Personal Narrative: Appealing Cultural Values And Practices

Cultural Profile and Fit

Appealing Cultural Values and Practices

One of the cultural values that I find appealing about the Netherlands is that it is a much more feminine society than Canada. When looking at the Hofstede dimension of Masculinity, the Netherlands has a relatively low score of 14, indicating that it is a feminine society, especially when compared with Canada’s score of 52. I find this appealing as it means that people in the Netherlands are more motivated by liking what they do, as opposed to being the best, and are more focused on having a work-life balance. They also are more focused on reaching consensus when making decisions. This appeals to me because I believe that it would be fascinating to experience a culture where the

Personally, I am a fairly picky eater and am generally not a fan of soups and stews, which are often served as part of dinner in the Netherlands. I am also not fond of herring which is another staple in the Dutch diet. This may pose a challenge as I may have difficulty finding foods that I want to eat. Another challenge posed by the differences in diet may be finishing meals. The Dutch consider it offensive to waste food by failing to eat everything on your plate . I have a small appetite and may find it difficult to eat all of my food. To address these challenges, I will focus on buying and preparing food for myself. This will allow me to ensure that I am getting foods that suit my preferences and only preparing portions that I can

The consumer price index plus rent for the Netherlands is 15% higher than it is for Canada. The consumer price index plus rent is a measure of the cost of purchasing consumer goods and includes the cost of renting in the given country. Having a consumer price index plus rent that is 15% higher than Canada’s indicates that on average it is roughly 15% more expensive to live in the Netherlands compared to Canada. Additionally, the restaurant index (a measure of the cost of a meal at a restaurant) is 50% higher in the Netherlands than it is in Canada. This indicates that it is significantly more expensive to eat out in the Netherlands than Canada.

Another challenge that I perceive with this assignment is the risk of flooding in the Netherlands. 26% of the Netherlands is below sea level with some areas being as low as 20 feet below sea level. This means that large portions of the country are vulnerable to flooding. While the government has done a lot in terms of infrastructure to minimize both the likelihood of flooding and damage that it would cause, this is still a possible threat that exists in the destination. This is especially concerning evacuation is not a feasible option in many of the most vulnerable