One must also learn how to have half hour conversations about the weather. It's a very important subject here, because it's so varied! The weather in Holland is really the major drawback - a warm sunny wind-free day is very rare, but the weather is always liveable - never too cold, never too hot.

But, as far as cities go, Amsterdam does have something if you want an active and diverse city. The Hague (Den Haag) is a good place to have a quiet beer with you and your friends, but it's not really a party town, and there are far too many guys for girls, due to the nature of expat demographics. Delft is boring. Leiden is nice if you want a small main-street city with everything you need, plus it also has more women thanks to the University's soft subject focus. Rotterdam is big and lively but has no old-city, thanks to the War. Whatever you do, live in the Randstadt (between Amsterdam, Den Haag, Rotterdam, & Utrecht) or you'll be out in the sticks.