Dutch Beauty

A look at Dutch beauty through the eyes of an ex Londoner

Within the first few weeks of moving to the Netherlands, my camera roll was bursting with pictures of the facades of nearly every house i passed as i went about my new daily life.

I took videos of the streets as i walked to work, OOTD selfies from on high, high enough to get the outfit, but also the herringbone brick road under foot.

I dreamt i would become an Instagram influencer about the beauty of my daily life once i moved here. Making my friends jealous, enough that i could convince them to pack up their lives and make the descent to the Netherlands, just as i had done.

But after only four months, i suddenly found myself totally and utterly blind to the beauty of the Netherlands.

The Instagram stories slowly dropping off, as i had to stop drawing my phone out every time i saw a cute house, or a cute bike, or a cute bike outside a cute house, ect ect, mainly for fear of a repetitive strain injury.

Having lived in London for 10+ years, i had grown accustomed to look past the ugliness of the city, and had learnt to see the hidden beauty that lay in wait between the cracks. You just had to be patience enough with London for it to show you its beauty spots.

But unlike London beauty, where you have to squint to see it, here in the Netherlands it is such a gentle, constant and steady beauty, you can almost miss it once you’ve acclimatised. Nothing ‘stands out’ as beautiful because it is literally all beautiful.

But that’s just the thing, it is something i don’t want to loose, i never want that beauty to be lost on me. However rather than continue to take the same old tired touristy images of buildings and coffee shops, i’m going to dig a little deeper and highlight the beauty in the every day here, so this post is in aid of that.

To allow myself to stop and smell the tulips again, and remember the reasons why this place is so bloody beautiful.

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So here i am smelling the tulips, i invite you to lean a little closer and take a whiff with me.

Markets

A Saturday here, is nearly always started with a trip to the market. Be it for food or for flowers, it doesn’t matter, so long as you go. And don’t get this confused with the experience you get at Columbia Road Flower Market on a Sunday, or Borough Market any day of the week. No no, this is a slow affair. No shouting and shouldering your way around here, no over priced produce shipped in from overseas. There are local flowers and food a plenty, and all so fresh and so cheap it feels wrong to even attempt to haggle.

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Bikes

I think just about the most whimsical thing you can do, although I’m certain the Dutch just think of this as the most common thing you can do, is your ride your bike through the city with your fresh flowers and vegetables in the front basket of your bike. If not basket, you simply cradle the giant bouquet in your arms. The first time i did this, i was grinning like an idiot, catching flies in my teeth I’m sure, because i just couldn’t get over the simple beauty of this act. Buying yourself flowers, and then (safely) cycling home with them. Such joy!

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Work Life Balance

I read somewhere recently how the Dutch ‘Earn the most whilst working the Least’ out all of all the European countries, and i fully believe that every time i see the terraces of the any town and city, full to the brim with friends catching up over a glass of wine, anywhere from 2pm onwards any given day of the week. How they managed to wangle that i will never know, but all i can say is cheers.

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Lifestyle

I mentioned terraces above, and no London, i do not mean a bench outside the front of a pub, although remind me to tell you about Dutch benches. These terraces are purpose build squares, away from roads and traffic, with hundreds of tables, chairs, parasols, heaters, blankets - just about all the outdoor patio paraphernalia you could need to get you through eating and drinking outside in every season. They bring about a beautiful, chic ‘Continental’ way of living, and i am absolutely here for it.

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Benches

So before i forget, benches. Nearly every home has a bench out the front of their house, some are nifty little things that fold neatly back against the wall of the house, for those narrow pavements of Amsterdam, whilst others are fully erected benches, chained to the drain pipe of the house they belong to. And they are here because the Dutch are serious sun worshippers. Quite often these houses will also have a garden in the back, but that is not enough sun for the Dutch, they want to be able to experience the full rotation of the sun from morning to night, and so they will follow it around their house throughout the day. The country and it’s people are so friendly, that sitting on the pavement on your own bench to enjoy your morning cup of coffee in the sun is a gorgeous experience. Another layer to this that you will also see, is that is you find yourself living in an apartment without a garden or balcony, and the sun is out and you want to host a dinner party in it, well no problem, just move all your dining furniture to the street, and host your friends for dinner there. No one bats an eyelid, and if they do its usually just the newbies staring in disbelief. Isn’t that a thing of beauty? Heel gezellig. (google translate it if you don’t know.)

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Canals

I don’t think you can go anywhere in the country without coming across a canal. So much so that most Dutchies own a boat, and you will see them cruising the canals all weekend long, with drinks, a picnic, the whole family and the dog too. If you are not lucky enough to be a boat owner, you can still enough them well enough, by sit along the canals, at the numerous bars and restaurants, looking longingly out at the water and those sailing on it.

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Kings Day

Kings day is the day you will just about anything that floats in the canals of the cities, and atop the floating vessel, drunk people wearing orange. Kings day is a public holiday for the Kings Birthday, that the Dutch go bonkers for. Now maybe this is boarding on the beauty line, but i will argue in favour of beauty, due to the fact that it is something that brings the whole country together. Young or old it doesn’t matter, everyone is having a marvelous old time.