One of my biggest culture shocks in moving from Ireland to the Netherlands is around the usage of bars as social spaces.
At home I thought of bars primarily as a place to meet new people. I'd head down about once a week alone, with just my newspaper and a free afternoon, and generally end up chatting with someone about the news until we headed out for dinner together.
Even if I went out with friends I'd always expect to mix with another group or pick up someone who had been alone, then end the night partying further at the house of some strangers.
When I arrived in the NL I had assumed this was a universal thing, but quickly found myself being told off by strangers when I tried starting conversations, as they were "just out for a quiet drink."
This was very alien to me, though I quickly became accustomed to it and no longer go to bars except for drinks with colleagues after work, or when I'm in another city and visit the Irish pub for a sense of the old days that never quite materialises.
After a while I wondered if it was simply that I was getting older, but I recently visited home for the first time since before Covid. I went for a walk while visiting my mother and decided to stop for a quick Guinness while reading my book. I wasn't on the second page when a passing woman stopped to ask me what I was reading. I explained it was in Dutch and we had a whole conversation about her brother working in Amsterdam. I couldn't believe it! These experiences continued for the entire week.
I guess to bring it back to the article, the best bar in town is very culture dependant and can change drastically depending on what you're hoping to get from your visit there.
At home I thought of bars primarily as a place to meet new people. I'd head down about once a week alone, with just my newspaper and a free afternoon, and generally end up chatting with someone about the news until we headed out for dinner together.
Even if I went out with friends I'd always expect to mix with another group or pick up someone who had been alone, then end the night partying further at the house of some strangers.
When I arrived in the NL I had assumed this was a universal thing, but quickly found myself being told off by strangers when I tried starting conversations, as they were "just out for a quiet drink."
This was very alien to me, though I quickly became accustomed to it and no longer go to bars except for drinks with colleagues after work, or when I'm in another city and visit the Irish pub for a sense of the old days that never quite materialises.
After a while I wondered if it was simply that I was getting older, but I recently visited home for the first time since before Covid. I went for a walk while visiting my mother and decided to stop for a quick Guinness while reading my book. I wasn't on the second page when a passing woman stopped to ask me what I was reading. I explained it was in Dutch and we had a whole conversation about her brother working in Amsterdam. I couldn't believe it! These experiences continued for the entire week.
I guess to bring it back to the article, the best bar in town is very culture dependant and can change drastically depending on what you're hoping to get from your visit there.