Have you ever struggled to impress your friends that Dutch culture goes far beyond a love of kaas and broodjes? Fear no more, this expat’s viral videos perfectly encapsulate the Dutchies’ weird and wonderful cultural quirks.
Claudia Arroyo originally comes from Peru, but as her TikTok videos will tell you, she fell for a Dutchie like many of us expats.
Life as a lovepat and mother in the Netherlands certainly has its challenges.
Thankfully, Claudia has risen to them, and she has shared some of her hilarious observations with the world along the way. 👇
Some weird obsessions
As with anyone’s TikTok profile, there’s a lot to unpack when you visit Claudia’s page — but let’s start with some interesting Dutch obsessions she’s noticed…
The Dutch obsession with Buienradar…
I’m glad I’m not only confused by the Dutch’s unyielding trust in this rain radar app.
READ MORE | Dutch Quirk #117: Constantly check Buienradar
I firmly believe that a Dutch person could be standing in the rain and yet deny that it is raining unless this app says so. 😂
…and cycling in the rain
However, regardless of what Buienradar says, you can guarantee that nothing comes between a Dutchie and their bike.
Come wind, rain, or snowfall — if there is a road, it will be cycled down.
Obscure cultural quirks
Claudia also made sure to highlight some of the more obscure aspects of Dutch culture.
For example, anyone who has been living in the Netherlands for some time either has heard of (and maybe even experienced — if so, we’re so sorry) the anxiety-inducing circle of death at Dutch birthday parties…
@latina_in_thenetherlands Which one you also had to get to?😂 #latinoseneuropa #dutch #nederland #customs #costumbres #culturamixtacheck #foryou #parati #livingabroad #culture
♬ Mariners Apartment Complex – Lana Del Rey
Even more obscure is the Dutch toilet calendar. Is this a thing? Honestly, it doesn’t surprise me when you consider how closely some Dutchies cling to their agendas.
With all that scheduling, it’s probably best to keep yourself and others updated on future business whilst attending to, ahem, toilet business.
The struggle of learning Dutch
Some of Claudia’s most popular videos relate to the well-known struggle of learning Dutch.
While expats certainly experience the Netherlands in different ways, I think there is one aspect of Dutch culture that we all collectively struggle with — is it “de” or “het“????
Some wholesome takes
While Claudia enjoys poking fun at Dutchies, you can also see from her videos that she loves her life as an international in the Netherlands.
On her page, you can find moments of gratitude to the Dutch, as well as wholesome and motivational content.
What cultural quirks have you noticed as an international in the Netherlands? Tell us all about them in the comments below!
TikTok was funded by, developed by, released by, is maintained by, generates income for and is fundamentally controlled by the CCP. No, CCP is not some benevolent software company; CCP is The Chinese Communist Party!
I love these funny articles 🤣