January 2011
5 posts
19 tags
Does the suit make the teacher?
This is a cross-post from my education blog See Mary Teach, but I thought it might be interesting to expats confronting differences in workplace etiquette, dress codes, and other things we must navigate as foreign workers.
Not in The Netherlands it doesn’t. I’ve not had a great deal of exposure to Dutch work environments other than the few times I’ve visited the immigration...
7 tags
Just an observation...
Dutch people love to feed the ducks. Everywhere, a few times a week at least, I pass someone scattering bits of old bread while simultaneously shredding the tough loaves with her fingers into manageable pieces for hungry duck bills. One person might be tossing these morsels into a smelly canal, another scattering the bread bits onto a patch of grass. But it’s always the Dutch people with...
9 tags
8 tags
First NYE in my new country
New Year’s Eve in The Netherlands. I’m not sure how to tackle explaining this night, because if I were in America I would just grab friends by the shoulders and scream “The fireworks! Jesus H. Christ, the fireworks!” with a terrified glint in my eye. To say fireworks are enjoyed in this country is a gross understatement yet I can’t seem to find an overstatement...
7 tags
"IND-induced limbo" - My article at IamExpat.nl →
I wrote an article for the IamExpat.nl web site about my experience obtaining a residency permit in The Netherlands. I thought when I picked up the permit at the IND offices that would be the end of my struggle for at least a year, but no. My last name was misspelled on the card. The hardest part is over, but I’m still waiting for a new card. This has the makings of an “I Love...
