Forgive him, Caesar….

“Forgive him, Caesar – he is a barbarian and considers that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature.” G.B.Shaw, Caesar and Cleopatra.

I said the other day that there is nothing like moving to a new country to show you how ignorant you really are. There is also nothing like it for showing you how mistaken your presumptions are … how many of the things you assume are necessities of modern civilization that others manage to do without.In other words I was a bit shocked to find that there is no Nyquil here – no Nyquil, can you other Americans imagine? There is cough syrup but does not appear to be any multi-symptom syrup. And yet people manage to survive minor illnesses here just fine, though possibly with a bit less sleep.

In related news, this cold is welcome to leave any second now. I’m tired of it. This is the third time I’ve been ill in a year, which is unusual for me. I think Europeans (Dutch ones, at any rate) do get sick a little more often; one possible reason is that there is no hot water in the office bathrooms and (I think) less emphasis on handwashing in general. (Also, more handshaking, though I’d hate to think that’s a cause.) But maybe not; I certainly can’t blame it for my illnesses, because the awful one last summer came on while I was still in the US and the minor one at Christmas was while we were on the cruise, which did have hot water (all the other passengers in our bus to Cairo were coughing and sneezing). Of course, another possibility is just that the hot dry Arizona climate I’m used to doesn’t contribute as much to colds as cooler, wetter weather.

Another difference in hygiene standards is more about perception than reality. I don’t think most Americans wash outer clothing (as opposed to underwear) every time we wear it, at least not once we’re past the age where “fun” and “dirty” are synonymous. Yet we sort of pretend we do, by wearing different clothing every day. I might wear the same jeans two days in a row while traveling, but I wouldn’t at home; I know some US men wear the same trousers two days in a row but only when they’re very inconspicuous. Here on the other hand people will often re-wear clothing; my one female colleague will often wear the same outfit for all of the three days she works in a given week. She has plenty of clothing – it’s a different outfit each week with not much repetition – and is certainly a cleanly person so it’s clearly a cultural thing. Not everyone does that here, but it’s not uncommon. (Of course, it’s harder to tell with men who wear more uniform clothing or with women who mix and match jackets and trousers over plain blouses.) Another Dutch acquaintance recently mentioned wearing the same pair of jeans two days a week since she bought them more than a year ago, which by US standards is a lot of wear. People also tend to own less clothing in general, though there are exceptions – higher prices, smaller storage, and slower washing machines are all reasons.

I work on the 12th floor, so I ride crowded elevators a lot. I’m in a position (my height has something to do with this) to state that I don’t think the Dutch tend to bathe any less than Americans, though that’s not true of all countries in Europe. Americans do tend to get hypercautious to the point of silliness about hygiene (from elaborate choreography to avoid touching anything in a public restroom to the rise of drug-resistant diseases due to overuse of antibiotics and antiibacterials) but even after factoring that out it’s interesting to see differences between countries.

I still want my Nyquil, though.