Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Dutch

Attendance at a Sinterklaas Party

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:59:49 -0800

Should I go to a Sinterklaas party in the U.S. when its holiday tradition of black Peters makes me really uncomfortable? Sinterklaas is on Sunday, and some Dutch friends of mine from work are having a party. One Dutch friend in particular is a very good friend of mine, and we have become very close over the past year. She is leaving to go back to the Netherlands in 3 weeks, so if I were to skip this party, it might hurt her feelings. (She has already asked me if I have been working on my Sinterklaas picture, and whether I'm bringing a traditional tangerine.)

There is a very long debate about whether the tradition of having black Peters is a racist one (here on the blue), and I don't want to rehash the debate. My particular difficulty here is that this is a party to be held in the U.S., where such a tradition can be perceived as racist, and I fear that such a party might turn sour.

When I have talked about this tradition with my various Dutch friends (none of whom strike me as racist people), what bothers me most is their staunch defense of the tradition, telling me that it was my problem and not theirs, that the Dutch never had slaves so it wasn't an issue, that these Peters have "soot" on their faces (but they also have painted red lips?), and on and on. I would feel much more at ease if they would simply recognize the possibility for the tradition to be perceived as racist by people from the U.S.

My question is whether I should go to this party, given that I am very, very uncomfortable with the idea of white people in blackface (although I do not know for sure if anyone would dres up), and that these friends of mine are also colleagues. I realize that this tradition is just a small part of this holiday, and I don't want to offend the hostesses (both of whom I consider my friends), but I feel very strongly that the party could become horribly offensive very quickly (only one invitee is black, not that I think that should necessarily make the difference). And if I choose not to attend, do I make up an excuse, or do I tell her simply that I am uncomfortable about the holiday tradition but I would be happy to do something next weekend?

Money Matters

Anonymous — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:40:02 -0800

Am I being unreasonable to think that my SO should pay for more things in our relationship just because he makes 10 times more than me? My SO and I (I'm a woman) have been together for about 6 months now and we are starting to have money issues. He makes about 10 times more than me. I never thought this would be a problem since I've dated both wealthy and poor men and never had a problem.

For instance, I don't know when I should pay for dinners and trips. At first, I gave him silly, inexpensive gifts and paid for simple dinners – such as eating at home or ordering a pizza and he paid for more expensive restaurants. I am embarrassed to say that I can't afford to pay for both of us to eat at nice restaurants. I can afford to go to a nice restaurant maybe once a week and then only if I pay for just my portion. He suggested that I pay one out of every 3 times or so at nicer places. Thinking about this in a cold, rational sense, I suppose I would come out "ahead," but I don't naturally think about it in this way.
I have to keep a budget, while he doesn't. Going to dinner, I need to plan ahead to know how much I can spend. If we go out, I never know ahead of time whether he is going to want me to pay or not. I feel pathetic asking ahead of time if he wants me to pay. It's taking the spontaneity out of our relationship because we can't just decide at 5pm that we're going out to dinner, I need to know ahead of time. I feel anxious each time we eat out, not knowing if he will want me to pay or not.

He gets upset with me when I tell him I can't afford dinner, but then go and buy big ticket items (which I spent months saving for). He says that if I am going to buy expensive items, then he shouldn't pay for dinner because that's in essence him buying the big ticket item for me. Does this logic make sense to the hive mind?

We're going on a vacation in January, which I suggested because he's been busy with work and it's something to look forward to. I suggested it on a whim even though I have another vacation with my closest friend scheduled for April. I'm starting to get in over my head. I'm ashamed to tell him that I can't afford to go. I feel like a child. I also find myself resenting that he hasn't offered to pay for me at all. He thinks that because I'm going on a trip with my friend (also female, so no sexual jealousy), that he should not help pay for my portion of the trip.

I know he loves me, but I feel like he doesn't think I'm worth spending time with. He could easily afford to pay for the trip and has said he'll just go alone if I can't afford it.

