehow going to a store in another part of the city I ran into hundreds of football fans at a metro station. Being used to the Dutch enthusiasm/loudness/occasional violence surrounding football, I was automatically terrified being in that type of crowd. But nothing happened, not a thing here. People just walked relatively quietly towards the football stadium from the metro station and that was it.

[@bastiaan4129]

Luckily football fans in the Netherlands are also harmless, at best their singing might hurt your ears.

[@nfiles]

@@bastiaan4129 got stuck between the ME and a crowd of raging voetbalsupporters once. Not fun.

[@JohnBlutarski]

@@bastiaan4129 Except for all the hooligans, you mean?

[@Dutchbelg3]

Hey Ava, I love the tone of your videos and what is very nice is you tell real life examples of what you mean to point out. It makes your videos entertaining and enjoyable to watch.

[@DutchAmericano]

Aw, thank you so much! That's very nice of you to say.

[@nicollevisser8141]

Thanks for another enjoyable video. Tip, when you think your bike is stolen, look around you. Were you really allowed to park your bike there? As the city removes daily a lot of wrong parked bikes. You can collect them after paying a fine. In Utrecht you can look online if you see your bike on their website and than you can get it back. Be warned do not park your bike where it is not allowed to, even if you see a lot of other bikes. They will all be removed!

[@peli71]

Hi Eva, the most import thing regarding the (monthly test of the ) civil alarm system is the use of it. Every alarm not on the first Monday of the month at 12:00 hrs, or a signal longer than 1 minute and 26 seconds, is not a test but for real. Such real alarms will be accompanied with a text message (NL-Alert) on your mobile phone when you allow emergency cell broadcasts. (And yes, these NL-alerts will also be tested every June and December)

[@opperbuil]

On a test, they also follow up a long signal with a short signal. Multiple long signals declare a "Warning: incoming" while multiple short signals declare "End of current alert." Historically, it's a leftover from the ww2 and the cold war. The NL-alert is newer though.

[@CoasterTopia]

Soon the sirens will disappear and we will move to NL Alert only

[@Emmezali]

@@CoasterTopia I hope not, that would be dumb. What if you are a kid without a phone playing outside? What if your phone died? Definitely do not want to be dependent for my safety on that stupid thing.

[@crazymulgogi]

I think terrorists have figured out by now that they need to strike on the first monday of the month exactly at 12:00. :-)

[@Hensepens64]

@@CoasterTopia hope not. That system is in my opinion lest trustworthy

[@minkes6691]

Tip about the raincoat... more important and more used are rainpants, usually your coat is already (a bit) waterproof. Rainpants save you from having wet pants all day at work.

[@expatfamilylive9041]

Thank you for your great videos about the Netherlands! We're already 6 months here and we also discover a lot of interesting features of this country.

[@LaLa-ck9zp]

I cannot even wrap my brain around moving to a country without prioritizing learning/knowing the native language beforehand

[@Arnaud58]

That will be the ultimate thing for the Dutch. It is indeed easier and much appreciated if you try, with which the Dutch are mostly happy to help. But since the Dutch have been all over the world for hundreds of years, it's normal to learn at least the basics of speaking English, German and French at school.

[@dutchgamer842]

@@Arnaud58 English is (basics) are learned nation wide, for a longer period. French and German is later on and shorter, most Dutch just learn French at school and forget about it, since it's not used in daily life and most media in the Netherlands is from the US so in English. If you live in the Eastern border you might need German

[@Arnaud58]

@@dutchgamer842 Omdat ik Nederlander ben, ben ik hiermee bekend. Wat het vergeten betreft, het is verbazend hoe snel dingen terug komen als je er je best voor wil doen.

[@dutchgamer842]

@@Arnaud58 Het verschil is met taal, als je er je mee opgroeid je er ook een bepaald gevoel en emotie bij hebt. Als je een taal alleen maar op school in de basis leert vervalt dat, als je een taal op latere leeftijd leert en perfect kan vertalen mis je dat ook.

[@Arnaud58]

@@dutchgamer842 Blijkbaar geldt dit niet voor elke geboren Nederlander zoals ik...

