Dutch Perspective - by Marc van Bree » Blog Archive

Dutch observations

I just spent around 10 days in the Netherlands, celebrating the holidays with family. Every time I go back, I am becoming more and more aware of some of the differences between the Netherlands (or Europe in general) and the United States. I found myself saying the often irritating “well, in the United States we do this…,” whereas in Chicago I say “well, in the Netherlands we do this…” The grass will always be greener on the other side.

In between family visits I went to Maastricht in search of my genealogical roots. The beautiful archive is housed in a centuries-old church and monastery. I made copies of several birth, marriage and death certificates and found clues where to look for even earlier forefathers. It was quite amazing to see the microfilms of all those documents. Just like you can envision Da Vinci putting the finishing touches on a painting when you stand before it; you can picture a great-great-great-great-grandfather signing the birth certificate of his newborn son when you see the document.

One of the more remarkable observations is that in just a couple of days in the Netherlands I saw more classical music and opera on television than in an entire year in the United States. And the best of all: it wasn’t even a multi-hour public television pledge drive with Andre Rieu’s excruciating cheesiness; it was Mariss Jansons and Bernard Haitink with the Concertgebouworkest and the Mozart / Da Ponte trilogy with the Nederlandse Opera.

And finally, another reason why Schiphol is my favorite airport: the Rijksmuseum has installed a small exhibit in between terminal E and F. The current theme is the Dutch Golden Age and the Dutch marine power. It might be a tiny space, but they even have a Frans Hals there. Where else can you find a real Frans Hals painting while you wait for a delayed plane?

But as great as Schiphol might be, it’s still an airport. And airports are never fun. Here are nine general airport observations:

Those moveable walkways are not built for people to just stand and gaze; they are built for people who want to get to the end of the terminal quicker;

Weigh your suitcases before you leave the house; no one appreciates you holding up the line because you have to remove items from you suitcase;

All people, Europeans in particular, should know how to form a line and how to wait in one;

All liquids in your carry-on luggage must be in a clear, quart-size, zip-lock bag and bottles cannot exceed 3 fluid ounces. Those of you who do not know that by now please do not fly;