Netherlanders

The day after Halloween of 2021, at the cafe, Hans the Netherlander and I talked about the polders in the Netherlands and cuisines. I told him that I did my report on the Netherlands in elementary school. I learned about polders. Hans said that Netherlanders ate raw fish. I mentioned the "gravlax" fish dish in Sweden.

At the cafe the rainy day after Halloween of 2021, Hans the Netherlander mentioned to me that Italian food was "acquired taste" for him. He mentioned the method of tenderizing octopus and the way the ink complimented the dish. I mentioned the black squid ink spaghetti. I said that I liked all seafood, including octopus, squid, and cuttlefish, which made him squirm. Then, I mentioned that I liked moussaka, a Greek lasagna-type dish with eggplants. Hans said that as a Netherlander, he liked "plain meat and potatoes." But Netherlanders do eat raw herring.

On the 3rd of November of 2021, it was a rainy, somber day. At the cafe, I found the only open spot at a table near the washroom. There, I drank my iced green tea. At a table beyond mine was a blond student with big biceps with tattoos. Hans the Netherlander rolled in with his wheelchair. I joined him at another table. There, we discussed multibillionaires: Elon Musk's space technology and Bill Gates' medical technology. Then, we discussed the Yucatan. I said that I have been to the temples at Tulum, near a cliff overlooking a white sandy beach, looking like a science fiction set. The other day, he mentioned that Netherlanders ate eel. I suggested that he try the "unagi donburi," sweet glazed eel on rice, at the nearby Japanese restaurant.