[@ramatoulayebah1959]

In France it’s on the first Wednesday of the month that you will here the loud alarm sound

[@gjn4522]

Geweldig! Ik volg al jouw video's.

[@gitmoholliday5764]

must've been a magician stealing the innertube and getting it away without taking off a wheel

[@erikslingerland793]

Ava, ava, this is impossible! OK, sometimes a saddle, or a frontwheel, but not an innertube. Probably you mean the valve has been taken out.

[@picobello99]

I recently made the mistake of riding a train that stopped at Bijlmer Arena right after a football game was over. The entire train got flooded by hooligans. They were super loud and drunk and they broke several chairs. I felt very unsafe, thank god they left me alone.

[@zer0bankoe]

Its culture to get drunk when your team wins. Nobody’s going to hurt you if you just don’t pay attention and mind your own business.

[@damouze]

The Dutch directness also translates to awkward and sometimes difficult situations in the workplace. If you are in a leadership position and you tell your (Dutch) employees to do something, often the first question they will ask is: "why?". Not because they do not want to do it or because they are trying to be difficult, but because they really want to know. We are always interested in the bigger picture and are always ready to give our opinion on it (whether you like it or not ;-) ). If someone had told that to some of our American colleagues at some point, some of our past meetings would have gone a lot more easily and a lot more smoothly.

[@crazymulgogi]

I'm not sure it's curiosity. Workers by law have more protection from being sacked in case employers/managers don't like them. So it's easier to complain. But is that because of our curious nature? Ik denk het niet en ik werk ook op kantoor. : )

[@nightfly4664]

@@crazymulgogi I think it really depends on the profession. A huge difference I noticed was in the military when we were training in America under American command. In the Dutch military, asking "why?" to get an explanation isn't uncommon. Well, I asked an American officer why he wanted me to do something because it didn't make any sense to me as I was used to doing it differently, he got quite angry. Now, you can bet I asked him "why" a bunch more times, just to be difficult! ;-)

[@ronmeijer1305]

hilarious video , keep the good work going on.

[@Doubleranged1]

Great Video!

[@Jacob-W-5570]

"just take a look under any video I made" Aaaahhh LOLOLOLOL you're so right tho.

[@DutchAmericano]

But I do love reading the comments =D

[@lauriedepaurie]

My list of insurances (fairly typical): - ziektekostenverzekering (healthinsurance) - aansprakelijkheidsverzekering (liability insurance) - autoverzekering (car insurance) - inboedelverzekering (insurance for everything in the home) - opstalverzekering (insurance for everything on the home) - reisverzekering (travel insurance) - overlijdensrisicoverzekering (life insurance) - uitvaartverzekering (funeral insurance) Heck, up untill a year ago, my bike was insured...

[@telotawa]

thank you for uploading this, didnt know about the loud noises part! also, in Middelburg there's church bells ringing for several minutes straight at 9:30 am on sundays

[@bastiaan4129]

The first monday of the month is next week on the 6th of september.

[@womenfrom0202]

Yep, first thing I check in a new neighborhood, CHURCHES with bell towers, I still do not understand that we all have to listen to the call to come to church when I never go to church

[@mariadebake5483]

@@womenfrom0202 I don't go to church either but I rather like the sound of churchbells (there's a church just at the back of my house, so I hear them very well!) If I can't sleep at night I hear them strike every half hour (once) and every hour (as many times as necessary to indicate the time), so I know what time it is without having to look at my watch. It's reassuring

[@telotawa]

i am not good at dates...

[@CasperEgas]

Most of the Dutch have a nice bike and a "station" bike that looks rugged. It depends on where you go and what you use it for. In smaller towns, your bike is usually safe.

[@gert-janvanderlee5307]

Unless you have an electric bike. Those aren't safe anywhere. With organised gangs throughout the country stealing electric bikes and moving them to eastern Europe.

[@gert-janvanderlee5307]

Not most of the Dutch. Only the ones that regularly cycle to a train station.

[@CasperEgas]

@@gert-janvanderlee5307 Yes I agree, but for a regular bike this holds true.

