I was born and raised here in the Netherlands. My biological parents are from Suriname as far as I know. I got adopted by my dads as a baby, they're very Dutch.

My parents tried to teach me about Surinamese culture, though I was never interested in it. They didnt want to force me into anything so they just dropped it.

Though now everytime someone asks me where im from, I tell them the netherlands ofcourse, they act like I said something wierd.

Genuinely what do they want? I know im not white, blonde, or like visibly Dutch. But its what I am.

Its on my passport, my childhood, the way I live, I got the accent when speaking any other language, i have baby pictures of myself in traditional clothing.

The only thing it isnt in is my DNA or something.

I realise that I'm not the perfect candidate or applicant for every role, but my experiences in this job market have been depressing.

Roles I get rejected with a generic email about lacking experience, just to see them fill the role with a candidate with literally 0 experience.

Getting ghosted after second or even THIRD interviews.

Applying for jobs I'm overqualified for and rejected for being overqualified, but jobs I'm exactly qualified for "I'm lacking experience".

No entry-points in certain roles at companies, they only hire interns or recruit internally. And the experience gap between steps in the hierarchy can be enormous. From intern (0 experience) to junior (8 years experience) is a crazy jump.

Not getting a callback for an application but watching it sit on job boards for months, often reposted numerous times feels like a slap in the face.

I've sat down at an interview before just for the manager to tell me they've already filled the position. But maybe I would consider a role I was so overqualified for, I hadn't done it in over a decade. This was offered under the pretext of "oh we didn't want to waste your time so thought you would appreciate this offer". It was like interviewing for the head coach position and being offered the job as a towel boy.

Going to career coaching seminars, reintegration coaches with the UWV, seeing a career specialist to polish my CV and cover letter authoring. I'm not someone that sends out mass applications, I tweak my application and write almost entirely personalised letters of motivation for every application. With no results.

The general hiring and HR culture I've experienced here has been shockingly unprofessional where, probably 80% of the application processes have presented red flags. Under normal circumstances, I'd avoid being associated with a company that operates so unprofessionally but beggars can't be choosers nowadays.

One thing that really, REALLY peeves me is how people can't keep their word. Telling me you'll have some feedback in 3 days but not hearing from you 3 weeks later is so unprofessional. Telling me during the interview that "we need to fill this position ASAP" but then rejecting me for reasons that you could have noticed BEFORE the interview, but then still promoting your job opening for months. This is where I'd sincerely appreciate some Dutch directness.

I just feel like I've hit a wall with how I can approach things differently or improve my chances. I've been learning Dutch for several years but I'm far from speaking fluently, and the fields or industries I'm applying for don't require it. I'm at a conversational level where I can keep up in social contexts but not quite in professional settings.

Furthermore, the jobs I have gotten here have been disastrous. I don't want to go too off topic here so maybe I'll share some stories in the comments.

A bit of a rant but any advice, tips or just a bit of encouragement would go a long way. Maybe a bit optimistic of me.

In the Netherlands, the wealthiest 0.1 percent, a group of 17,000 individuals, emit 18 times more CO2 than the poorest 50 percent of the Dutch population, a group that consists of 8.8 million people. In just two years, one ultra-rich Dutch person emits as much CO2 as someone from the poorest half of the population does in 30 years.

A couple weeks ago I had a job interview in another city and I needed to take a train and bike to get there, early in the morning. On my way back, I fell asleep on the train and woke up to a stranger doing something on a wheel of my bike with a wrench and oily hands. He said 'your chain will come out because the wheel is too far'. I was tired, sort of low because the interview didn't go well, regretting missing a shift of work to give the interview a chance. I was too defeated to question too much the situation and I asked, are you sure about it? He said with dutchie accent and a serious glance 'honderd percent sure'.

We didn't exchange so many words about each other, he was also coming from work he said. I thanked him dearly and left the train on my stop. My bike is indeed better than before, and also my hope in humanity. I was having a bad day and still got a wholesome interaction about it, a peaceful nap on the train and an improved bike.

Good day everyone

As the title states, I went to a dentist in Leiden due to tooth sensitivity for a back molar. They quoted €600 and that's with a dental supplement on my health insurance and a "discount". Seems high? Are they high or is that just the cost of things.

I said I would need to discuss it with my husband as it's an unexpected high expense so I have made no commitments.

Thank you for your insight!

Hi everyone,

I realized it’s been a few months since my last post and wanted to drop a quick update for anyone who followed along. We made the move three months ago, settled into the Heemstede area, and have been trying to build a routine ever since.

I wanted to share a few quick thoughts on how things have felt so far, now that the abstract worries have turned into actual daily life.

