DUTCHWOMAN’S VIEW OF N.Z.

Press, Volume LXXXVIII, Issue 26886, 12 November 1952, Page 2

DUTCHWOMAN’S VIEW OF N.Z.

PRAISE FOR TOURIST ACCOMMODATION

ATTITUDE TO STRANGERS COMMENDED

In her opinion, tourists had to become “acclimatised” to New Zealand hotels, but once they had done that, they would like them, said Mrs A. W. van Steenbergen. a Dutchwoman who has lived in Indonesia for the last three years and a half, in an interview in Christchurch.

Mrs van Steenbergen said it was only to be expected that people who had worked for many years in hotels in Europe might be more efficient in some respects than New Zealand and Australian girls who were relatively new to the work, but what New Zealand hotels might lack in service they made up for by the general kindliness and friendliness of their staffs and the interest that they showed in tourists. Mrs van Steenbergen praised the hotel at which she stayed in Christchurch. She said it had a “Continental touch,” and was a credit to the city. Courtesy of Bus Drivers During a four months’ visit to New Zealand, Mrs van Steenbergen has travelled wherever possible by Railway Road Services buses. She said she had been very pleased with the service given, and intended to write to the management and express her appreciation. She had found all the drivers extremely efficient, and even more than polite. She had heard complaints about drivers, but felt that in these cases the passengers must have been at fault. If passengers were polite, they coulcL expect to be treated politely Mrs van Steenbergen said she had been impressed by the extent of mechanisation in New Zealand life. She had even been tempted to ask whether New Zealand man-made forests and plantations had been planted by machine. She had marvelled at New Zealand roads, particularly the shingle ones. If they were washed out, it was a simple matter to repair them. A big bulldozer scraped a little metal from a hillside, and all was well again. It provided a contrast to methods she had seen used overseas, with dozens of men working on road repairs. Beauty of Bird Songs When she left New Zealand soon to return to. Indonesia, Mrs van Steenbergen said, she would miss greatly the singing of New Zealand’s birds. In the tropics, bird songs were heard only in the very early morning Mrs van Steenbergen said she would also go away with an intense admira*lv.n j the New Zealand housewife, who did not have the servants avail-abJe-to European women in Indonesia. Although Mrs van Steenbergen is a Dutchwoman, she lived for about 20 years m France. In Indonesia, she has been a secondary school teacher and when she returns she will coach school teachers in English and French for the bachelor of arts degree. One of her reasons for coming to New Zealand was to brush up her English. Mr£ XX a ß Steenbergen said the man was still the principal human being in Indonesia, and the woman only came • Women were not permitted in Moslem mosques, but a movement has been afoot to have mosques exclusively for women. The Government iSI« also ende avouring to eliminate polygamy. Indonesians were adopting many Western customs, she said. Instead of squatting on the floor, they were increasmgly using tables and chairs in their homes.