[@CasperEgas]

@@gert-janvanderlee5307 Which are a lot of them, and add to that people who use such a bike for other purposes, like using it in city centres, or for going to university and such.

[@gert-janvanderlee5307]

@@CasperEgas A lot, but still most people don't commute by train. And even with those that do, a lot go on foot, by bus or by car to the station.

[@chubbymoth5810]

All of this is sound advise. Loved the video and the sparkles. Had almost as much fun as you did ;-)

[@SaintOtter]

The aansprakelijkheidsverzekering is considered useful for when you accidentally slam a door shut with the fingers of a surgeon between them and he can't work anymore. Walking in house on shoes isn't done everywhere btw. My family takes the shoes of in the hallway or the mat.

[@TheEvertw]

The Dutch don't stare. Staring (at least in my mind) means you are not paying real attention but are just resting your gaze on something. The Dutch observe.

[@retinaquester]

Love the vid. You need to update and show you're new rainjacket in a video.

[@richardbrinkerhoff]

I've lived in the Netherlands for 48 years and have never found the Dutch to be more direct than in my native America.

[@mikepictor]

The one vacation I took to the Netherlands, I was in my hotel room in Rotterdam when the Dutch team won some semi-final match in the world cup. Until about 3am or so, sleeping was impossible. It was a riot of celebration outside. I wasn't even on the ground floor.

[@mcverhoog]

in the usa I think there version of aansprakelijkheids verzekering is part of home insurance so no need for a seperate insurance.

[@MusicJunky3]

Great to see you again ! As a regular I got used to seeing Mr Fox, but is he upside down today ?!

[@minkes6691]

I love your video's, so accurate! About the weather 😀 so true. And yess, umbrellas are useless, they all break with 1 use and you can't bike with them.

[@claudioagmfilho]

Awesome video 🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻, thanks for sharing it …

[@iMadrid11]

Wow that's news to me. First time I've heard of an inner tube being stolen from a bike. Prying a wire bead clincher tire off a wheel is hard. Thief had bike tools with him but forgot to pack a spare tube to fix a flat.

[@rendomstranger8698]

I never owned a raincoat in my life. What I do own however is a wind resistant portable umbrella. It has lasted me for years while cycling and has never let a single drop of rain through. It cost me about €30, but was more than worth it after how many cheap €5 umbrellas the wind destroyed. Note that when I say portable, I mean the compact type of umbrella that you can pretty much carry in your pocket. Mine is a bit to large for that but it easily fits on the back of my bike. As a result, I can pull it out and open it up with a single hand while cycling. Also, I do still own a regular summer coat. 355 days out of the year, that is more than good enough to stay dry unless I need to cycle a long distance.

[@bhudh]

Your video made me realise that we have a specific (and i think dutch-only?) term for the unreliable weather here in the NL: "wisselvallig" meaning... "unsure" or "continuously-changing"? Seems fitting as it defines the weather forecast for 90% of the year.

[@silentwilly2983]

You're right with respect to stolen bikes, estimated at up to a million a year according to some sources, but never experienced stolen bike parts in the Netherlands. Several times forgot to take an expensive bike computer from my bike and it was never stolen. Though it did happen to me in Australia, where I parked my bike at the entrance of a national park, went hiking came back a couple of hours later and my saddle was gone.....

[@xxmilannathanxx]

Love your vids it's so interresting to look at our country through your eyes:) i have never been in the USA but i wonder if i would make vids about that what would happen:D

[@sherlockhomeless7138]

It's funny that you said it rains often. Now it hasn't been raining for over three weeks if I'm not mistaken. But before that it was raining every day for about ten days. So yeah, our weather is crazy.

[@PendelSteven]

I feel typically Dutch: 1) stare 2) narrow your eyes 3) say "eeeeeeeh" 4) ask why someone's doing something, what's wrong and / or how you can help

[@NinaW1n]

I once had my saddle stolen from my bike and another time my front wheel was stolen! It was super annoying because there was an expensive brake on it (thats probably the reason it was stolen) and it was not even in city center, just in a suburb by my appartment building. 😒

[@kevartje1295]

To explain the red wine vs muddy shoes: You can't wash out wine, if you spill wine, the carpet is ruined. if you spill mud, you can wash the carpet.

