, cut off as if with the thickest of curtains from his wife sewing or his children readingùsimply sitting with his head on one hand, staring and thinking." To others, being by oneself likely "means being in a room alone. The Dutch à can be by themselves in a room with six other people or on a canal bank lined with people fishing, almost shoulder to shoulder." The Dutch have "learned how to pretend at any given moment that some of the peopleùparticularly those who can be lumped in a groupù are invisible or are not there. It is a course of action the Dutch have taken since the sixteenth century, when the rebellion against Spanish rule underlined the religious disharmony in the so-called United Provinces."
The desire for privacy on the part of the Dutch means that the development of close friendships in Holland, particularly for the foreigner, is neither an easy nor a rapid process. As a consequence, many foreigners, particularly Americans, tend to find the Dutch aloof. The Dutch, however, will almost invariably respond favorably, if not effusively, to overtures initiated by strangers. In the conduct of business, this behavior dictates that the foreigner take the first steps toward the establishing of relationships, and that the foreigner be prepared to expend some considerable amount of time in developing a close, working relationship.
Once a relationship is established with a Netherlander, the foreigner will find that the customary behavior of the Dutch is relatively informal. The foreigner, however, must be acquainted with and observe Dutch customs, if the relationship is to remain a successful one. For foreign business people accustomed to conducting business in conjunction with means, some Dutch customs are crucial. The coffee-break hour in Holland is 11 A.M., and the afternoon tea-break is 3 P.M. Most Netherlanders have their dinner at 6 P.M. It is important for the foreign business person to respect these...