“In cities like Amsterdam, I feel that everything is already finished. Not in Rotterdam, here there is still room for something new, to experiment,” says Mirjam from Switzerland. Since her younger years, she has had a soul mate living in the Netherlands. That was also the reason she chose the Netherlands to go there for the exchange programme during her bachelor. She studied in Arnhem for a year but then had to return.
Culture, food and beach
But when she had the chance to do her masters in the Netherlands, she grabbed it. Deliberately, she chose Rotterdam. ‘Because I was interested in art and culture and Rotterdam has cool places where people do cool cultural things.’ Once here, she discovered more advantages of this big multicultural city. “Here in Rotterdam, you have more nationalities than in Swiss cities. Swiss food is also fine, but here there is just more influence from foreign cuisine. It’s nice that I can still get something from the Indonesian here at three in the morning.” So Miriam has really discovered every corner of Rotterdam. “I think the beach in Hoek van Holland is super nice. I think because we don’t have a sea in Switzerland,” she laughs.
Diverse Rotterdam?
Rotterdam is known for its residents of so many different nationalities. Yet Miriam wonders how diverse Rotterdam actually is. “In general, probably yes, and I think it is good that so many nationalities live together. But in Rotterdam, some neighbourhoods are much more diverse than others. Certain neighbourhoods also have many residents from some particular cultures which makes them not so diverse.” She thinks for a moment and continues. “But I think many people also like to belong to a certain culture. For instance, I also have friends from different cultures, but I also enjoy talking to people who speak the same language as me. So that’s not so crazy.” Fortunately, she is also fluent in Dutch. “My mother tongue is Swiss-German so I learnt the language very quickly. It’s easier to learn Dutch if you can speak German. The languages are not very different.”
Nice people
For now, Miriam will stay in Rotterdam. “At first I thought I would go back straight after my studies, but I have met sooo many nice people here. I would be really sad if I had to leave those people behind.” She doesn’t have to think long for advice for other nice people still coming to Rotterdam from another country. ‘Start looking for a room or flat early!’