Batter Up

We woke up last August to find ourselves in Alkmaar,
Netherlands. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alkmaar  After spending ten years in Paris, it seemed like a small hop over to the neighboring EU state.  Many things have indeed gone smoothly and some other things have circled around the house several times before finding the key to open the door.   What brought us here?  What's it like compared to the French life?  How does this country - or at least this area - look similar to the United States? 

This is the lead off entry for the Luna North Holland blog.  I'll look at the culture, daily life, tourist spots, business, nature interests and family aspects of living in the Netherlands. The country is small, but seems to pack a lot into its place on the globe.   And of course my ex-pat view on this region is hard to escape.  I've lived as a foreigner in France for the last decade and it continues here.  Hopefully that perspective will translate into - at least mostly - objective views on the region primarily as seen looking from the outside, but seasoned with local knowledge and opinions.