The Dutch experience of our German au pair Anne
Hi Guys,
My name is Anne, I am 29 years old and I live in Cologne (Germany). In the end of July my second au pair experience started. For 4 months I lived in Naarden (the Netherlands). But what is so special about that? I am a very unusual au pair- at least here. I am a German with a Dutch name, born and raised in a city next to the border to the Netherlands, I knew the country from holidays and trips before AND I speak Dutch.
You might think: Why is she doing this? It is like a bigger holiday in a country she already knows, nothing new for her and the people and culture are like her own.
Well, let me explain…after I graduated from high school, I wanted to become a doctor. But my grades weren’t good enough, so I thought of studying in the Netherlands. That was plan A. But the language courses were so expensive, and I had to wait for the application another 6 months, so I started my plan B: becoming a teacher. At the university of Cologne, I started to study Dutch and after my first semester I knew plan B became plan A and Dutch was so much fun that I got through to my master now. I learned a lot about the language, literature, history, and culture of the country but I never had the time to experience all that by myself. So, I planned to go to the Netherlands in May of 2020. Well I don’t have to say what happened then… covid-19 or corona was happening. I couldn’t finish my master as planned, exams were postponed, and my summer was all about waiting for news because of lockdown. So I decided to work as an au pair and use the time to improve my language skills and experience everything that I learned about the country from books and lessons in place of sitting in Cologne waiting for news.
I could manage to find a family and went to Naarden on 27th July.
What did I learn about the country, people and language I thought I would know so much about?
Well, I learned that I didn’t know so much 😀
- My Dutch is/ was very old-fashioned. Sometimes they looked at me like I came straight from the 1940s. So I learned a lot about slang and the daily used Dutch.
- Many stereotypes of the Netherlands, the Dutch and their food were replaced with new opinions. I love the spices, flavours and tastes. I tried and found so many new dishes I didn’t expected to be “typical” Dutch. What an eyeopener!
- Reading about Sinterklaas is not the same as experiencing his arrival with the boat and the kids going crazy about him and his helpers the Pieten.
I went to a lot of museums, saw the beautiful art of the most known and popular artist like Rembrandt, van Gogh, Vermeer and Mondriaan. With the kids I had great trips to the Miffy museum, Muiderslot and Nemo. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the international The Hague, the beaches all over the country, a hike to the highest point of the country near Maastricht and of course Amsterdam with all the canals, nice food and history.
Was it all worth? Absolutely! My Dutch improved a lot, I learned so much about culture, traditions and daily life here AND I met so many nice people including my lovely host family and all the girls I now call my friends
If you are thinking of going to the Netherlands or a country you already “know”, don’t hesitate, you will always see new things, meet new people and make your own experiences.
