by Alice Rush
MY FIRST memory of a salad in Holland was a shrimp salad at the table of my mother-in-law and her wife when we went for a visit to their home. It was the first time that I had met either of them, so making the right impression was critical.
My own mom had tried to teach me about being polite when visiting someone’s house. She was probably attempting to ensure that I didn’t make faces, like a child, when I was offered foods that didn’t suit my taste. What I learned was that I had to eat whatever was put in front of me and to like it, regardless of my own opinion. As a teen, this led to my forcing myself to eat a soft-shell crab sandwich, an expensive splurge, at my date’s family luncheon table. I have not ever partaken of what to me equates to a “sea spider sandwich” since then.
However, I was practiced and ready when I saw my first shrimp salad in Holland, with the itty-bitty, nearly brine shrimp sloshing around in the salad dressing. I immediately began the mental prep to go ahead and eat it, even though shrimp salad in the US is almost always made with shrimp at least as big as a pinky toe, and usually seasoned with something similar to Maryland’s beloved Old Bay seasoning, a mix of celery salt, black pepper, paprika and other seasonings then smothered in mayonnaise or the like.
Of course I did fine in spite of the texture difference. It’s not a salad I would choose, but I can be polite and social, and I even get a little kick out of testing foods that are new to me. I remember trying raw herring when visiting another friend while we were in town. It was amusing, but I won’t be looking for more. Also, anything I try must still be a safe standard food, no extreme cuisine on my agenda, thank you.
BUT ALL of this is a digression of sorts. My intent was to write about the standard salad, a tossed vegetable salad, “the big salad” to quote Elaine from Seinfeld, and how I have found those difficult to find in the Netherlands. After an 8 or more hour plane flight, as much as I look forward to all the Dutch treats, what I really NEED is a good healthy salad, and it seems those are really only provided as a side to a main dish. Delicious, but gosh do I need to eat more green veggies when in town. I have to at least try to make up for all the other unhealthy treats I always enjoy, and the lack of normal movement and exercise.
I am not someone who exercises on vacation, but I can manage my eating habits and have a little fun too, if I try.
* Alice is a Maine realtor and a licensed helicopter and fixed wing pilot. She first met her Dutch husband in Maryland in 2005, and married him four years later.
