...to get back from my holidays and think this country is RUBBISH??

[preciouslillywhite]

I went to the Netherlands. We stayed on a busy campsite with a water "fun" park in a caravan with four kids. It rained. A lot.

BUT

the people we met-including in Amsterdam and tourist traps- were all LOVELY.Bus drivers kept letting us off a kid fare or two, shopkeepers kept chatting to the littl'uns, sweets were handed out etc etc. We even got extra squirty cream in our hot chocolate, cos dds are twins..

Now keep wishing we lived in a peaceful, tolerant, permissive and laid back country, where everything is nice and cute and tidy and everyone is kind and smiley. Instead of in a snarly shithole where people are suspicious and mean and judgmental

Well? whaddya think? AIBU??

Oh god give me London over weird, inbred, 'you're not from these parts' village mentality any day.

ZZZen...think was to mop up the GORE.

Well, you did ask...

fox...as for public transport strikes- we got back to Harwich to land smack in one of them. And my dd puked on the bus replacement service.

(ds actually asked me- why in Holland do all the trains and buses leave On Time?)

I am English and have lived in Holland for 7 years. I like it a lot ( I am in a very nice part of NL, about 20 km from Amsterdam). There are a lot of down sides too as I'm sure you can imagine if you really think about it. Holland can actually be very racist if you live here and aren't just here on holiday. Food prices are very high when I compare them to my parents' local supermarkets; the red-tape is unbelievable, comparable only to Switzerland only Switzerland is much more efficient. The weather is better than UK but worse than Southern France and the taxes are ridiculous.

However, I am very happy here and think the country itself is very beautiful. My kids speak good Dutch despite going to English speaking schools and I think the quality of life/ general outlook, is much better than in England. Its pretty safe and very family ffriendly.

Just don't be seduced and relocate on the basis of a holiday.

I love the UK and esp London I have travelled everywhere in the world and always love to get home to the sh~t weather grumpy bus drivers and SENSE OF HUMOUR!!!!!!!!!

Standing ovation for Nancy66!!!!!!!!!!

Sounds fab, oxocube. Apart from the racism, of course

But we would never move on the basis of a holiday, honest. In fact on't think we'll ever move at all. Have been pondering Sunny Southend on Sea for last 5 years and even that seems a bit too...far

have you been to Denmark preciouslillywhite? That's another fab holiday destination I think. I am itching to go and see the bridge from Denmark to Sweden!

Denmark's next on me list, foxinsocks! Anywhere we can get to on a ferry and I'm in..

dp is worried about the price of a pint, mind, so will have to work on 'im

like Denmark. Also flat

Just didn't fancy the way it rained practically every day we were there.

....whispers that the bridge is not really exciting to look at...

cycling in Denmark is good

they have these little pancake balls they sell there

lol at the rain. Yes, it's like a Uk summer but just not as warm

sshhhh don't ruin my illusion

sorry but then I never had the little pancake balls you see. We had the Rosinenboller and the apple tarts and the ... well almost everything but we missed the da*n pancake balls

They are lovely with dc in Denmark. People just start chatting to your dc wherever you go. I rmeember we went to a Middelaltetzentret (or however they say it - medieval reenactment place) and dd goes up to a cobbler there and says in English "nice shoes". The woman says, oh yes, we like these shoes with the high wooden soles, so when we go walking through the cow shit it doesn't get inbetween our toes." Dd very intrigued by her. I love Denmark just too wet for me.

Oh, ZZZen, stobbit..

I know what's going to happen this time next year. I'm going to start a thread "AIBU..to think that the UK is shite, and Denmark is really nice??"

...and get flamed

lol

yes I found that too ZZZ.

I suppose it is quite wet there but then again, we're considering a holiday in Scotland next year so maybe we are immune!