Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Italians & Dutch
Brief compendium of the Italian & Dutch way of life.... today I experienced both.
First of all, this morning I had to go to the Italian Consulat in Amsterdam, to get the passport stamp to go in the States. Going there it is like entering in a movie, from some point of view an horror movie, but for sure in a science fiction movie, because such things are not happening in real life.....
So, first of all I was in front of the Consulat at 9.55 (it opens at 10, from 10 to 12, you can take your time...) and there was already few people standing in queue. The funny thing is that when they opened, at 10.00, they let enter only 2 people per time, and everybody else was just standing below a sort of metal detector that was by all means a fake.
When I finally manage to enter there is a nice folkloristic guy giving you a random number to wait for your turn (Do you know the Tim Burton's movie Beetle Juice). And when I say random, I mean random, in fact sometimes he gives the same number several times to different people ("Eh, può succedere..."). Anyway the bright side is that you didn't need the number at all, because there are no screens or any other way to know who is being served or who is before you.
Served? Did I say served? Because actually there were three desks, but hardly one person behind them, doing whatever he wanted. He was eventually calling someone to serve him, but there was no order at all, and after he finished with one person (mean time 15minutes) he disappeared for like 10 minutes doing God knows what. Luckily I was like the third in the queue, so I had to wait only 50 minutes. When finally my turn arrived I went to the desk, and I asked for a stamp for the passport. He stared at me distrustfully and he asked me since when I was registered in Amsterdam. I told him 7 months and he looked satisfied... It's a proper amount of time to be considered by the Italian burocracy. He asked me 40.30€ and I gave him 50.30 (I didn't want to pay by pin-card because the italian consulat is the only place in The Netherlands where you have to pay 0.40€ of commission to use the card, everywhere else is free...) and he told me he would have be back in 5 minutes. On the spot I thought "What the hell, five minutes to get a stamp?!?". After almost 20 minutes I realised he has been quite optimistic. In the meanwhile few people has passed in front of me, of course, while a poor Dutch guy had the number just after mine but as he was slow in understanding numbers (of course, the "calls" were only in Italian) he has been overtaken by something like 5 people. When I finally get my stamp (the guy at the desk was kind enough to change also the residence location on my passport) and my money back, I pushed the Dutch guy in front, telling to the desk-man it was his turn and I left. I heard behind me few voices complaining and insulting the Dutch guy because he hasn't been fast enough. When the door closed behind me, I felt in a free country again.
Unlukily I didn't know that to complete the morning I had to experience also the Dutch life. So when I get back to my bike I found the front tire flat again. It is the third time in 4 days, and I was a bit annoyed, also considering that last Saturday I changed the whole inner tire, just to be sure. I pumped it (now I always ride around with a fietspump, and all the other stuff you need to repair a bike) and I get at Nikhef. There, Gordon has shown all his Dutchiness and he fixed my tire in a time record and in front of all the nikhef, having transported the bike inside. Now it seems ok again, hopefully it will last a little longer. That was fast, so Holland-Italy 1-0...
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13 comments:
A cheers for the folkloristic guy!
The one that suggested me not to pay the Italian mark to go to the US
("no one knows Italian passports...")
Then I would like to break a lance in favour of Italy: it's not true that everything sucks.
It comes to my mind:
- food
- bidet
nothing more, but still....
(and anyway it's The Netherlands, not Holland!!!)
Ermes, may we include:
-weather
?
(Just in order to be the perfect Italians that always complain about foreing food and weather, you know.:))
Anyway, living in Germany I'm slightly less pessimistic about Italy because here everything works perfectly (...almost...) but, for God sake, it's so boring!!!
Anyway, I liked the part of Gordon showing (off) his "Dutchiness". :D
Once again, if they were to show you their "Deutscheness" here they would have let you die in your hole.
Ehehe, well, anyway, he succeded quite well, so from now on he will be my wise old from the mountain, the Pai Mai of the bikes...
Fiets Pai Mai...
Nice name!
It suits him, being chinese or so, no...? ;)
Ehh Pai Mai of bikes?? Not so sure that is a compliment :)
Anyways - thanks to you, now Fred, Johan, Paul, Gerard & a some lousy PhD's want me to fix their biketires as well, so I'm afraid there will be a waiting list. Not. F*ck bikes, I'm buying a car when I'm coming back from holidays
Ciao Pai Mai
A very humoristic way of storytelling Eleonora. I see the whole situation in front of me while reading it. Can't remember the scene of Beetle Juice very good anymore but your movie is way better I think. You should go to Cannes next year.
Gr. Michel
please, don't give her wacky ideas!!!
she's already been in tv...
thanks Giulia for the third pro of Italy; I agree.
anyway I propose to use the name Enotria instead of Italy.
What, I am an artist, you don't understand! And btw you can say both Netherlands and Holland, for them is fine, they told me! But what we're talking to you? You maybe know U.S... The turkey's whisperer....
But do we wrote the name incorrectly? It was not Pai Mai, it was "Ciao Pai Mai"? Or this is the name of a chinese restourant?
for Ermes: I just read on the newspaper that in NY the forecast for weather will be for 2-3 m of snow, -20°under the zero, terrific cold..Also in netherland it's snowing. I agree that Italy it's better for climate,...now it's only raining. Remember that bidet or food can be exported...more difficult it's to export the common sense (or democracy)
True... but sometimes you need the common sense to know how to use the bidet....
today I exported in China (via US) the italian coffee and the were enthusiastic (I exported the combo: coffee + moka).
Prodi has to be proud of me!
about the weather: probably you saw something about the NY State and not NYC...
The weather is very different here on the see in respect to upstate.
There is very cold and snowy, here now is just -4 degrees and clear; so it's not so bad...
anyway: tomorrow Philadelphia!
I see that you all found yourself speechless, amazed for my trip to Philly...
I'm sorry to disappoint you but the city is not so nice: in the complex it's a bit boring even if there are a lot of patriotic stuff from the US independence war (as the famous Liberty Bell).
Three notes:
1. Cheesesteak: a typical Philadelphia roll within sliced peaces of steak dipped in melted cheese!!!
2. The Flag Shop!!!!!!
3. The only place in the US cities where you are sure to find always someone and something to do is Chinatown, even in Philadelphia...
ah, pictures here: http://picasaweb.google.com/KeterElyon
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