[@deetgeluid]

I live in the town of Vervalt.

[@PendelSteven]

Good to know: Indonesian has quite a lot of Dutch loanwords, like handuk, televisi & kantor. That's handdoek, televisie & kantoor in Dutch, so towel, television & office. Part of Dutch heritage :)

[@Arnaud58]

So do Russians, especially maritime words. This is from the time Tsaar Peter lived in Amsterdam. And, by the way, English has a lot too.

[@axMf3qTI]

We could change the wearing shoes in house thing though.

[@gert-janvanderlee5307]

You don't really need a raincoat. Those things are often made of plastic. They make you sweat inside them. You think you stay nice and dry from the rain, only to end up wet from sweating. I used one once in high school, when I had to cycle 15 kilometers to school and 15 kilometers back every day and never again after that. Yes, you will get wet occasionally but you will get dry again too.

[@DutchAmericano]

I had trouble concentrating on anything else besides you biking 15km each way to school daily...

[@jpdj2715]

@@DutchAmericano - It's only 9.3 miles (one-way).

[@gert-janvanderlee5307]

@@DutchAmericano You get used to it. Then it's not that bad. Except for a few kilometers through a dark and windy polder. And it's not really that special. At least not back then. A lot of kids cycled to school every day. Some had to go even further than me.

[@MarceldeJong]

I had my saddle stolen once (which was annoying) and my bike bag (which was impressive, given how it was attached with a gazillion velcro straps and other things, can't imagine how much hassle that thief had to go through just to get a crappy bike bag)

[@kratomseeker5258]

my wife an opposite experience when she went to america people would pass by saying hi and how are you and she was shocked and wondered what they wanted from her haha. but im from baltimore and she is from rotterdam and here in rotterdam they dont say hi to often as you pass by. btw if you say how are you to a dutch person they think you really want to know how they feel and start telling you their problems hahaha.

[@oldman4049]

You never heared of storm umbrella's? They can withstand up to windforce 10. Also availeble in sa small size. Btw I may be dutch, but I really hate football.

[@Roggen45]

Dutch people like to comment, me ( a Dutchie ) looking at the comments....seeing almost nothing but Dutch answering in English....and almost p'ing my pants laughing😂🤣😂👍

[@DutchAmericano]

='D It's the truth!

[@mariadebake5483]

Zeker waar!

[@KeesAmf]

Health- and car- (if you have one) insurance are obligatory.

[@moldar81]

The weather sounds like Seattle. I've been living in Seattle for 15 yrs, ahhh everyone tried to teach me how to bike and no go - guess will try again. I will be in Wageningen University & Research for 2 weeks of lab work. so I will be okay I guess. Thanks for the video.

[@abacaxiveer]

Well the bike theft thing, it is way less of a problem in proper villages. Generally, time and place to park it are key. High risk places are the big cities, train stations, and areas with lot of bars. High risk times are bar closing time, and night time in general. This is of course where the phenomenon of 'kroegfiets' ('bar bike') comes in, a bike that is so old and bad it is hardy worth stealing for its worth, making it less of an issue if that happens anyway. The kroegfiets is very similar to a 'stationsfiets'. Both typically come with a heavy secondary lock, that can be attacked to an immovable object (preferably high off the ground). Many people do have expensive bikes of course, but know where and when not to leave them unattended. Many people have several bikes for several occasions, too.

[@PretzlCosplay]

When you said 'the first monday of the month' I had to laugh so hard XD Never realised that it would scare people but of course it only makes sense if you didn't expect the loud alarms to off suddenly everywhere XD

[@davidschaftenaar6530]

Yeah, bike theft is a problem in cities especially. Another feature of major cities in the Netherlands is that the locals tend to be noticeably more assertive, forward, confrontational, impolite and disagreeable than those living in smaller communities. There. I said it.

[@SaintOtter]

Health insurance is MANDATORY in the Netherlands. It's not just something you "have to get" in the sense as "it's a very good idea".

