An Incomplete and Ongoing List of Oddities We Have Thus Far Encountered or Learned:

-some shops and homes sit at/below canal level (header image)
-yes, bikes here absolutely have the right of way, followed by pedestrians, and then finally cars
-plastic bottles keep the cap attatched (fig. a)
-we saw an elderly gentleman being filmed by his granddaughter he danced to music in Niuewe Kerk's plaza
-lots of black licorice
-the birds sound different??
-ambulance and police sirens sound different
-the word for hello is "hallo"
-packaged food at the grocery store has a rating on it, A-E, for how "healthy" it is (fig. b) and electronic devices get an energy rating A-G
-so. many. smokers. cigarette smokers, mainly. which has the unfortunate side effect of cigarette butts everywhere :/
-if you've ever seen the iconic blue and white Dutch pottery, it's called "Delftware" and comes from the city we're living in!
-another note about Delft is that it is a college town, so there's many students
-a quarter of the country is below sea level
-if you order fries with your burger, you will get fries with mayonnaise on them
-food in general, but meat especially, has been higher quality (even at McDonald's)
-because of higher quality standards, some foods we know by American companies taste a little different (I like the Fanta orange soda here better, but Kit Kats taste more like "real chocolate" and it just doesn't hit the same)
-ibuprofen is bright pink and looks like a skittle
-national siren on the first Monday of each month at noon, and you'll get a phone notification (fig. c)
-thankfully we learned before we moved that when looking for your hot morning drink, go to a cafe or koffiehuis, NOT a coffeeshop
-yes, "koffie" and "kat" are indeed the Dutch spelling
-the unspoken rule that you keep your blinds and curtains open during the day, to prove you aren't hiding anything
-everything is "lekker" - weekends, food, clothing, activities, comfy furniture, even someone you find attractive can be lekker. an all encompassing word that means "nice, good, pleasant, cozy", etc.
-flushing the toilet is done by two buttons on the wall (fig. d)
-the toilets and urinals are also Very Tall for the Very Tall people here (Dutch men are the tallest in the world)
-sustainability is BIG here, with bread bag tabs being made of cardboard instead of plastic (fig. e) and a recent city initiative for reusable coffee to-go cups (fig. f) - the coffee cup is €1, and a lid is an additional €1 (the cup can be returned for a refund if you wish, the lid cannot because they found in early trials that a large number of people chew on their lids???)
-never have I wrestled with doorknobs so much in my life, the outside knobs generally don't turn. we have to use a key for our front door just to open it even if it isn't locked
-the public trashcans in more modern parts of the city
-stores open later and close earlier, even cafes you'd think would be open early for breakfast or coffee wait until 9 or 10am
-our place only has a small mini fridge, and the general expectation seems to be you buy your food for one to two days at a time, since there are many small grocery/convinence stores within walking distance (you often see people walking around with their bright blue reusable Albert Heijn grocery bag, a small grocer which we have 3 locations of within a two mile radius) (fig. g)
-several different dialects of Dutch (here's a video skit about it)
-wall outlets are inset, helping to keep your cable from getting bumped out, and run at a much higher voltage (fig. h)
-plenty of second-hand stores, it's said the Dutch love a good deal
-many friendly street cats! some with collars, some without
-we have the Dutch to thank for orange carrots, as they're the ones who began breeding them specifically (the patriotic color of the country happens to be orange.... coincidence??)
-you may have seen the character of Miffy before, she's a rabbit in a popular Dutch children's book series that later made it's way to television (and has been recommended to us as a good way to begin to learn Dutch)
-dutch schools deserve their own subsection, so here's what I've learned from fellow Americans with a 5-year-old:
-during lunch hour, parents must pick up their young children from school or pay for an in-school sitter (€2 a day) so the teacher gets an actual lunch break
-similarly, older children are usually out and about during lunch for the same reason
-parents can be fined up to €100 per day for taking their child out of school without permission, or if a child is not in school for three consecutive days without valid reason given the school must report it, and the parents may face fines
-parental/maternity leave I'm a little unclear of the specifics on, but it works out in a way that many parents choose to use and split it in a way that results in each parent having one day off a week, from birth through 8 years of age, to help with childcare and have meaningful time with their kids during those years.

I'm sure there's lots more oddities to encounter, and we're going to have fun discovering them!