Thank you all for your advice...Opinions seem to differ except the end result indicates that all move up in a relatvely short period of time. I've been around instruments for most of my life and rarely is one satisfied with a "beginner" model. I think I might dig a little deeper into the plastic and get a more professional "base model" instrument. Thank you, this is a great forum!
P.S. No, I don't live in the Netherlands (San Diego, CA) but my family does hail from there and I've visited many times!