[@martinetralala1525]

14.55 buienrader klinkt toch als een minder betrouwbaar broertje van buienradar lol.

[@rgfrank1668]

I am glad to say that not all bikes get stolen, and in conterary I would advise u to get a good bike with gears and extra's (whatever that may include for you personally). Just make sure to lock it, with an extra lock, and maybe dont bring it to the innercity when going out. Where and what bikes get stolen varies wildly, I have been living in my current city for 5+ years and no bikes stolen. Actually I have never had a bike stolen, not even when I was stupid enough to forget to lock it. But the main city centres are notorious for bike theft. If u keep this in mind u should be fine.

[@javiermarcialcespedesberne8575]

Hola, como estas?, que tal?, Los mejores y más cordiales Saludos desde puente piedra, lima, Perú, ojalá que puedas venir en algún momento a mi país y que disfrutes mucho de todo por aquí, con la familia y los amigos, felicidades por tus vídeos...

[@guuskaitjily8581]

If you don't want your bike stolen or impounded here in Utrecht use de rijwielstalling first 24 hours free and those near the station open 24/7

[@iLoveWoerden]

I'm Afrikaans and when you said "vervalt", immediately knew it means oh no you cannot go there. Afrikaans we have "verval" If something has "verval" it means it is not in use anymore or even products, that the product has expired. We also have a woord "aanspreeklik" in Afrikaans, much like the Dutch version and it means to be held accountable. I can usually follow Dutch text and speech with minor exceptions. We might be moving there... hubby has 2 jobs in the pipeline, one in Germany through his current work and one through an agency in Netherlands. Time will tell which one or maybe even both pull through. We are waiting to hear. Other than Afrikaans, I am highly proficient in English too. So could easily communicate with you in English ❤ I'm a bit more afraid of learning the German language, but the German culture and country sounds lovely and I'm very keen about the country. I am a bit apprehensive of how overpopulated the Netherlands is... am I silly for being apprehensive about this? 😊

[@Pendoza84]

14:56 it's not buienrader but buienradar.

[@charlyvanbuuren2947]

Back in the eigthies as a student in the Utrecht i had a monkey shit brown racing bike. My fellow students had their bikes stolen regularly. Mine was never touched. So it was to ugly or to special...

[@DutchAmericano]

It was obviously too special!

[@SaintOtter]

@@DutchAmericano That's why you see bikes painted by hand in very obvious colours or having plastic flowers and such on them. Or get a bike insurance...

[@TakanashiYuuji]

About learning how to bike: take your time, but DONT do it during rush hour. That's gonna piss a lot of people off and create dangerous situations for yourself and others.

[@ceesjanmol]

Also realize that cycling is not only about the mechanics of moving upright on a bike. Establishing contact with other people in traffic, to communicate, synchronize and coordinate is also really important! Especially because of the rather flexible way people deal with traffic rules.

[@nlbergsma]

And, if possible, start learning in a quiet place. A dead end street for example, or a cycle path in the park. Or a rural road.

[@jacobmannessen1191]

I am 67. I lived in Amsterdam and Rotterdam an I had one bike stolen because the guy who had lentmy bike did not locked it up in front of a school.

[@kratomseeker5258]

i grew up in baltimore with the same alarms every monday every week it has to do with the cold war.

[@realatomizer]

The Dutch alarms started with the same purpose. The were repurposed for general use a few decades ago.

[@kratomseeker5258]

@@realatomizer as was everywhere same in baltimore it was still used after the cold War.