I feel selfish for having these feelings. I'm liberal and think relationships should be equitable. I would never expect him to buy me extravagent gifts or my bills. I am proud that I have money saved and don't have to rely on anyone to help me.

Has anyone else been in a situation where one person is wealthy and wants his/her poor SO to split things equally? How did you work money issues out? I don't want him to think that I'm using him (which I am not), but I still find myself with hurt feelings when he doesn't want to share with me. Am I being unreasonable?

What does this line of Dutch translate to in English?

media_itoku — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:18:21 -0800

Help me figure out this line of Dutch dialogue! Is there anybody out there who speaks Dutch? I'm trying to translate the line about halfway through this Flash piece:
Blind Side.

Books on 17th c. Anglo-Dutch maritime wars?

judith — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 14:40:59 -0800

Looking for good books/resources about the 17th century Anglo-Dutch maritime wars. For a project I'm doing, I'd like to get more historical detail about what the Dutch call the English Wars and what the English call the Dutch wars. While I am interested in the specific facts, I'm more interested in getting a sense of time and place, both for those who were at sea and for those at home in the two countries. Do you know any fascinating books (non-fiction or historical fiction) that reference these events?

Help me, uh, go Dutch!

embrangled — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 05:22:16 -0800

I'm half Dutch, but I've never been to The Netherlands. On my first trip there, where should I go, and what should I do, to get a better understanding of contemporary Dutch culture and language? Second-generation-immigrant-filter: So, I grew up eating hagelslag and hutspot, but my knowledge of Dutch culture is limited; cobbled together from the stories of ageing relatives who left in the 1950s, and the clogs-and-windmills kitsch one sees in postcards. I can comprehend basic Dutch conversations, but I struggle to speak back unless strings of the conversation calls for strings of profanity or words for food.

If I visit the Netherlands in November, where should I go and what should I do to remedy some of this, and get a better understanding of what it's like to be Dutch today? How can I meet other young people, practise speaking Dutch, encounter Dutch multiculturalism, enjoy dry Dutch humour, and generally come away feeling a bit more Dutch than when I arrived?

Previously, but not quite the same: 1, 2, 3.

Dutch name translation

eaglehound — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:13:09 -0800

I have found a written reference to a person with a last name of: ten Thije ook genoemd Boonkkamp. I am assuming that it is Dutch? and can anyone transliterate it into English, especially the non-capitalized parts? Does it mean 'Thije' who is married to 'Boonkkamp' or anything like that?

Ik heb... financialaidie?

zvs — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 07:43:21 -0800

NetherlandsFilter: As a Dutch citizen, am I eligible for financial aid for school in the United States? I'm a US-Dutch dual citizen, and I'm starting grad school in the US soon. I was applying for FAFSA when I realized there's probably an equivalent program in Holland.

But I can barely read Dutch, let alone Google effectively in it. Has anyone successfully done this?

Baggy trousers

TiredStarling — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 23:42:16 -0800

I want to get me some traditional Dutch trousers, like these. I've Googled for hours but haven't come up with anything apart from a full, traditional costume which costs over US$100. I just want a pair of cheap pants!

How much Dutch do I need to learn?

joewandy — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 09:14:18 -0800

How much Dutch do I need to learn if my goal is to be able to read Donald Duck comic scans online ? More details and sample pages inside. Assume that I have a good mastery of the English language. How long would it take for me to learn enough Dutch in order to be able to read the following sample Donald Duck scans ?

Sample 1

Sample 2

Basically, how much effort do I have to invest into this endeavour, and what's the proficiency level equivalent to Dutch schooling that I need to achieve (e.g. elementary school, high school, etc.) ?

Note that I only want to learn enough to be able to read the comics, not speak the language.

Thanks for replying :)

Unidentified Dutch ships in a pen-and-wash drawing

RedReplicant — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:43:08 -0800

Unidentified Dutch pen-and-ink drawing: anyone familiar with this type of ship? Here is a link to the drawing in question.

