Christmas in the Netherlands

I’ve only spent a few Christmases away from home and unlike Thanksgiving, it’s much easier to handle. Of course I miss my family and friends, traditions, and familiarity of home. The difference between the two holidays though is that Thanksgiving is American so of course other cultures don’t recognize it but Christmas is universal. No matter where you are, the day no matter how you spend it is special and recognized.

One of the best Christmases I ever had was when I was in Sierra Leone. Other than the calendar, there was no indication that Christmas was around the corner. I heard my first Christmas song 2 days before the actual holiday when we caught a ride in a pickup truck and it was playing on the radio. I saw my first decoration on Christmas Eve. All in all it was a very low key day which included making the less fortunate smile and a nice meal with good company.  There was no oversaturation and commercialization of Christmas that happens in the States now beginning at approximately 6:12PM on October 31^st until January 2^nd. My impression of the people in the States is that they are over Christmas before the actual day takes place.

The Netherlands isn’t free of the commercialization and the push for consumerism but it is toned down considerably. Although I have to admit that my lack of awareness and knowledge of what’s happening in the media, on advertisements, etc. may contribute to my appreciation of the “lack” of Dutch holiday preparation. Let me just insert right now that I’m not immune to the commercialization of Christmas- I love buying and receiving gifts just as much as anyone else. However, you have to admit that Christmas is on steroids in the States.

Sinterklaas’ arrival begins the holiday season here in late November. However, true Christmas decorations traditionally don’t start appearing until December 6^th. Slowly, we began noticing new foods in the grocery store, wreathes on doors, and trees lit up behind the giant Dutch windows. Friends and acquaintances treated us to small gifts and cards. Gearoid received along with his holiday bonus a gift from the university that included a Dutch music CD, mints, an embossed Radboud suitcase, and 5 lbs of black licorice (which we promptly re-gifted to Dutch acquaintances who would actually appreciate the bitter flavor). My volunteer work was celebrated as well when my Asian ladies took me to a 4 hour dim sum lunch and I received gift certificates from them as well as the from the women’s center where I taught bike lessons.

Shopping street in Nijmegen decorated for Christmas

A very decorated house near us in a largely Muslim neighborhood

These showed up less than a week before Christmas and put a smile on my face

Long story short- the secret to having a nice Christmas away from home is to share small comforts of home with the good company you surround yourself with. It also helps to have a loved one around. I’m lucky that when I don’t have my family, I have Gearoid. But enough sappiness. We started our holiday celebrations by inviting friends over to admire our beautiful (although itch inducing) Christmas tree and for some holiday drinks a week before the actual holiday weekend. I made some familiar treats from home- snowball cookies and homemade eggnog (I had to make it because they don’t sell it here and I have to say that I was surprised by how delicious it turned out) and along with other snacks and drinks we had a festive time.

Treats for the festivities. The snowballs were delicious although not as good as the ones my Grandma makes.

I love to decorate my tree with candy canes but couldn't find any here. A friend found these ones funnily named party sticks. They turned out to be soft and flavorless but it's the thought that counts.

On the actual holiday weekend, we did the following:

Christmas Eve- Gearoid and I spent the day at the Africa Museum in town. We had a free museum pass that was going to expire soon and we had planned ahead to have all of our last minute holiday shopping done the day before to avoid the crazies who for whatever reasons hadn’t planned ahead. We arrived a little before 12PM and were told by the museum staff that they were closing early at 4PM because of the holiday. We just looked at each other and smiled. How long do people spend in museums and how big was this place that we would spend 4 hours there? The museum was very nice and had an extensive art collection from all over the African continent. There was an outdoor portion as well but most of it was closed because of the winter season. An hour and a half later we were finished and satisfied with our visit.

That night we went to my Polish friend’s house for dinner. She is in a similar situation as us- being away from home on the holidays with only her husband for company. She’s also about pop any moment as she’s 8 ¾ months pregnant. We had a lovely time with typical (and delicious) Polish food. Borsch, homemade pierogies, salmon, several types of cabbage and mushrooms, and potatoes made up our meal. We then spent several hours having drinks, desserts, and good conversation. It was a very special night for us and although she did all of the work and refused any help, she thanked us for spending Christmas Eve with her so she wouldn’t be sad and homesick away from her family.

Gearoid in front of model house at the Africa Museum

Christmas Day-  Gearoid and I had this day planned for a month. We generally stayed in our pajamas, ate chocolate, and watched movies all day. Gearoid was this year’s winner as the gift giver. I made out with a new detachable bike bag, cupcake accoutrement, a scented (and overpriced) Christmas candle, gloves, and a beloved lamp from the States rewired to work here in the Netherlands. I felt a little embarrassed handing over his calendar and dvds but as he reminded me- it’s the thought that counts and gifts are not the point of Christmas. Then he profusely agreed that he was indeed the Christmas winner.

We took a break from chocolate by making a meal that is very similar to the meals Gearoid had each year at Christmas. It was pretty much made up of fake chicken, potatoes, and an assortment of roasted vegetables. I was fine letting him have this tradition as my family gave up on traditional Christmas meals when my mom decided years ago she didn’t want to make two Turkey dinners with all the trimmings within 6 weeks of each other. One year we even put meal suggestions into a hat to pick out what our veggie, meat, side dish, and dessert would be. I don’t remember what the meal was but I do remember the relief we all felt when my little brother’s choice of spaghetti O’s and chicken nuggets wasn’t picked out of the hat. 

After our dinner and more chocolate, we Skyped our family members. It was after all of the holiday conversations that our plan started to fray at the edges. By the end of the day, we had headaches from all of the movies, stomach aches from all of the chocolate, and were generally sick and tired of being in the same room together. That night before bed we kissed goodnight, thanked each other for the wonderful Christmas, and promised to stay away from each other the next day.

Gearoid and I gave each other a lot of chocolate but I thought the discrepancy between the sizes of our Toblerones was pretty funny. Guess who got the giant one

Christmas dinner- butter with a side of veggies

Second Christmas (in the Netherlands)/Boxing Day (in the UK and Ireland)/Big Shopping Day (in the States)-  Second Christmas is designed so that Dutch people can spend some of the holiday with both sides of their family. Most people visit their in-laws or the side of the family they did not see the day before on second Christmas day. Having no family in the country to split the holiday with, Gearoid and I kept true to our promise to each other. Gearoid took over the spare room to do some work and I staked out in the living room and happily entertained myself. We re-convened in time to head to Gearoid’s colleague’s house for dinner.

It was there that we confirmed that Gearoid and I are most guilty of gluttony. Our host tempted us with nibbles in the form of stuffed olives and peppers before laying out a 3 course meal. The main course was a special French cheese that is only available twice a year. We each got our own bamboo bowl of this baked yet gooey cheese. We dipped apples and bread into the cheese when we weren’t secretly spooning it into our mouths by itself. I sadly couldn’t finish mine and Gearoid happily did it for me. After dinner, came a delicious dessert and after dessert came coffee and tea along with chocolate covered almonds, candied ginger, and more temptations. I secretly unbuttoned my pants under my sweater and the buttons were straining on Gearoid’s shirt front. Somehow, we managed to bike home without falling over due to eating exhaustion and general heaviness.

Overall, we had a very gezellig Christmas and the days surrounding it. Although we were quite literally tired of eating and relaxing, the holidays weren’t quite over for us. We were off to Belgium for 3 days as part of our Christmas gift to each other!

On the road to Belgium!