After growing up in Holland before moving to the UK as a teenager, I moved back and was based in the Netherlands from 1980-1985 (for Philips) and 1988-1995 (as president of Ixonet BV). From 1985-1988, I worked out of Belgium, for Philips Networks International in Brussels.

I go back every few years, for work as well as privately.

The photo: a typical dreary day in a Dutch meadows landscape at Berkenwoude. Some love it. Holland is certainly very green, and very clean - obvious after a long absence. Also, the Dutch are well-educated, liberal and tolerant (although not as tolerant as they like to believe) and are good at finding compromise solutions to problems.