Yes I suppose motorists having an appreciation for cyclists is very important.

I'll be in the Amsterdam area. Probably end up actually living in Hoofddorp.

my limited experience, but corroborated by discussion with other people, is that in the Netherlands (and Belgium) cyclists actually own the road, i.e. they always seem to get right of way and give little crap about pedestrians/cars/motorbikes.

Do not mistake Amsterdam city center with the rest of the Netherlands.

In the overcrowded center of Amsterdam, the locals know and understand "the dance" (the last thing a cyclist wants to do is come to a full stop every 20 meters, because it is much more "expensive" for a cyclists than it is for a pedestrian or driver, so instead of playing by the rules of right of way we do the dance of give and take), with the exception of tourists (who don't know the dance and give off confusing and confused body language) and cars (usually from out of town) stupid enough to drive in the city center in the first place.