[@JasperJanssen]

Wow, every week?! That’s a lot of testing! Does Baltimore get a lot of things or still needs to warn the population about? The old American air raid alarms (just like ours) were mechanically based, by spinning a disk with gaps inside a static circle, also with gaps, you would literally generate sound waves by pushing and pulling at the air. That’s why the signals you hear are basically it spinning up, and then down, and then back up, etc. As far as I know, ours were always just electrically powered with biggish electric motors. Some of the American ones, by contrast, used a literal direct drive V8 diesel hanging off the back of the mechanical bits. I believe those must have been a lot louder than anything we have. Air raid wardens in Britain used to carry hand cranked versions during the Blitz. In America, whether the system survives depends a lot on local geography. Anywhere that needs tornado alarms still has them, for example. The modern Dutch system, by the way, is just general purpose speakers, but really loud ones. When we moved to this system, at first they also moved the test to being once or twice a year, because it was supposed to be more reliable, but a) (spoiler alert) it wasn’t that reliable and b) people forgot about the tests so it scared the living bejeezus out of people. So after 3 years or so of that, back to monthlies.

[@kratomseeker5258]

@@JasperJanssen it litterally souned like the exact same alarm. To me but I really dont know. For us also it was for anything life threatening I remember they was talking about not doing anymore so I really dont kno if they use it anymore I have not been in baltimore for almost 5 years now. With any luck I'll be dutch soon.

[@casperklerk5054]

With regard to staring. We really do stare when that person is really loud and it gets anoying, because it is so loud having a conversation with your friend isn't possible anymore. People (like my dutch girlfriend) may speak softly of "some loud american". But were also used to make eye contact and not avoiding it. I think it is looking into someone soul and see if he is really doing well aside pretending it and then show compassion. Or we sit on a terrace, have a coffee and observe people. We call it "mensen kijken".

[@vincenzodigrande2070]

I watched an NJB live session from about 5 months ago yesterday where he was passing an alarm pole, he knew and so he waited for it to go off, his reaction to how loud it was was hilarious. And oh yeah, the voetbal fans.... I do feel like what you are experiencing are really much city living related. Like the above, but also parts from your bike getting stolen. I have a pretty nice aluminium LED torch strapped to my bike handlebars and literally never bothered to take it off other than for swapping batteries. and it's been there for years now. I don't park this bike at the train station though, but in shopping areas or the business area where I work it never happened. How low life do you need to be when you take the trouble, and hinder someone by stealing an inner tube?? That's just crazy, it must have either been a really poor student, or somebody wanted to bully you.

[@DutchAmericano]

Comforting to know that these things don't happen everywhere, haha. And yes, I was indeed very confused when someone stole that tube...

[@alctalks1487]

Lmao, someone once stole my pedal. Only one of them. I stood there at thw train station for at least 30 minutes reaaally confused. I guess it was a nice pedal... But it wasn't a normal one so adding it to a normal bike feels really weird.

[@vincenzodigrande2070]

@@alctalks1487 Yeah at train stations weird stuff happens, I know from several 'witness reports' and I saw the many severely cannibalised carcasses there lots of times... It apparently attracts some weird low life kinda people.

[@JasperJanssen]

@@DutchAmericano especially from an oma fiets, given that you have to literally unbolt the wheel to get the tube out (I assume they took the front?) Unless you cut it, but then you’re not stealing but vandalising.

[@boulderk1n254]

Many types of insurance cost only a few euros per month, probably because so many people contribute.

[@eddys.3524]

Did the cat get camera shy?

[@frankwalders]

One tip of a fourthy year old Amsterdammer buy the most expensive sturdy U lock for your bike and always and I mean ALWAYS lock your bike to something, like the railing of bridge. I guarantee you, your bike won’t be stolen, they will always take the easier one.

[@ManesniRyloth]

If you find yourself in a Dutch city and you suddenly notice everything is orange... Run. It's either Koningsdag or there's a football tournament :D

[@gert-janvanderlee5307]

Either way running is useless. There will be orange everywhere.

[@sherryparriott1163]

That orange liquor we used to toast the king on his birthday was quite tasty!

[@gert-janvanderlee5307]

@@sherryparriott1163 Oranjebitter probably, if it had alcohol in it.

