The low sky

Doe maar gewoon, dan doe je gek genoeg.Act normally, that's crazy enough.Nine out of ten people in the Netherlands will quote this well-wornsaying if asked to come up with a basic trait of the Dutch character.Expatriates who have been here for a while see it differently. For them,Dutch society is a weird and wonderful maze full of unpredictable people.At times Dutch people will ignore you politely; at others they will go outof the way to help you. You will get into trouble with the authorities forputting up a fence without permission but, in the late evenings, manyfamily television channels broadcast pornography and advertisementsfor telephone sex into your living room.Even your best friends reach for their diaries to make a dinner date,because you don't just drop by without being invited. And when you buythem a present they will open it in front of you without batting an eyelid.A country and a people full of paradoxes. Or is there some kind of systembehind it all?Han van der Horst paints a picture of Dutch society and the Dutch psychethat will help newcomers to understand the country they are living inand to function effectively at work and in their free time. The Low Sky -Understanding the Dutch is the best guide to the Netherlands and itspeople. This latest edition has been completely reviewed and updatedto do justice to the major social changes that have affected Dutch societyin recent years.