» 2012
Reporting politics: The urge to score
September’s elections killed a lot of birds with one stone. Extremist parties on the left and right were decimated, consensus politics was restored to the centre of Dutch life, and anti-euro sentiment was put firmly in its place. Sobriety at last. The media played a major role. It has turned into the king-maker of The Netherlands. We’ve become used to... Read More »
Marked for death
Headstrong parliamentarian Geert Wilders is seen by many, or at least by himself, as the ‘successor’ of Fortuyn. His intellect and the way he presents himself are a far cry from the front man of the LPF, but he is successful. The Dutch political landscape is not easy for foreigners to understand for foreigners. The main reason is the extraordinary... Read More »
Europe in 10 days
Organized group-tours across Europe are enormously popular. Countless Americans, British and Asian tourists engage in voyages that guide them past the tourist attractions Europe has to offer, such as Buckingham Palace, the Eiffel tower in Paris and the ring of canals of Europe’s ‘sin city’; Amsterdam. However one wonders whether these cultural explorers experience the ‘real’ Europe. The Internat… Read More »
Have no fear – Germany is here
Germany is increasingly taking the lead in the handling of the euro crisis…and critics are raising the usual fears of German domination. But, according to Mark Maathuis, there’s no other solution. Germany’s impressive economic management can be the engine to pull the entire continent out of the doldrums. The country seems to have come to terms with its decades-old... Read More »
Murder in Amsterdam
Around the turn of the century, the well-read social scientist, writer and politician Pim Fortuyn (1948-2002) dropped a political bomb in The Hague. As leader of his own right-wing party LPF, he justly criticized many prominent politicians for their failure to address certain problems in Dutch society. The Dutch political landscape is not easy for foreigners to understand for foreigners.... Read More »
Mochi, The Hague
East meets west in Mochi – an unexpected culinary hot spot tucked away on the Mallemolen in the trendy Denneweg section of The Hague. With a menu combining South American and Japanese influences, Mochi is as fun and distinctive as its name. Owner and chef Patrick Buyze is a Dutch native who studied throughout Asia and is married to... Read More »
The Dutch Political System in a
The Dutch political landscape is not easy for foreigners to understand for foreigners. The main reason is the extraordinary number of political parties in Holland, a phenomenon that has only gained importance since the rise and deadly fall of the flamboyant taboo-breaking politician Pim Fortuyn. This booklet can be seen as a much slimmeddown version of Andeweg and Irwin’s treatise.... Read More »
Beauty and banality
For tourists, there’s the museums. But expats resident in The Netherlands will be expected to display insider knowledge of the country’s current culture when they return home. Beverwijk’s Black Market beckons. t o me, the black market is a journey through time and space. There, I feel like Marco Polo discovering the riches of far-flung lands and peoples, the... Read More »
