“At the gym, I am known as the “Latin Teacher” because I always play music from Latin America,” laughs Maricris from Bolivia. This is how this zumba teacher tries to keep her home region close to her. She also adheres to most Bolivian traditions. For instance, she cooks a hot lunch every afternoon, still dances salsa, still speaks Spanish to her children, and has mostly friends from Latin America or Dutch people who have lived abroad. “I think you can keep your traditions from home and at the same time integrate with the culture and society here. So I think it’s good if you keep speaking your own language and cooking your own food, but you have to remember that you live here with other people from other countries. So you do have to open yourself up to them and the culture here.”
Even more diversity
Maricris came here 12 years with her Brazilian husband, who travels all over the world for his work. First in America and then in Mexico. But here in Rotterdam they landed: for 12 years she has lived in the same place. Perhaps because the whole world is represented here in the people who live here. “I knew many different people would live here, but not that many. In the last five years, I see people from more and more different countries, which is great.There are fewer people from other countries in Bolivia anyway, but since the government changed, there are fewer foreign companies so there are fewer and fewer people from other countries working there.”
Just different
She sees gigantic differences from Bolivia. “Bolivia is a smaller country in terms of population and is poorer. The country also has a different temperature, food, nature and culture. I think the biggest difference is in the people and daily life. Here, children can walk or cycle to school alone and freely. Here everything is organised and planned, there we live day by day. People there are more simple, pure, and share everything. Here, people are direct and think mainly about their own goals. Everyone lives their own life. But nothing is better, it’s just different.”