“I was always curious about the rest of the world,” says Minna from Finland. During her graphic design studies, she had the opportunity to do an internship abroad in 2013. “At that time, I was interested in games, especially educational games. My uncle had already been living there for twenty years, so it seemed like a safe place to go. I also always valued art and culture. I felt I could find all of that in Rotterdam.” That’s why she applied to a serious games company in Rotterdam.
Vibrant and inspiring
She was accepted and was supposed to stay for three months. “But then I had the opportunity to continue working at the company. On top of that, I met someone special. That gave me even more reason to stay.” After two years, she started working as a freelancer in Rotterdam. “Looking back, three months is actually really short for such a vibrant and inspiring city. When you walk the streets of Rotterdam, it feels like you’re on holiday,” she laughs. “You see so many different colours, languages, and cultures… I love it!”
Pros and cons
Since then, she has been very happy in the city. “The architecture is really amazing and experimental. There’s always something to do. And luckily, it’s not as crowded here as in Amsterdam. There’s more space to breathe. You can also easily get around without a car, which is a big advantage compared to Finland. There the distances are very large. Here, you can also be whoever you want to be. Everyone accepts you.”
There is one downside to living in the Netherlands though: “There’s no snow here in the winter like in Finland. I really miss cross-country skiing, but that’s just not possible here.”
And then there are things Minna still doesn’t know whether they are good or bad. “The people here are very different; very open, loud, and honest. That can be really nice, but also not so nice,” she laughs.