[@jpdj2715]

(Wettelijke) Aansprakelijkheidsverzekering (WA verzekering) is what everyone should have. It's like the liability part in your car insurance that covers you causing damage to others with your car. Our society and jurisprudence assumes you have such an insurance. As everybody has one and these are claimed from very little, they are cheap. Like a hospital bill can render you bankrupt, an accident with 9ther people can too. Note that as a cyclist, you do not have the car insurance to cover the consequences of your wrongs. Make sure you have a WA

[@palantir135]

liability insurance is mandatory

[@mavadelo]

Enough Utrechters will greet you on the street :) But I do agree it is more common in smaller towns. Lost a lot of bikes to thieves but never just a few parts. I mean, that sounds more like someone trolling you than anything else. What kind of bike you need: It needs to have 2 wheels, drive gear (back pedal brake is my preference) a rack (front or back or both) and handlebars (optional :P ) everything else is just a reason for people to steal it. The older and crappier it is the better.

[@mavadelo]

oh right... it needs to have lights..... very important.

[@jimjungle1397]

I met far more Belgians that spoke English in Belgium than I met Dutch that spoke English in the Netherlands. When i was in Europe the young Dutch said they had to choose English, French or German in school. In Belgium they were required to take English and another language. Bus drivers spoke English in Belgium. In the Netherlands I had a hard time finding a bus driver that spoke English. I don't think I ever did. That was almost 30 years ago.

[@Species6079]

A lot can (and has) change(d) in 30 years in the Netherlands. 😉

[@unknownusername9414]

as a Dutch, in my experience from where I life the older the bike the more likely it is to be stolen.

[@cristakampert8740]

Aansprakelijkheidsverzekering can come in handy when you get hit by a motorcycle on your bike and the motorcycle also has some damage. When it is the clear 100% fault of the motorcycle, you do not have to worry, but otherwise it can happen that you need to pay a part of it. The people of the aansprakelijkheidsverzekering will make sure he will not get more than he deserves and you do not have to worry about paying a lot of money to a person that got you into hospital.

[@robertvangameren1306]

Americans may think: they play football over there? But it’s not *American* football, so I would use the word ‘soccer’. Funnily enough, the Dutch word for soccer is ‘voetbal’, which is very reminiscent of ‘football’. (There has to be an etymological explanation for it.) Also, my bike(s) have never been stolen. But I would advise to get an additional lock next to the normal one (that goes through the back wheel). Like a chain or a cable with a lock. Then again, I have never parked a bike in Amsterdam... Hmmm...

[@a.b.8035]

There is. The official English name for "voetbal" is "association football". In fact, the A in FIFA stands for "association". "Soccer" is short for "association" in countries where other forms of football are played, like American or Aussie football

[@khulhucthulhu9952]

How and why would someone steal your inner bike tyre?

[@t.corazon6350]

Because if yours is punctiored you have to BUY a new one!

[@tomvdijk6405]

Dutch directness: I hate the promoted parts in any video!!! Further nice story. The app is not called buienrader (guessing when it’s going tonrain), but buienradar. The difference between an e or an a makes it a complete other word. Would be a nice item for a next upload, also how same words have different meanings when you put the accent on a different place. Like the word overweg. Could mean railroadcrossing, but also you can’t handle the other person (ik kan niet met hem overweg)

[@MyTubeSVp]

“Vervalt” literally translates as “expires”,

[@therealdutchidiot]

That's one of the translations, correct. Cancelled is the one that's closest in this context.

[@svdww]

Vervalt is a bit weird in this context, the bus company should've used something like "uitgevallen".

[@therealdutchidiot]

@@svdww And yet, it's the term used on stops, because it's generally used in conjunction with a date range.

[@svdww]

@@therealdutchidiot When you know up front (you have a date range) the bus will not pick up people at a stop due to maintenance or whatever, then the pickups are cancelled right... Vervallen can be used in that situation for blaming I guess, "because of maintenance the stop has been cancelled"; "Vanwege werkzaamheden is de halte komen te vervallen". In any case, Dutch has quite the number of ways describing one thing. Maybe they should make it short and clear, NO BUS FROM X TO Y :-P

[@therealdutchidiot]

@@svdww What's wrong with "halte vervalt tussen X en Y"? Many stops have multiple lines on them, so it would make less sense to state destinations.

