Has anyone here ever lived in the Netherlands?

Since the contract for my job in the UK ends in the Fall I am considering a job in the Netherlands. I was wondering if anyone here has ever lived there? I'm wondering what it will be like for the cats as well.. Any advice or comments from personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!

Originally Posted by furbum

Since the contract for my job in the UK ends in the Fall I am considering a job in the Netherlands. I was wondering if anyone here has ever lived there? I'm wondering what it will be like for the cats as well.. Any advice or comments from personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!

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There was somebody here that lived in the Netherlands like months ago, but I don't know if she still comes on here. I don't even remember her name

IIRC Kattengek is a Dutch member, and it seems it has been a while since I've seen a post.

No experience with living there, but based soly on appearances, it looks like it would be a lovely place to live! Have you done any research yet?

I would also go ahead and research what sorts of potential transport laws/costs/etc you're going to need to meet when moving your kitties should you take the job there. Good luck!

I lived there (and worked there) for 8 months and absolutely loved it. It was many years a go though (2002). Everyone speaks fantastic English and its easy to get around via the transport system (although they drive on the other side of the road to the UK) and the food is great. Its a relatively clean city and most people are very friendly.

Cant comment on what it would be like for the cats from personal experiences but I see no problems with it.

Originally Posted by furbum

Since the contract for my job in the UK ends in the Fall I am considering a job in the Netherlands. I was wondering if anyone here has ever lived there? I'm wondering what it will be like for the cats as well.. Any advice or comments from personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!

Click to expand...

My father is from Holland and I have been there so much I think I can say I have lived there. Amsterdam is the greatest city on earth that I have been to and I have been to 64 countries. If you can ride a bike the city has free bicycles everywhere for people to use. And make to mistake, all drugs are legal in Holland, you can stop at any coffee shop and have a joint rolled for you. Holland was the only country that knew how to solve the drug problem; make all drugs legal. And Holland has less drug problems than any other country simply because everything is legal.

But you do not have to be into drugs to love this country. It is the most liberal country on earth. If you do not believe this take a look at the postage stamps they have just issued honoring Iran. I have collected stamps since being a child and have never seen postage stamps from one country honoring another. The postage stamps simply state the IRANIAN election was a fraud and stand up for women's rights. My wife is from Iran and I am Dutch. I give you a big thumbs up on moving to Holland.

Thanks for all of your comments! I have visited Amsterdam a few times for work-related things so I am aware of the coffee (marijuana) shops and sex shops. The impression I get though is that it is mainly the tourists who get into that and not so much the natives. I also did not have any language troubles as everyone I met spoke English. I wonder if it is similar in other Dutch cities.

I looked into bringing in the cats a little and it looks like it shouldn't be a problem since I am moving from another EU country and their EU passports are up to date. It seems that the UK has the strictest animal regulations also. I will also ask my vet about it. Has anyone here moved cats between EU countries?

I don't remember seeing any cats in the streets during my visits to Amsterdam but I was only there a couple of times. I seem to remember seeing cat food for sale in one of those AH grocery stores.

I guess the Dutch staple foods are fresh breads and cheese? This is what I ate during my visits (I'm vegetarian, but the cats are not..). The breads I had were amazingly tasty.

I haven't decided if I will buy a car or not (I don't have one in the UK). I guess I might not need one there? I have a bike and a backpack cat carrier for getting the cats to the vet.

I am an academic and my views are also rather liberal, so I am happy to hear that the Dutch tend to have liberal ideals as well.

I have a little over a week to make the decision on this job so I really appreciate everyone's comments and experiences.

You might pm jennyranson because she moved most of her feline contingent from Sarajevo to France.

I know nothing about living in the Netherlands -- I just dropped in to say that I love your signature!

I was engaged to a Dutch guy once, but that was 40 years ago! However, I have also visited the country many times. People are generally very friendly and everyone speaks English, most also speak French and German as well as Dutch. TV is available from all those countries so they pick up languages very early.

The food is good - the native Dutch food being supplemented by many Indonesian restaurants and products, as that was a Dutch colony for a long time. Indonesian curries and rice dishes are delicious. Fish and seafood are a large part of the diet, but one of the main industries is dairy farming, so there are lots of dairy products. I could never quite get used to breads, chocolate and cheese for breakfast though!

There are many cats in Amsterdam, and there is a cat shelter that is on a canal boat. It is really amusing to see them running all over the boat. But they don't run away. AS for all EU countries except Great Britain and Ireland, all you need to enter the country is a pet passport showing up to date vaccinations and worming, including rabies. If you are coming from Great Britain and the vaccinations are up to date, then you do not need the blood certificate that you would need from outside the EU. But your vet can advise you and check the paperwork.

Good luck with the job and the move!

Thanks for the comments (and compliment I wanted to include something Welsh in my siggy, hence the sheep. If I move to the Netherlands then I will make a Dutch one.).

Thanks for the information on bringing the cats over! Their passports are up to date with vaccinations, including the one for rabies. I don't know about the worming. I will check that.. Do they actually scan their microchips when we cross a border? Sometimes it is difficult to find one of Bootsie's microchips...

I am excited about the prospect of moving to the Netherlands. I'm also excited about the idea of fresh bread with cheese and chocolate for breakfast. Bootsie and Monty would be very keen to try out the seafood I'm sure.

A cat shelter on a canal boat is a great idea

So far I am leaning towards taking this position.

Normally, when coming over by ferry from the UK, the chips are scanned at UK customs only, though they do also do random checks at French and Dutch ports. I have never flown with an animal from the UK so I do not know the procedure at airports. On the boat, you must have the cat in a secure carrier, and it must be left in the car during the crossing.