Ask And ye Shall Receive Some More
Jovanka is a fellow expat living in Gent. She’s also a stand up comedian, so I’ll have to see if she’s performing in the Gentse Feesten this year. Anyway, I really liked these questions because they are from an expat living in Belgium perspective, so they were sort of unexpected, insomuch as when I am asked about living here, these sorts of questions never really come up.
What is your favorite Dutch word and why?…My first one was “Nachtwinkel” which used to crack me up for some reason.
I’m not sure if I have a favorite word in Dutch. I kind of like the word “waterzooi” I guess. I have to say though, the word I’ll always remember in Dutch is “ongeloofelijk” because it’s the first Dutch word I learned all by myself. From a Pizza Hut commercial actually.
What’s your favorite topping on frietjes?…Mine used to be “Samurai” (before I went vegan).
Hrm, I’d have to say garlic sauce or tartar sauce. Vol au vent is good too, but I don’t like how it makes the fries mushy towards the end.
The three kiss thing when greeting people: Do you love it or find it invasive and tedious? (Personally I found it charming until I had to kiss everyone like a million times at my wedding).
Crap, I totally didn’t even think about the fact that I’ll have to do this at our reception here. I’ve never seen it as charming…I find it more than tedious if the group I’m greeting is larger than 2 people. I really felt uncomfoartable doing the kiss thing when I first moved here. I enjoy my personal space. I’m not a hugger at all. In fact, there are pictures of me throughout my childhood where you can see me clenching my fists (unconsciously) while I’m being hugged. So kissing was very difficult to get used to and I still feel awkward doing it if I’m meeting a group of people who are more or less strangers.
So, there you have it! Mind you, I’m always open to questions if you have any, so feel free to ask away at any time. Oh and here’s a quick list of terms:
nachtwinkel – night shop
waterzooi – a thin stew made with chicken or fish, vegetables and cream (Gent’s specialty)
ongeloofelijk – unbelievable
frietjes – fries (which are not, nor have they ever been French, fyi)
samurai sauce – a spicy sauce made from sambal and mayonnaise
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Dudette.. I want to come there and just eat. Very cool!
The kiss thing…what’s worse is having to know how many kisses certain cultures give….Dutch– three (which I think is really awkward… why three?), most of the rest two….can’t we just shake hands.
the kiss thing would be really uncomfortable for me, too. Italians are that way, also. When I visited my dad’s hometown and I had to kiss everyone–it felt strange.
This was particularly interesting, seeing the questions from another expat/Gent perspective. C fell in love with mayo on fries in Amsterdam. It was the type you get there, though… samurai sounds great, though.
aaaah I missed kissing in Canada
. I like it, although at a wedding I feared it’d become a painful chore. I was advice by other brides to keep chopstick (?) nearby. But it wasn’t too bad.
I love andalouse on my fries and even more on the good “quality” meat you get at a frietkot.
What is a night shop?
Good answers! And just be forewarned that if you have a bunch of Belgians at your wedding, your day will be all about the kisses. However many people are coming to your wedding multiply that number by 6 because that’s how many you’ll have to do (3 as they arrive, 3 as they leave).
Yes I am on at the Gentse Feesten! Here is a link to the website for it: http://www.comedyfestival.be/2009/programma/
Most of it is in Dutch but I perform in English – also there is another comic – Steve Day – who performs in English as well. But I’m guessing your Dutch is probably good enough to understand most of it. Especially if they talk about waterzooi!! ; )