I think those are 17th century ships. Previous guess is 1630. It's in iron gall ink and wash with some wonderful details; from the arrangement of the sails I thought they might be Bootschips or East Indiamen. Any thoughts would be appreciated as I'm not an expert on marine paintings!

Unique Amsterdam

Unred — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 09:05:00 -0800

Please help me create the greatest scavenger hunt in Amsterdam ever! I'm traveling to Amsterdam in April with some friends for a bachelor party (3 girls and the two bachelors). I want to create a scavenger hunt of a mix of both historical Amsterdam spots, unique dutch/Amsterdam experiences, and oddball things that people have come across in the city. Clearly I'll be putting in things like trying Pomme Frites with mayo, visiting the sex museum, torture museum, the oldest brown pub (Chris Cafe), the bloemengarten, etc. We're really not interested in visiting the museums but I'd still like them to get a taste of the history there. Also, I'd like to keep everything within Central Amsterdam. Does anyone have special places or events that they want to share? I've waded through other questions about Amsterdam - I'm looking for things that aren't in the guide books.

Recipe for truly succulent, traditional Jewish brisket?

roxie110 — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 19:01:41 -0800

How do you make truly tender, succulent Jewish-style brisket? I've had a craving for brisket-like-my-grandmother-used-to-make for about a year now. I finally got the meat and my mother's recipe and cooked it today. The taste is great and the thin end of the meat turned out close to what I was hoping for; the thick end is cooked through but not moist and falling apart like brisket in my world should be, and when I stick a fork in it gives a lot of resistance. I don't know if I over- or undercooked it. I should mention that my "dutch oven" (really a stockpot) was too narrow so I used a Calphalon deep covered 13" nonstick skillet instead--maybe a big mistake? I am such a brisket novice.

Below is a quick recap of how I cooked it. I've looked up a ton of recipes but each one is slightly different, and life's too short to try every one. My question is this: who has a foolproof (mostly) recipe for truly tender, traditional Jewish brisket!? And just as important, how do you know how long to cook it and when it's done? (Can you overcook a brisket, as long as there's still liquid in the pan?)

Recipe I used for half a first-cut brisket, about 3 pounds, fat trimmed:
Preheat oven to 350. Place thickly sliced onions, carrots, and a couple chopped garlic cloves in bottom of Dutch oven. Rub ketchup, ground pepper, paprika, and one envelope onion soup mix on all surfaces of brisket. Add liquid to 3/4 inches deep (I used 1.5 cans low-sodium beef broth; most of liquid was absorbed by the end of cooking). Place chunks of potato around meat. Cover tightly and roast for 2.5 hours. Baste two or three times during cooking. Remove from heat, cool meat, and slice across the grain.

Help! And thank you!

Bessengever, anyone?

Arch1 — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:04:49 -0800

Where can I buy bessengenever? My dad's about to run out, and even our local "we have everything" wine and spirits provider here in the Midwest doesn't carry it. Anyone?? Need to find a place that would ship to the US, and if there's a higher end version (?), I'd like to get the ol' man the best possible.

Dutch, English, both...

kalapierson — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 04:23:38 -0800

Walking down the street one day in Amsterdam, you encounter an art-thing (sculpture/installation) that's broadcasting audio. The audio includes spoken poems. Would you expect these poems to be in Dutch? Would you feel alienated if they were in English, or if some were in English and some in Dutch? (And if there were a paper handout available for people who cared, with the texts in both languages, would that affect your opinion?)

Next summer I'll be making three temporary installations like this -- one each in Vienna, Munich and Amsterdam. I've visited each of these cities and I know that many people in each city (especially younger generations) speak beautiful English. But for the Vienna and Munich installations, I know I want the spoken language in the audio to be German.

