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I think the problem perhaps is that in house-owning countries, the apartments are usually cheaply built, or cheaply converted, so leak sound like sieves, because everybody who has any money wants to live in a suburb. In apartment-living countries, they put earth between the floors, and the walls are pretty heavy duty. So you don't really have that much noise pollution.

Dutch weed stinks more than American beer

From my own perspective, the Dutch are more similar to educated Americans than any other country in Europe, including UK. Kind of a midwest friendly vibe.