“The different people and colours make the city beautiful,” says Nina from Slovenia. From a young age, she was fascinated by the Netherlands. “I have always loved the nature and people. Here, people are more open and direct. People in Slovenia are nice, they will help you. But they won’t tell you directly what they want to say.”
In love
Nina tried to find a job to live in the Netherlands. That didn’t work out immediately, but she did find a job in Luxembourg in 2016. From there, she planned a weekend trip to Rotterdam. “I immediately fell in love with the city. It has good vibes and is cultural. I love that when you walk down the street, you hear so many languages. And that there are so many different people bringing so many different cultures, food and art. It’s magical.”
From that weekend, her goal was to stay in Rotterdam. “If I have a goal, I will do anything to achieve it,” she says. So she kept searching for a job. She first found one in Terneuzen, which she grabbed with both hands. But it ws not Rotterdam so she kept searching. Last year, she finally found a job in our beautiful city. “This is my favourite city. I am very happy here. I never want to leave. This is where I belong.”
Not dependent on English
Now that she lives here, she has another new goal. “I want to be able to speak Dutch fluently. I don’t want to depend on English, that feels lazy.” She is now learning the Dutch language on Duolingo. She’ll never forget one specific sentence. “I’m an apple,” she laughs.