Moving to The Netherlands

[MuniS]

We are deciding to move to The Netherlands with our 2 year old toddler, purely because I am a teacher and love the education system being a lot more independent and outdoor based as well as starting at 7 years in comparison to the rigid, competitive, mentally draining structure of education in the UK.

Can anyone give any advice on areas worth looking into to settle as a family where there are good public, primary schools. We are visiting in July so would like to consider a few places. I'm a teacher and my partner is an accountant. We would also look into buying a property with a garden. Any advice on weather, lifestyle, people, socialising, cost of living. All advice greatly appreciated. Thanks!

No need to answer that obvs

You've been amazing Eton Is honestly an enormous weight off!

I do indeed have a Dutch partner (who sometimes seems more in need of inburgering than I do) but we're not any form of married. IIRC that stops the 'option' option being an, erm, option. Will check again.

I've asked so many EU friends about the whole palaver but it never occurred to me than my non EU friends would be the people to ask. What a plonker!

Would getting married make the option an option, I'm not sure.

Tbh I lived in Netherlands for 4 years and wouldn't go back to live there.. but dutch is easier to learn than Finnish ;-). If you want somewhere deluxe go to Norway. Nice people, beautiful country and easier language than Finnish :-)

dh is Dutch.
I love The Netherlands, but it si much more different to UK than you would initially think.

Our mental picture of the liberal dope smoking Dutch is actually in many ways just the opposite. People are surprisingly conformist and expected to be veyr society minded. It is over crowded, the houses are close together and small gardens. There are very few places which are not manicured. My dh loves dartmoor as it is so unDutch!

I love some things, cycling is so easy and I like the shops, but I find kids clothes expensive, no supermarket clothes and the supermarkets don't sem to have such a broad range.

I agree about the Dutch. While they are friendly and have liberal views (in general), on a personal level many are quite reserved and formal as you say. Not as open as English people in many ways. Hard to describe.

In general though it's quite similar to the uk in many many ways. It's not like moving to Japan or Brazil for instance. For the most part I think the Netherlands is perhaps one of the countries we have most in common with.

My friends moved to the Netherlands 7 years ago, they were living in the USA, he's American and she's Dutch. He really struggled with the move and I would say it's taken him 7 years to fully integrate and I'm not sure if he is 100% settled yet. It put a mutual friend from making a move back to Lithuania or Finland with her US husband. Everyone is different though, I moved to Brazil (ironically from Bit's comment) 3 years ago and was warned by my Dutch friend that her husband really struggled, but with the exception of a couple of homesick days, my move has been a breeze. It will depend on what type of person you are.

funnily enough, I have lived in Indonesia, Kazakhstan and The Netherlands.
The only place I had culture shock was The Netherlands. It was also the place where I found it hardest to make friends.
I learnt the language in each place, and Dutch wasn't the hardest by any means, and my dh is Dutch.

I think it was hard because it is similar but not the same. It is easier in a culture where you and they know you are different and can work to assimilate.

How interesting! I never had a problem citing in. I think they just thought I was a bit eccentric because I am