For the Amsterdam installation, I don't have a clear sense of whether English would be fine or alienating. My main concerns: I want the installation to feel inviting to people of all ages, and I'm focused more on permanent inhabitants of each city than on any tourists who happen to be around. "Permanent inhabitants" does include expats from other countries, which I know are a larger percentage of Amsterdam than of Munich or Vienna. I know my audience on mefi skews young and obviously skews non-Dutch, but I'm sure there are people here who have better, deeper knowledge of the Netherlands than I do.

"Taalontwikkelingsstoornissen." Gee, where does the stress fall?

softsantear — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:33:54 -0800

Is there an online Dutch dictionary that shows diacritical marks for the pronunciation and stress of the word? It could be DU-DU, or DU-EN, though I suppose I prefer the latter.
E.g., sites like The Free Dictionary do this for English.

To reiterate, I'm mainly concerned with where the stress falls on words. I'm developing an intuition about some words, but for some I feel like it could go either way. Also, I'd like to be able to double-check to see if a vowel is short or long. Something using IPA, maybe?

I have a paper EN-DU dictionary that has pronunciation guides in IPA, but I'm trying to stave off the need to buy a proper Dutch-English dictionary just yet.

How does one pronounce Oranje?

TheWhiteSkull — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 19:52:10 -0800

How can I support the Dutch? Now that France has been (shamefully) eliminated from Euro 2008, I'm firmly in the Orange camp. They're looking better than anything else out there, they seem to have remembered how to play total football since the World Cup, and RvP looks particularly sharp. My problem is that I speak no Dutch. How do I cheer for the Netherlands? Other than wearing orange, what else can I do?

Podcasts in het Nederlands/Dutch Podcasts

ponystyle — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 03:38:07 -0800

Welke Nederlandse podcasts kun je me aanbevelen? Ben op zoek naar nederlandse podcasts van hetzelfde caliber als mijn favoriete engelstalige podcasts, zoals:

In Our Time
All in the Mind
This American Life
Radiolab
Start the Week
Thinking Allowed
Street Stories

Maar omdat ik al jaren niet meer in NL woon, ben ik niet op de hoogte van wat de nederlandse radio tegenwoordig te bieden heeft (ik heb overigens nog wel mooi Het Bureau mee weten te pikken).

[Translation: Looking for podcasts in Dutch similar to the english-spoken ones I love]

Help me buy a great film!

JimN2TAW — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 18:28:55 -0800

I'm looking for a copy of the 1979 Dutch film "Opname" (U.S. title: "In for Treatment"), to rent or buy. I saw this film, a moving story about cancer patients, in a theatre in New York in 1982 or 1983. I'd recommend it to everybody and I'd like to rent or buy a copy now. I'll need English subtitles (second choice would be dubbing). I've tried every U.S. source I could find, and sent several e-mails to the Netherlands. This movie existed in the 80's! Can you help me find it now?

Dutch the easy way

four panels — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 08:56:00 -0800

I would like to learn to speak Dutch. Would it be better to move to London and practice Dutch on weekends in the Netherlands, or just relocate there for full immersion? Is moving to a country the language of which I'm not familiar Sysiphean, or a fast track to fluency?

Eleanor Farjeon's poem 'Cats Sleep Anywhere'........ in Dutch?

pootler — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 08:24:12 -0800

Where can I find Eleanor Farjeon's poem 'Cats Sleep Anywhere'........ in Dutch? A bit of a longshot, but my google-fu is totally failing me. Does anyone have any idea where I might find a translation of Farjeon's poem into Dutch?

Ancient Dutch to English

lhall — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 08:51:20 -0800

Looking for accurate English translations of two poems written in ancient Dutch. There are two poems, both of which can be found on this site.

