Feeling clumsy in the Netherlands
The Grote Kerk, Haarlem, Netherlands “Mmmm to the left to the left, everything you own in a box to the left.” These Beyonce lyrics may one day save your life. If you come from a left-hand driving country to one that drives on the right, this will be your anthem and constant reminder to look left when crossing the road. I, along with friends, adopted this technique when I was studying in Salamanca, Spain and got a swift reminder to reinstate singing this little number every time I step out the door in Haarlem, Netherlands. I automatically looked right, stepped out and almost got taken out by a bike. Its rider managing to come to a stop centimeters away from me while yelling something in Dutch which I feel fortunate enough to not yet understand. I had a camera around neck, a massive branding mark that I’m a tourist, and I apologise in English. It feels almost like a rite of passage to nearly get run over by a bike in my first week, but I also feel clumsy stumbling around, k