Length:

It may be difficult to get used to at first, but the Metric system is all based on a factor of 10. For example, 1 centimeter = 100 millimeters, and 100 centimeters = 1 meter. Your height is given in centimeters.

Metric	US Lengths
1 millimeter (mm)	0.03937 in
1 centimeter (cm)	0.3937 in
1 meter (m)	39.37 in / 1.094 yd
1 kilometer (km)	0.621 mi / 3281.5 ft
2.54 cm	1 inch
0.3048 m	1 foot
0.9144 m	1 yard
1609 km	1 mile

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Temperatue:

Farenheit to Celsius
Subtract 32 and multiply by 5, then divide by 9
Example: 68°F: 68-32=36, 36*5=180, 180/9=20°C

Celsius to Farenheit
Multiply by 9, divide by 5 and add 32
Example: 20°C: 20*9=180, 180/5=36, 36+32=68°F

Clothing:

One shouldn’t have any problem buying clothes that will fit you in Europe. Smaller sizes (4, 6, and 8) may be harder to find. Look for French, Italian or Belgian clothing for petite sizes. American sizes 16 to 18 are about the maximum in most shops.

Women's Clothing (approx.)
USA	4	6	8	10	12	14	16	18	20
British	6	8	10	12	14	16	18	20	22
Continental	34	36	38	40	42	44	46	48	50

Stockings
USA	8	8 ½	9	9 ½	10	10 ½
Continental	0	1	2	3	4	5

Men's Suits and Sweaters
USA/British	34	36	38	40	42	44	46
Continental	44	46	48	50	52	54	56
Universal	Small	Small	Med	Med	Large	X-L	X-L

Men's Shirts
USA/British	14	14 ½	15	15 ½	16	16 ½	17
Dutch	36	37	38	39	41	42	43

Most shoes, schoenen, available in Holland that are made of quality leather are expensive. Shoe sizes with narrow widths A and AA are difficult to find. For a better selection of athletic shoes, go to a shop featuring athletic equipment. Look in the yellow pages under “Sportschoenen Winkels” or “Sport-en-spelartikelen.”

Women's Shoes
USA	6 ½	7½	8 ½	9 ½	10 ½	11½
British	4	5	6	7	8	9
Dutch	37	38	39	40	41	42

Men's Shoes
USA	9 ½	10 ½	11 ½	12	13	14
British	8	9	10	11	12	13
Dutch	43	44	45	46	47	48

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Cooking:

When shopping to stock your pantry, you’ll discover that most are available here but the packaging and name may be different. With some fruits and vegetables, you are required to weigh your own produce before checking out. Just place the item on the scale, press the button with the picture of your produce, then press the button “Bon” to get the price. In some scales, the ticket comes out automatically after pressing the produce button. Remember that produce is priced by per 100 gm.

It’s also advisable to bring your own shopping bag or cart since grocery stores do not supply bags for free but charge a small fee. Whatever free plastic bags you’ll find by the cashier are usually small and flimsy. You must bag your own items. The biggest grocery store chain in the Netherlands is Albert Heijn. They do not accept credit cards.

The following charts show the equivalent amounts for both solids and liquids in American/UK measurements and metric units. The metric yield of cup or weighed measures is approximately 10% greater than the Imperial yield. Therefore, use metric or Imperial weights and measures, but do NOT use a mixture of two different units.

Conversion charts for cooking:

US/UK Liquid Measures	Cup Measures	Metric Liquid Measures
1 fl oz	⅛ C	30 ml
2 fl oz	¼ C	60 ml
3 fl oz	⅓ C	100 ml
4 fl oz. (¼ pt US)	½ C	120 ml
5 fl oz. (¼ pt UK)	⅝ C	150 ml
6 fl oz	¾ C	180 ml
8 fl oz. (½ pt US)	1 C	240 ml
10 fl oz.  (½ pt Imp)	1 ¼ C	300 ml
12 fl oz.	1 ½ C	360 ml
14 fl oz.	1 ¾ C	420 ml
16 fl oz.  (1 pt US)	2 C	480 ml
20 fl oz.  (1 pt Imp)	2 ½ C	500 ml

Imperial Mass (weight)	Metric Mass (weight)
½ oz.	15 gm
1 oz.	30 gm
2 oz.	60 gm
3 oz.	90 gm
4 oz.	125 gm
6 oz.	185 gm
8 oz.	225 gm
12 oz.	375 gm
16 oz.	500 gm
24 oz.	750 gm
32 oz.	1000 gm (1 kg)
3 lb	1500 gm (1.5 kg)
4 lb	2000 gm (2 kg)

Dutch Measures	US Measures
1 (een) ons = 100 gm	3 ½ oz.
Half pond = 250 gm	½ lb
5 ons = 500 gm = 1 pond	1.1 lb
1 kopje	½ C + 1 T
1 eetlepel (el) 15 ml	1 T
1 theelepel (tl) = een lepeltje	½ t
1 liter	1 quart + 3 T
½ dl	3 T + 1 t
1 dl = 1/10 L	6 T = 1 t
1½ dl	½ C + 1 ½ T
2 dl	¾ C + 2 t
2 ½ dl	1 C
3 dl	1 ⅓ C

The following chart compares approximate oven temperatures and markings.

°F	°C	8-Mark	10-Mark	Description
300	150	1-2	2	Slow
325	165	2-3	3
350	175	3-4	4	Medium
375	190	4-5	5	Medium Hot
400	205	4-5	6
425	220	5-6	7	Hot
450	230	6-7	8
475	245	6-7	9	Very Hot
500	260	7-8	10

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Abbreviations:

C = cup	gm = gram	in = inch	M or m = meter
t = teaspoon	kg = kilogram	ft = foot	cm = centimeter
T = tablespoon	ml = mililiter	yd = yard	mm = milimeter
oz. = ounec	L = liter	mi = mile	km = kilometer
lb = pound	dl = deciliter (100 ml)
pt = pint	el = eetlepel (15 ml)

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