Russians on the Netherlands and the Dutch

The Netherlands holds a unique place in the Russian imagination. This is how the country, and its people, are viewed through Russian eyes.

Dasha and Tamara

Dutch people are known for being direct, a sentiment often echoed by Tamara Zhirova, who would know, as she lives in Amsterdam. (Where she also teaches Russian. You can find her on YouTube.) An entertaining conversation, mainly thanks to Tamara, who also sings for us.

Who Is More Straightforward, Russians or Dutch?
Amsterdam vs Petersburg. An interview with Tamara
(Russian with Dasha, 2022, 17 mins)

Easy Russian

Also check out (from the same great channel) Russian in the Netherlands: 6 Things Which Surprised Me (2021, 14 mins) and Why Peter the Great Lived in This Dutch House? (2021, 11 mins).

What Russians Think About the Netherlands and Dutch People
(2022, 14 mins)

Varlamov

Video blogger Ilya Varlamov (Илья Варламов) has been to the Netherlands many times, and he has a lot of praise for it. He shared his thoughts extensively in several videos.

Check out his reports on Amsterdam:

• Amsterdam: One of the Best Cities in the World | Bicycles, Panel Buildings, and Ice Rinks on Chairs (2024, 41 mins)
• Amsterdam: Here, Nobody is Ashamed of Anything! | LGBT, Peter the Great, Bicycles, and Real Estate Prices (2023, 133 mins)
• Non-tourist Amsterdam: How to Fall in Love with the Capital of the Netherlands? (2020, 27 mins)
• Amsterdam: What a Horrible Thing is Happening in the Netherlands (2020, 28 mins)
• Amsterdam: An Insult to Drivers (2018, 16 mins)

Hoorn: A Quiet Dutch Idyll (2020, 13 mins), Zaandam: Preserving Identity While Staying Modern (2020, 22 mins), and Utrecht, in Utrecht: Paid Bike Parking, the Station, and Herring (2018, 15 mins) and I’ve Seen Paradise, and It’s in Utrecht (2020, 23 mins). The Netherlands is a winner.

The Netherlands: Is This the Best Country in Europe?
Good Economy, Real Estate, and Food
(2024, 85 mins)

More Varlamov on the Netherlands:

• The Netherlands: Enthusiasm, But Without Flattery | Awful Taxes, Saving on Heating, and Lots of Happiness (2023, 89 mins)
• The Netherlands: A Transportation Paradise on Earth (2019, 24 mins)
• Netherlands: Beautiful, Comfortable, Yours (2019, 19 mins)

More Russia – Netherlands

A comparison of two cultures in Eastern European (Russian) vs Dutch Culture by The Selfish Codependent’s Life in The Netherlands (2023, 11 mins). From the same channel with the long name, there’s also Dutch Directness. Learn to Deal with It (2023, 10 mins).

Katja Vertelina was previously seen on Easy Russian, but now she’s on YouTube on her own and living in the Netherlands. She talks about the pros and cons of life here in The Pros of Living in the Netherlands: What Makes Me Happy Here? (2024, 30 mins) and The Cons of Living in the Netherlands: Household Difficulties, My Problems with Food (2024, 14 mins).

The woman behind The Netherlands discusses Typical Dutch vs Russian People (2023, 7 mins) and relationship troubles in If Dutch and Russian Dating… Typical Problems (2019, 11 mins).

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Last updated April 02, 2026