It has been 2 years since i entered UK. Before coming to the UK i was for 2,5 years in the Netherlands so as suggested by a reader of this blog i will try to make a comparison of this 2 countries, maybe not always with facts but with what i felt about the 2 countries and then i let you decide.
I will name the good and bad for me regarding the 2 countries and in the end i will tell you wish one i prefer.
This will also be an exercise for me while i write to put in black and white what i really felt regarding this 2 countries.
One thing i can say is i do not felt/fill at home in both Countries, i think being away is alway that, is being away, never having the filling that is Home.
So lets start with the Netherlands:
Good:
– Everything is Clean – I do not remember seeing any litter in the street, gardens, etc
– Cycle – You can go on your bike everywhere the bike pads are great
– English – Everyone will get English language
– Services – Usually the service quality is ok
– Security – I felt very secured, i think the criminality is low
Bad:
– Dutch Food – The food is really bad, i cooked always at home
– Dutch Language – Dutch is really difficult to learn, city hall services barely speak English and when you speak English you are looked as an outsider
– Private Medicine – Is mandatory to pay for an private medical insurance. The basic insurance will cover almost nothing, so it is just pay, pay and pay
– Everything is privatised – Even if you have a lake near by you have to pay for park or for entry or for some other reason, you pay for everything.
– Outsider – Dutch do not like outsiders and they would prefer you go away
– Privacy – No privacy, you feel that you re being watched every time you go on the street
– Taxes – you pay a lot of taxes and the tax warning letter always comes on Fridays/Saturdays, so your weekend is ruined.
– Direct – Dutch are proud in being direct but they are just plain rude, they use jokes to mess with you and they think they are entitled to give you lectures about what you are doing.
– No epidural, your kid will born the old way, no pain relief
Now let continue with the UK:
Good:
– Taxes – Still a lot of taxes but much less then in the Nethertlands
– Food – You can find good UK restaurants and more familiar food in the super market
– Jobs – There is a lot of jobs in UK and you can improve your carrear
– Privacy – There is more privacy, we can go on the street without being watched
– Outsider – There are many foreigners in UK, you just feel as one more, but English do not like outsiders also but you feel much less then in the Netherlands
– Health care – The Health care in UK is public
Bad:
– Litter – There is litter everywhere
– Services – Bad services, rude, most of the times not on time, but i feel is improving
– Security – It is more complicated for a women to walk on her own on the street with out being bothered by a guy
– Bulling – Kids here are bullied in school all the time
– Health care – Public hospitals are not very good from what i hear in the news, if you have an emergency specially on weekends you can be in trouble
In the end between the 2 countries and in my situation i would choose UK, if i had kids for example maybe not so it is a question what is your situation.
See you next time.
Foreigner's life 
I’m more than a little surprised about your comments regarding privacy. From The Express (Dec. 4, 2010): “The UK not only has more CCTV cameras than the world’s biggest dictatorship, China, we also have more cameras per person than anywhere else on the planet.”
And are you saying you can’t find any good restaurants in the Netherlands? I don’t know where you’re from, but finding “familiar food” in the supermarkets seems like an unfair point of comparison.
Have you really looked into the Dutch health care system? The (mandatory) basic insurance covers about 94% of all health care costs, and isn’t that expensive, especially if you choose a high deductible. Lower incomes get a monthly subsidy for health care costs (which can be more than the cost of health insurance itself, if you select a cheap insurance!) There is a deductible which has been increased in recent years, but if you’re healthy that’s not a problem, and if not, this still keeps good health care affordable. Dutch health care professionals do not like to randomly prescribe pills unless there’s a good reason for – unlike in some countries where doctors sell you a few boxes of antibiotics “just to be sure” every time you visit them.
Posted by Jan | March 30, 2016, 10:45I Jan, thank you for your input, this is my perspective of a foreigner in the Netherlands, probably if you went o my country you will have things to say that i do not agree. I had a very good coverage insurance but i had to pay most of the medicines and specific medical accessories, in UK is not free, bus almost you just pay per prescription a fixed fee. Regarding the food i come from a country with a huge variety off cooked food, and i did not find nothing similar in the Netherlands, unless i went to some specific italian, portuguese, spanish etc restaurant. So once again in my perspective the fast food, a lot of fry food etc , that my Dutch colleagues eaten daily did not suit for me.
Once again thanks you for your perspective also, i am not right or wrong, this is only my experience and everyone is free to add theirs.
Posted by Sérgio (Admin) | March 30, 2016, 12:08