Regarding the language situation, passive understanding only takes you so far. I have read many people struggling with this, but the hardest part is that the moment I hesitate in Dutch, people instantly switch to English. I am aware it’s well intentioned, but it makes practicing uncomfortable. I’ve started asking people to just stick to Dutch with me, even when I stumble.

Life here is very quiet, clean, and extremely organized. People are polite and friendly in passing, but it’s definitely a reserved culture. I haven't experienced anything outright negative, but you do feel the space between casual politeness and actual connection. It takes time to break through that layer, especially in a more homogeneous suburb where I for sure stand out as different.

Our son is adapting fast, as kids do. The real work is on my end, making sure I stick to speaking Arabic with him at home so it doesn't get completely swallowed up as his Dutch takes over at daycare. Seeing him in these environments makes the dual identity thing very real, but so far he's just happy playing.

Going from a full life, career, and close family in Casablanca to starting over here has been a bigger mental adjustment than I admitted to myself before coming. Some days are great, others feel a bit isolating while my husband is at work and I'm still figuring out my place here.

It hasn't been a disaster, nor has it been a fairy tale, just the slow work of adjusting to an almost frontally opposite lifestyle to what I was used to.

To anyone who made a similar move, how long did it take for the initial alien feeling to wear off, and where did you actually find your circle when starting from scratch?

My brother visited recently and asked how far my supermarket is from my apartment.

I said, "About six minutes."

He asked, "No, how far?"

Six minutes.

Apparently that was not the answer he wanted.

I genuinely had to open Maps because I no longer knew the distance in kilometres. And then I started noticing I do this with basically everything now.

My dentist is 11 minutes. The good bakery is 8. My friend's place is 17 unless the bridge is open. The station is 5 if I get lucky with the traffic lights, 7 if I don't.

Someone at work mentioned an apartment they were considering and the first question wasn't how many kilometres it was from the office. Three people immediately asked how long the cycle was.

The funny thing is that when I first moved here, a place being 5 km away sounded like something I needed transport for. Now my brain apparently translates 5 km into "probably twenty-ish minutes, depends on wind" and decides whether that's close.

Even walking distances have become slightly corrupted. If somebody tells me somewhere is a 25-minute walk, my first thought is not about walking. It's that this is probably annoyingly close enough that cycling will take longer to unlock the bike, get it out, ride there and find somewhere to park it.

I always assumed becoming used to Dutch cycling culture would mean getting more confident on a bike.

I didn't expect it to completely rewrite the unit system in my head.

Should the Netherlands agree to further US export controls on ASML?

In a new RUSI Commentary, Lasse de Graaf argues it should hold the line. ASML is the world’s only maker of extreme ultraviolet machines, and further restrictions could speed up China’s own chip industry. If the Netherlands does side with Washington, it must be mindful of its vulnerability to retaliation from Beijing.

I have a few Dutch colleagues in my office and we sit down at lunch and talk in Dutch as Im trying to improve my speaking skills. I’ve noticed Dutch people casually mixing English into Dutch conversations and it makes me really curious because I did learn Dutch to around A2ish level online from apps like Doulingo/Praktika and online lessons and I am used to people using actual Dutch words because thats what they use in online exercises but its the opposite when talking to someone alot of times especially people in their twenties or mid thirtees.

For example my colleague often say “Dat is echt weird” instead of saying "Dat is echt vreemd", and it made me wonder how many English words have quietly become part of everyday Dutch, especially for people who work in English speaking environment like mine.

Have you guys noticed this as well? if so, what’s are some common English words you see replacing Dutch words?

I’m a gay boy (26yo) living in Eindhoven, and, even though the Netherlands is known as a progressive country, the LGBTQ’s acceptance decreased by 20% among young people recently.

When I wear crop top in public, in the Netherlands, I feel a bit of judgement, whilst in Germany I don’t feel any judgement (people just don’t care).

As a Portuguese person I just came out at 21 yo and I’ve been really happy dressing like a woman. I feel much better in women’s underwear/crop top/bra/ women’s leggings, than with “standard” underwear for straight guys, and shirts and jeans straight guys use.

But I feel like in the Netherlands the “doe normaal” culture also applies to what I wear, since there is a “don’t stand out too much culture”

Is it like this also in thr Nordic countries ?

I'm looking to interview people between 18-35 years old, who have moved from abroad in order to live and work in NL. Also, if you speak a little bit of Dutch, that'd be nice :)

The interview will take about 30 tot 60 minutes and could be done online! Your identity remains anonymous in the final report. Even if you don't follow the news or media that much, that's okay. That just makes the research more interesting!

