For someone like me, who is perpetually hungry, food is very important. You might not be aware, but most international students at TU/e walk around very hungry. Many of us come from cultures revolving around food, and getting adjusted to the Dutch cuisine and eating habits is a constant challenge.

For example, a typical Dutch lunch consists of two slices of bread with cheese in the middle. If it’s your lucky day, you’ll get a slice of processed ham, extra salty to compensate for the bland bread. To help this down your throat, you can wash it down with karne-milk (sour milk), which is exactly as appetizing as it sounds. Popular belief is that this combination is healthy and beneficial. True, especially if you own stock in the local bakery.

Dinner doesn’t improve matters much. A typical dinner item is stamppot, a dish whose ingredients are a mystery since it’s all mashed beyond recognition. Rumour has it that it contains potatoes and edible parts of some animal but the jury is still out on that.

Once, I was invited by a Dutch friend to dinner. I went to his home expecting a good hearty meal. Having skipped lunch that day, my mind was filled with visions of tender meat dishes and wholesome vegetables.
Upon reaching, he informs me that dinner consists of one main course - pancakes. Apparently, it’s a typical dinner menu. Noticing my trance like expression as my ears communicated this news to my growling stomach, he laughed and said “Oh, I was joking - we have pancakes AND whipped cream for dinner”.
Oh yeah, that makes it all better then.

I often wonder, maybe that’s why beer is so popular in this country - it makes the food seem good.