6 Weird Dutch Habits That Will Surprise You!

The Netherlands is a beautiful country with many different cultural traditions. Therefore, the Dutch also have many weird habits. Join me to learn about the strange habits of the Dutch. Hold on to your beer and enjoy this article!

#Weird Dutch Habits 1: The Dutch love to mash food.

The Dutch love to shred their food. They like to mix and mix everything into one big mixture. Their favorite mash has potatoes, meat, and vegetables. Dutchies began doing this a long time ago. Vincent van Gogh even made a picture of this habit, “De Aardappeleters”, which means people who eat potatoes. The Dutch still grind their food to this day.

One of their most famous dishes called ‘Stamppot‘ is made by mashing potatoes along with meat and vegetables like kale. The name ‘Stamppot’ literally translates to mashed pot. They make this dish by making a hole in the center of mashed potatoes, then pouring in gravy and adding meat and vegetables like kale. The grinding process then begins with a fork or a Dutch kitchen utensil called an ‘Aardappelstamper’.

If you thought eating mashed potatoes with vegetables and meat was just as weird as in the Netherlands, you’d be surprised by the next strange Dutch habit.

#Weird Dutch Habits 2: The Dutch celebrate the birthday of the whole family, not just one person.

Dutch birthdays are celebrated nicely. When Dutchies come together for birthdays, they sit together in a circle, eating cheese, cold sausages, pickles, and other tasty snacks you likely wouldn’t serve at the house.

On birthdays like this, there is no music, and people will talk about their jobs, relationships, and the weather. But the weirdest thing is that when entering the party, you have to wish everyone’s birthday boy or girl a happy birthday.

For example, you will have to celebrate the birthdays of your mom, dad, uncle, aunt, cousin, and friend along with their loved one’s birthday. If you don’t know what to say at an awkward Dutch birthday party, talk about the weather.

#Weird Dutch Habits 3: The Dutch love to share the price of things you compliment them on.

When or if you approve a Dutchie on their dresses, a simple thank you is usually not the only answer you’ll get. The Dutch love to share the cost of things you compliment them on. The Dutch are famous for eating less of their coins. They love getting a good discount or discount on the things they buy. This penny tight is also why they want to let you know what the price of their stuff is even if you don’t ask them for the price of said item. This is one of the weird Dutch habits

You probably don’t want this information and you likely don’t know how to react to it either. A quick tip: say “Oh wow,” and then continue your discussion as if nothing happened.

#Weird Dutch Habits 4: Always Complaining About the Weather

When the Dutch don’t know what to talk about, they usually start talking about the weather. They can continue to talk about the topic for an infinite amount of time. This is because the Dutch think that the weather is never good, great or great. The weather is always too hot, too freezing, wet, dry or windy. Truth be told, the Dutch are very weather dependent because they cycle everywhere.

#Weird Dutch Habits 5: Cycling as if it were second nature

In the Netherlands, people probably cycle more than anywhere else in the world. They cycle to work or when they need to do some errands. In large cities like Amsterdam or Utrecht, nearly everything is done by bike. Because the Netherlands is not a large country, everything is close by. Depending on where you live, you can usually drive across the Netherlands by car in three to four hours. Going by car is often more costly, takes longer, and you can’t always get to everything easily.

Cycling in other countries is usually done with a cycling helmet and appropriate clothing. But in the Netherlands, Dutch people scowl at people wearing bicycle helmets. The Dutch usually wear casual clothes and don’t wear helmets when cycling. Most children don’t even wear helmets when cycling in the Netherlands.

#Weird Habits 6: Ignore the emergency alarm

While living in the Netherlands, you will probably hear other sounds that you are used to backing home. But perhaps one sound will confuse you the most. Emergency alarms are tested every first Monday of the month at 12 pm. There are more than 4,200 sirens installed across the country and they all sound at the same time. But don’t worry, they only do this to test their alarms. In addition to hearing sirens, you can receive NL-Alert messages on your cell phone. This comes with an unusual ringtone and vibration on your phone. So if you hear the sirens go off on the first Monday of the month at 12pm, act like a Dutchie and keep walking or working as if nothing happened. This is one of the weird Dutch habits

Remember, the Dutch are very straight people. In the Netherlands, they say: “Doe maar normaal, dan doe je al gek genoeg”. This translates to: if you act normal, you’ve acted crazy enough.

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