WH Netherlands Journal　　　　　　 – English EditionVol.1　　　　　　Would My Family Love the Same City I Did?

Choosing Between the Netherlands and Malaysia as Our Future HomeJ

In June 2024, we returned to the Netherlands for a very different reason.

This trip wasn't just about exploring cities.

It was about making one of the biggest decisions our family had ever faced.

Where should we build our future?

At that point, we hadn't decided where to move.

Two countries were still on the table.

The Netherlands.

And Malaysia.

Deep down, I was already leaning toward the Netherlands.

But I didn't want that decision to be mine alone.

Moving abroad isn't an individual choice.

It's a family decision.

So I made a promise to myself.

"We'll choose the country that feels right for all of us."

Malaysia Had Already Won Our Hearts

Long before this trip, our family had spent time in Malaysia.

The food was incredible.

People were warm and welcoming.

Our children loved every day we spent there.

It was one of those places where we could genuinely imagine building a life.

In many ways, choosing Malaysia would have made perfect sense.

That's exactly why this decision was so difficult.

This wasn't about choosing a "better" country.

It was about choosing the place where we felt we belonged.

I Didn't Want to Decide Alone

Six months earlier, I had travelled through the Netherlands by myself.

Amsterdam.

The Hague.

Rotterdam.

Leiden.

Delft.

Among them, Leiden and Delft stayed with me.

Historic streets.

Walkable neighbourhoods.

Canals.

A slower pace of life.

Growing up in Yamanashi, Japan, I found myself naturally drawn to cities that felt balanced rather than busy.

But those were only my impressions.

I didn't want my family's future to depend on my personal preference.

I wanted them to experience these places for themselves.

This Trip Was About More Than Cities

As we walked through the same streets together, I wasn't paying attention to property prices or real estate listings.

Instead, I watched something much more important.

How did my wife react?

Were the children enjoying themselves?

Could we imagine our daily lives here?

Every conversation mattered.

Every small reaction mattered.

Because this wasn't simply about choosing a city.

It was about choosing a country.

We Reached the Same Conclusion

When we talked about each city afterwards, something surprised me.

Our impressions were remarkably similar.

We were all drawn to places with history.

Walkable streets.

Canals.

Open squares.

Cities where everyday life felt calm rather than rushed.

Without discussing it beforehand, we found ourselves talking about the same two places again and again.

Leiden and Delft.

For the first time, I realised something important.

This was no longer my dream.

It had become our family's decision.

No One Could Fully Explain Why

At the end of the trip, I asked everyone one simple question.

"If we had to choose today... Malaysia or the Netherlands?"

The answer came naturally.

"The Netherlands."

What surprised me wasn't the answer.

It was the explanation.

No one could clearly explain why.

Malaysia still offered amazing food.

Friendly people.

A wonderful lifestyle.

It remained one of our favourite countries.

Yet something about the Netherlands kept pulling us back.

It wasn't a spreadsheet.

It wasn't a financial calculation.

It wasn't logic.

Some places simply feel like home before you can explain why.

Looking back, I think we could all picture the life we wanted more clearly in the Netherlands.

Sometimes that's enough.

There Isn't Always a Perfect Answer

When people plan an international move, they often compare everything.

Cost of living.

Taxes.

Education.

Healthcare.

Climate.

Those things are important.

We considered all of them too.

But in the end, our decision wasn't made by comparing numbers.

It was made by sharing experiences.

Walking the same streets.

Seeing the same sunsets.

Imagining the same future.

The right country isn't necessarily the one with the best statistics.

It's the one where your family can genuinely picture building a life together.

That journey brought us one step closer to calling the Netherlands home.

Next Story

Now that we had chosen the country—and almost chosen the city—it was finally time to start looking at houses.

That's when a new challenge began.

Every property looked different.

Every listing had trade-offs.

Emotion alone wasn't enough anymore.

So I built an Excel system to compare every home we visited.

That simple spreadsheet would later become the foundation of JWH Netherlands Home Review™.

I'll share that story in the next journal.

JWH Decision Point™

A family home begins with a family decision.

Choosing a home abroad isn't just about finding the right property.

It's about making sure everyone can imagine a future there.

Looking back, the most important decision we made wasn't buying a house.

It was choosing a country together.

JWH Netherlands Home Review™

Helping people make better home-buying decisions in the Netherlands through real experience—not just property listings.