The interview is part of a larger research for the Research Group of Journalism at Windesheim UAS. My central question is: what do labour migrants think of their representation in the media and how does that representation affect their identity?

The goal is to gain an understanding in the thought processes of this group. Do they feel representend? How would they describe their identity and do they have any trust in the media at all? Findings of this research could be used in order to improve journalistic reporting on this group.

Shoot me a message if you're interested :)

I use shell app to fill petrol and this helps save some money and get some points that are converted to cash.
I visit dentists regularly to avoid paying high costs later.
I try to buy from lidl instead of Ah. What are ofher tips that will help?Also if there is a credit card that can be used here ?

My partner and I (late 30s) thinking about moving to Schoorl with our active dog. The dunes and forest there look like paradise (we're going there quite often), and we love being outdoors (hiking, running, cycling).

Our situation:
My partner works fully from home
I need to commute to Amsterdam sometimes (~4-5 times a month)

No kids yet, but we do want some social life - cafés, the occasional nice restaurant, not a retirement vibe

Questions for people who live there or know the area:
What’s it actually like living in Schoorl year-round, especially as a couple in their late 30s? Is it dead quiet in winter / overrun in summer?
How bad is the Amsterdam commute in practice? We're car owners

Are there other villages/towns you’d recommend that combine forest + sea + good dog walking, but maybe with a bit more life? Maybe Bergen?

I’ve been dealing with Beliani over a €159.99 refund since November 2025. They say they’ve refunded me, but I never received the money…

After waiting my order two months, I was told my order had been damaged on the way. Beliani eventually agreed to refund, but by then my original bank account was closed. They didn’t ask for my new bank details and apparently refunded the original payment method. I provided my new bank details as soon as I realised the issue.

ABN AMRO told me three times that a transfer to a closed account should bounce back to the sender. I’ve also contacted iDEAL and Worldline, but got nowhere.

Beliani keeps insisting the refund was processed correctly and that it’s no longer their responsibility.

I stopped chasing this in July, but it still pisses me off whenever I think about it. Nobody seems willing to take responsibility.

Has anyone dealt with something similar? Is there any realistic way to hold them accountable?

i realy don’t understand in usa or italy the set up of the weight is the work of the people work in the gym not our job we need just to train and that’s all doesn’t matter for the weight set upi the work of the gym employer

I need some advice about a dental treatment I received in the Netherlands.

I went to a dentist to replace a filling in my seventh tooth (second molar). The experience was terrible.

During the appointment:

- The dentist insisted on taking an X-ray that cost around €90.

- I waited approximately 25 minutes after the X-ray for him to see the pictureand just say "you have good teeth".

- The treatment was extremely painful, and I wasn't offered anesthesia.

- He used a metal separator between my teeth, and pushed it hard for 30 sec to 1 min, we were technically wrestling for that, which injured my gums. They were bleeding for about a week afterward.

- He also adjusted a previously healthy upper tooth because "it was too sharp" despite my objections.

After the treatment, I noticed that food frequently gets trapped between my teeth, especially when eating harder foods. Sometimes this causes bleeding.

Now things have become worse.

My eighth tooth (wisdom tooth) has been partially erupted for approximately 10 years without causing problems.

The seventh tooth had inflammation for a long time, and now the gum around my wisdom tooth has become swollen and extremely painful. There's foul-smelling discharge, possibly pus, and I experience some pain when swallowing.

I don't know whether the current infection is directly related to the filling, but I'm concerned.

Here's my biggest problem:

I contacted the dental clinic. They told me the original dentist could examine or correct the work free of charge, but if I requested another dentist, I'd have to pay.

I've completely lost confidence in the original dentist and don't want him treating me again.

I also don't want to pay twice for treatment that have been performed incorrectly.

I'm looking for advice from people familiar with the Dutch healthcare system:

1. Can I request a different dentist at the same clinic without paying again?

2. If I visit another dentist for an independent assessment, can I recover those costs if the original treatment was faulty?

3. Should I contact KNMT, my health insurer, or another organization?

4. What is the best way to file a complaint and potentially request compensation?

I'm currently dealing with pain and an infection, so I need to get this examined urgently. But the financial uncertainty is making the situation much more stressful.

Any practical advice would be appreciated.

Edit1: i have no dental insurance.

I just graduated a month ago and am in the process of looking for a job. I am an international(24F). So what are people who are also in the process of finding a job doing in their freetime? Please give me ideas. Things to do at home? Outside the house?

Till now I have cleaned and decluttered my room, painted, learnt new skills, read a book, learned new recipes and now i'm running out of ideas. Please helpp!!

And how do you keep yourself motivated and disciplined?