‘Met een zilver palet geschonken aan Geertje Pieters dienstmaagd, schilderes: ’t En mocht niet minder zijn voor Geertje Pieters hand, Nieuw’eere van ons land: En gaat zij rijzende zo ze onlangs is gerezen,/ Zal ’t haast goud moeten wezen.’

and

Ons ‘aardige Vriendinn’, de zeldzam’ Oosterwyck, / Bij wie wij geen’ gelijk en kennen, haars gelijk, / Doet daaglijks wonderen nooit genoeg te schatten./ Een van die wonderen, bij niemand licht te vatten, / Is, dat de Maagd een’ Maagd, een Dienstmaagd heeft gebaard, / En van de vaat-doek af, van Besem en van Haard / Zo schielijk aangekweekt en leren Oosterwijcken, / Datz’ Oosterwijcks Penceel alleen bestaat te wijken. / Wat dunkt u, geestig Vriend, heb ik groot ongelijk, / Die Geertje Pieters noem Geertruyd van Oosterwijck? / Zij is door Oosterwijck al datz’ heeft leren wezen, / Zij is haar eigen Print; of, wilt gij ‘t klaarder lezen, / Z’is Oosterwijckens Maan: en geeft die zulke schijn, / Denkt wat er in die Zon, die ’t licht geeft, lichts moet zijn

I have very, very loose translations, but I'm looking for really close versions, or a referral to someplace or someone that can help me out - and if it's out there, further analysis and research. Thanks!

Looking for help translating a couple of Dutch sentences.

leesh — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 13:12:55 -0800

Can someone translate a couple of Dutch sentences for me? Someone in the Netherlands linked to a picture I drew (of my old school uniform, as badly drawn here) and the following phrases were used:

Bekijk slechts de afbeelding.

Afbeelding kan verkleind worden weergegeven en auteursrechtelijk beschermd zijn.

I'm just curious about what they mean! This picture has a bizarrely large number of hits.

Where is my package?

Lord_Pall — Thu, 31 May 2007 11:43:45 -0800

Where oh where have all of my wifes clothes gone? A postal Mystery in 3 parts. My wife sent her clothing to the UK via USPS from Austin Texas.

She did not insure them or get a tracking number (yeah I know).

We were living in London when she sent them. We moved to Cambridge soon after she arrived.

Due to an inconsistent landperson and twitchy royal mail forwarding, we missed the package being delivered and didn't find out until 3 weeks later.

So where is our package going?

We recieved a note card from Home Delivery Network. It included my wifes name, and the name "TPG Post" scrawled on top.

The tracking number for their website shows This..

I contacted HDN. They said it was returned back to Royal Dutch Mail (???). I asked for their internal reference number for the package.

They gave me - cp 99 89 35 87 0 US

This number works nowhere except the USPS web site, which shows it wasn't delivered on May 10th.

Royal Dutch Mail has no idea what I'm talking about. Nor does TNT post (which I think is a division of Royal Dutch Mail).

Currently, our mail is forwarded in the states. Apparently we need to cancel the forwarding, or it will be sent to the unclaimed package facility, but nobody can confirm or deny this.

So the question becomes, where is our package? Where will it go? Where is it now? How do we recover it? Who should I contact to get this resolved?

Absolute beginner at Dutch

AdamOddo — Sun, 20 May 2007 17:40:03 -0800

Dutch as a second language I am an English speaker trying to pick up a foreign language for the first time, specifically Dutch. There aren't any places where I can take classes near me, so I'm trying to go the cd/tape/book route. There seems to be a lot of software and books out there to wade through, anyone actually learn this way? How bad is the learning curve?

Baked in Holland - name that sweetbread!!

ernie — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 13:21:37 -0800

Help me find the name of a Dutch sweetbread (containing small bits of dried fruit and nuts) with entire "candied" banana baked inside. a special stollen? About a year ago we were in the Netherlands and stopped in at an Albert Hein to get groceries. There in the bakery was a huge thick loaf of a sweetbread the size of an NFL football that weighed a ton. After throwing it around a bit to impress each other with the sheer mass of this thing, we bought it on a lark.

To our delight it was one of the most delicious dessert breads we'd ever tasted. Similar to a stollen but it had an entire banana saturated with sugar baked into the center of it. Please hope me to track this thing's origins down! Was it something specifically made in the Albert Hein bakery and no place else?