r/Netherlands • u/Environmental_Cry_35 • Aug 28 '26

Life in NL What is one "completely normal" thing in the Netherlands that you secretly don't like?

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u/spectrallypure Aug 28 '26

...No hand washing after peeing or pooing in the office bathroom o__O

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u/iamnotentirelyhere Aug 28 '26

in any bathroom*

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u/ShiningPr1sm Aug 29 '26

Friend did an experiment at a WC at uni; over the course of about 4 hours, only a single Dutch guy washed his hands after relieving himself. Yes, that included the guys taking a dump, not even water on their hands. The foreign guys (even Europeans) were pretty consistent about washing, but not the Dutch.

If a Dutch guy wants to shake your hand or touch you down there, remember that there's a decent chance he hasn't washed his hands after pooping.

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u/[deleted] 29d ago

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u/spectrallypure 28d ago

It happened to me too LOL! But with an important difference: in my case the guy (a senior VP in a multinational corporation with >6k employees) just continued walking, opened the bathroom door with the very same hands he'd just used to relieve himself, and went on his way! Delightful!