Archive for 'Dutch Vocabulary'
An important day in the Netherlands – time to go vote! Posted by Sten on Mar 19, 2014
Today, March 19, the gemeenteraadsverkiezingen (municipal, or local elections) are held in the Netherlands. They are more important than ever this year, because the gemeenten(municipalities) have more competencies than ever. For example, now they also take on the gezondheidszorg (health care), which is a big issue for the Dutch. However, the kiezersopkomst (voter turn-out) is likely to…
The Big Advantage Of Dutch Students – Only Dutch? Posted by Sten on Feb 26, 2014
Last year in June, the European Commission sued the Netherlands for its policy on the OV Chipkaart. If you wondered, OV stands for Openbaar Vervoer (Public Transportation). The Netherlands have agreed to the Verdrag van Maastricht (The Maastricht Treaty, or Treaty on the European Union (TEU)) of 1992. In this Treaty, which is binding, the Netherlands is obliged to remove barriers…
Was minister Plasterk ousted for his words about the NSA? Posted by Sten on Feb 13, 2014
The NSA is present in the media today more than ever – in both senses. This also hit the Netherlands. In October last year, the agency was alleged through information provided by Edward Snowden of tapping metadata (so information about which phone calls which phone) of 1.8 million telefoontjes (phone calls). As well as in other countries, the…
3 in 1 – De Plakken for the Dutch Speed Skating Team! Posted by Sten on Feb 12, 2014
Last Monday, February 10th, the Nederlands Olympisch Schaatsteam (Dutch Olympic speed skating team) did something that no Dutch team has ever done. At the Olympische Winterspelen (Olympic Winter Games) held in Sotsji (Sochi) in Rusland (Russia) Michel Mulder earned the gouden plak (gold medal) on the Vijfhonderd meter – 500 meters x 2 (meaning that there are two races of 500 meters. The times are then…
The Dutch pastime that dominates headlines in the Netherlands every New Year Posted by tiffany on Jan 10, 2014
Another year has come and gone in the Netherlands. 2014 was welcomed with a (quite literal) bang. Eleven days later, the damage has been assessed and the results of the New Year celebrations in the Netherlands are in. Here are headlines from some of the Netherlands’s top newspapers, detailing what went down this New Year’s…
Elementary School 2.0! Posted by Sten on Jan 9, 2014
Helemaal in het Engels In the Netherlands, a bill is proposed to let schools teach 15% of their lessen (classes) in another taal (language). Helemaal (completely). Especially English is attractive for many schools, because it is used everywhere. It is on TV, in movies, on the internet, and basically all around the small state. It…
Vuurwerk! – Dutch fireworks Posted by Sten on Dec 30, 2013
Generally, Dutch people are very fond of vuurwerk (fireworks). In the Netherlands, they love them around this time of the year. Back in the days, it was believed that the noise and flashes of fireworks would scare away the evil spirits that would bring misery in the new year. Nowadays, the only misery in the…