Housing Market

The housing market here is a nightmare. I signed up for every platform: Pararius, Funda, Rentbird, you name it. I even shelled out €50 for a sketchy site that probably sold my info.. Every decent listing gets hundreds of applicants. Refreshing my mail hoping for a viewing invite. When I finally got one, I showed up to a “cozy” apartment in Noord with 30 other desperate people, all waving their pay stubs and permits like we’re at a casting call. The landlord barely glanced at us, just muttered, “Send your documents, we’ll pick.” The prices are absurd. €1,500 for a one-bedroom that hasn’t seen a renovation since the 80s? All I want is a place to call home without having to treat apartment hunting like a full-time job. Some affordable housing, or at least a system that doesn’t make you want to scream would be nice.

Living in the Netherlands as an Asian

I recently participated in a Spartan competition hosted in Zandvoort. As I approached the finish line, there was a group of people gathered—waiting for their friends and family, cheering them on. A group of kids, around six years old, waved at me, and I happily gave them high fives. I'm Asian. But after that, they yelled "Ching Chong" at me. I was running and caught off guard, so I didn't stop to confront them. I assume they didn’t fully understand the meaning of the words, especially since they also shouted "Konnichiwa," which means hello in Japanese. This isn't the first time I’ve felt deeply frustrated since moving to the Netherlands about six months ago. I didn’t run long distance just to be insulted by kids. There have been multiple occasions when I was just walking down the street like anyone else, and random people would shout “Nihao” at me. How "normal" is this kind of behavior in the Netherlands? And how do kids at such a young age learn words like “Ching Chong”? Where are they picking this up from? Updated: Since I got a lot of comments saying I’m overreacting—thanks, but I’m not bothered by that. What I mean by deeply frustrated is this: people saying, “Oh, it’s common, just accept it.” I remember a similar situation—once on a night bus, a group of teenagers met some tourists from Italy and kept asking, “How do you feel about pineapple on pizza?” Please... find something more meaningful than making these kinds of stupid jokes based on stereotypes. If you think it’s a joke, let me tell you the truth: you’re not that funny. What really bothers me is that even in European countries—where there are barely any border controls within Schengen, and you’re only one or two hours away from a completely different culture—people can still be so narrow-minded. Is this really the best we can do? Updated again: This post got way more attention than I expected. First, thank you to everyone who shared similar experiences or acknowledged that this is something we need to work on together. I also received a lot of questions, such as: What does Ching Chong mean? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ching_chong This was actually the first time I heard this word in person. I’m Chinese, and there’s no real Chinese word that sounds like "Ching Chong." It’s just a mocking imitation of how Chinese sounds to some people, and it’s definitely inappropriate. It should never be said in any context. Why do I feel offended when people say "NiHao" on street? Asia is a large continent with many different ethnic groups. Chinese people are just one part of it. You shouldn’t assume someone is Chinese just because they look Asian. As many commenters pointed out, there are people who look Asian but were born and raised in the Netherlands. Even though I am Chinese, I don’t like it when strangers randomly shout “Nihao” at me. It doesn’t feel welcoming, it feels like a reminder that I don’t belong here. Some people suggest I should just accept it and not be bothered. But we didn’t choose to be bothered it's the people who shout “Nihao” at us that make it bothersome. Others shared experiences from traveling to asain countries where they were greeted with "Hello" and didn’t feel offended. There’s a big difference between being a tourist and living as a resident. I wouldn’t mind it much if I were just traveling, but I live here, and hearing it frequently makes me uncomfortable. If a friend or someone genuinely trying to start a conversation says “Nihao,” I’m happy to hear it, that’s a kind gesture showing friendness. But if you wouldn’t greet every strangers with “Goedemorgen,” then don’t say “Nihao” to someone just because they look different from you. Finally, I’m not trying to claim that racism in the Netherlands is “special” or unique. Yes, many places have similar issues. But this is my personal experience, and it happened in the Netherlands. I didn’t make anything up. The general awareness of this kind of microaggression doesn’t seem to match the country’s progress in other areas. Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/Netherlands/comments/1kwyljp/living_in_the_netherlands_as_an_asian/