[@Franchute54]

Aansprakelijkheids verzekering to me is must everwhere! It covers almost every situation where you would be legally liable for damaged you (may) have caused. not just red whine on the white carpet. think of e.g helping a friend or family member doing the dishes after having dinner at their house and you break something especial / expensive. holding you liable would not be creating bad feelings toward that person, because , because hr /she is right but you have yr insurance covering it. I am not sure but i believe it is obligatory to have it in the Netherlands.

[@tomvdijk6405]

Sry for my typos

[@hardanheavy]

Aansprakelijkheidsverzekering: it's nice to have when spillng red wine on someone's carpet. It is absolutely a life saver when you, let's say, go home on your bike, swerve around an object lying on the cycle path, causing the tanker truck behind you to swerve and lose control, sending it crashing into the old people's home across the road and burning it to the ground. Having this insurance is mandatory for a good reason :)

[@jagoisso7267]

The insurance you are referring to is not mandatory though. A liability insurance is mandatory when you drive a car, so if you cause or are in an accident damages are covered. Personal liability insurance however is not obligatory, so if you don't have it and cause the truck to swerve whilst on your bike, you are liable for all damages. It is great such insurances exist, and over 90% of Dutch people have it, but it is definitely not mandatory to have a personal liability insurance. The obligatory insurance is only for motorised vehicles.

[@ciaolisanne1]

It’s especially nice when you have kids who learn to ride bikes. If they crash into someone’s car or something, the insurance will pay for the repairs.

[@johnmullens2857]

first time I ever heard about an inner tube getting stolen lmao

[@gertvanderstraaten6352]

Aansprakelijkheidsverzekering also comes in handy when your pets causes an accident or mauls someone.

[@hanfranssen]

Maybe these two video’s get an impression what about rain and what about fireworks kzbin.info/www/bejne/j6SQfINupLWXrMk the weather kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHitpJilq7lrq8k fireworks

[@Frahamen]

Wait you go outside without a rain jacket?

[@ifer1280]

There are two strategies to counter bite theft: the first is your strategy, the second is investing in a proper lock and not living in Amsterdam.

[@JasperJanssen]

And in Utrecht, park in the supervised parking garages whenever possible, especially if you’re going to be away for hours. Most of them are free for the first 24 hours, so there is really no reason to avoid them. (My bike was assembled by me out of about 2.5 grand in parts, 6 or 7 years ago, and hasn’t been stolen yet.)

[@macexpert7247]

Yep my 🇺🇸 wife often tells me to stop staring at people 😂

[@leostouthart8289]

You forget some isurance Whe have isurance for Cel phone,biks,broken glass ,sun glass ,travel,divors,(so you have property)legs(so you do sports) Etc etc. About rain.I have not rain jack or ambrilla becouce you can not more wet than your skin. So wath when you are home take a towel and dry your self. About foodbal. Whe are so small country and very proud when whe win from big country,s

[@wisecat.]

Once I saw an American tourist who totally panicked when she heard the air raid siren on a first monday of the month. I explained it was just a test and that they use the siren not just for air raids as well. She really thouht the Russians were coming in or something.

[@keeslissenberg2781]

You're quite Dutch.

[@jwenting]

I've lived in the Netherlands all of my 50 years, and NEVER had a bike stolen. Then again I don't live in Amsterdam or Utrecht. Wouldn't for the life of me want to live there.

[@pietergreveling]

It's one of those words, aansprakelijkheidsverzekering! 🤣😉👌🏼✌🏼

[@xxmilannathanxx]

7:17 a lot of people in the Netherlands hate it when traffic is going wrong :) But it's so crowded and maybe that's why:) Don't take it personal and just explain and they will meet you half way:D It's just a first reaction i guess. I feel so sorry now trying to see you in that picture on your bike and people thinking girl are you drunk or something:D \i think sometimes we have to figure out if our opinions are ok before we say anything:)

[@mariadebake5483]

Strange, about that tyre. Looks like vandalism. But weird to go to so much trouble!

[@Nynke_K]

People steal individual *inner tubes*??? I am shocked!

[@Name-ui9oc]

have you heard of pet health insurance? You can get insurance in case your pet needs to go to the vet. :D

[@strikeformatik]

Yep.. i have that.