“You can make friends quickly here, because people hang around with each other a lot.”

“In Albania, I sometimes feel like an outsider. In Rotterdam, i felt the diversity from Toronto again.”

“To feel at home, i participated in Wednesday Night Skate: everyone is cheerful and the atmosphere is so fun!”

“The Kruiskade with the plantains, sweet potatoes, and taro… it makes me feel at home.”

“The Netherlands used to be racist. Argentina too, for that matter. Argentinians didn’t want dark-skinned people either. But now there are so many people… you have to accept it.”

“Soms als ik boos was, riep ik: ‘Wat doe ik hier?!’”

“I am a richer person because of the diversity that Rotterdam offers me.”

“This was the first time for me that I had to adapt to another country. That changed my thoughts about people coming to another country, about problems they encounter and how to adapt.”

“In Azerbaijan, there is always a kind of pressure to present yourself in a certain way. People in Rotterdam don’t care what you do.”

“The Netherlands is better than Bangladesh. It has a better environment, fewer people, and it is cleaner. The people are happier and more friendly toward each other.”

“I was raised to believe that we are allowed to express our opinions. The prime minister of Barbados is also outspoken.”

“It would be great if people tried to get to know each other again and start taking care of each other.”

“In Rotterdam it doesn’t all have to be perfect and efficient. It’s okay to be a little different.”

“I’m not half, I’m double blood: entirely Dutch and entirely Beninese.”

“In Rotterdam, you don’t have to be tied to a single identity or nationality. That gives you peace of mind.”

“Here, children can walk or cycle to school alone and freely. Everything is organized and planned here.”

“Until I was 28, I still thought I would return home.”

“I built my own community; i joined student associations and found people of color. That gives me stability.”

"I couldn't understand how I could be in another city with a ten-minute train ride," says Hercilia from Brazil. She was born in …, where she also studied architecture. Her university offered an exchange program. "I initially wanted to go to Barcelona, but the...

“There are people from different backgrounds here. I can speak English. I can order different kinds of food. That way, I don’t feel like an outsider.”

“In the Netherlands, I sometimes feel too Burkinese, and in Burkina Faso, too Dutch. But it also gives me the freedom to feel at home in multiple places.”

“That’s the beauty of it: I get to enjoy both cultures.”

“Everyone is having a hard time – so let’s be kind to each other.”

“In Rotterdam you can do a lot of nice stuff. And Delfshaven has a vibrant nightlife.”

“Music is in the blood of all Cape Verdeans. And half of us live outside Cape Verde so we take this around the world.”

“Everything was so grey and flat. And so neat, even the houses seemed to be built in neat rows.”

“It’s annoying when I say I’m from the Netherlands, people ask, ‘Where are you really from?’.”

“Because i saw more people who look like me, i felt less alone and more safe.”

“Migration is like a butterfly, it’s like a transformation that brings something new.”

“You can learn so much by going to a different place and to adjust. I can not think of a better place to grow more than in Rotterdam.”

“Here, I can play basketball with others and buy food from from the Balkans.”

“Someone asked me where I was from. I said Cuba, but that person said, ‘No, you’re from Rotterdam.’ Look at how you dress, how you move, and how you dress. And I looked at myself and said, ‘Yes, that’s right.’”

“In Amsterdam I saw also people of other nationalities, but they were tourists. In Rotterdam I realized that those people live here.”

“With the Rotterdampas it’s easy to discover the whole city, so buy one!”

“Ik knew the stereotype of a old and dirty harbour city, but Rotterdam is everything except that.”

“When i went back shortly to the Dominican Republic, i had a earring and a tattoo. Everyone thought I was gay and on drugs, because of the taboos over there.”

“Every neighbourhood is different, every neighbourhood has a surprise. I find that valueble.”

 “Rotterdam is a place where hard work is rewarded, but where you can also really be yourself.”

“My children can go to the park and to school by themselves. In El Salvador, you have to live in a bubble because it is an unsafe country.”

“In Estonia and Russia, people are quiet in public. Here, people seem to yell in the tramway.”

“Here, people are real. You just have to talk to them and be yourself, then they’re nice.”

“People there enjoy life and each other much more.”

“When you walk the streets of Rotterdam, it feels like you’re on holiday. So many different colours and cultures. I love it!”

“Migrants are very valuable to the Netherlands. Not all of them, some become criminals, but not all fingers are the same either.”

“Rotterdam not only allows diversity, but celebrates it. Festivals, parades, and street parties are very normal here.”

“I often try to meet up with friends here. Here, you often have to do something together, but that’s not necessarily the case. A Gabonese saying tells us that you can also just be together.”

“Because my mom spoke Dutch at home, i learned it faster and i could make friends faster.”

“It doesn’t feel like I have the right to speak about the city yet. I don’t want to offend anyone either.”

“Here you can learn things from other children from other countries.”

“Rotterdam is for everybody. You see that in places where people work, like offices and the police. There do people work with a different background.”

“I hope the city keeps its open character for everyone: black or white, whatever faith …”

“It’s important to keep your own identity. Because you’re different; you’re never really going to become a Dutch person.”

“If I were in Guinea-Bissau, I would know almost nobody. And people there would see that you are no longer from there. So then I would also feel lonely.”

“In Guinea, i had a good time: i had friends and fun, i went to school…”

“Everyone here does their own thing independently and takes care of themselves. In our culture, people ask for help very easily, for example for money. In the Netherlands that happens less.”

“That diversity makes me feel seen, that I belong somewhere.”

“In Honduras, you have to be mindful of safety everywhere. Here, I feel much more free.”

“The political situation in Hungary made the decision easier for me to leave Hungary and then move to Rotterdam.”

“In Rotterdam i live next to halalstores and Islamic bookstores. It’s new for me and i love it.

“I see many subgroups. That’s fine because everyone needs that. But it would also be nice if we could form one big community.”

“In the other cities, people weren’t as open to international people.”

“The city also offers a lot of room for experimentation. I love that.”

“Only because of our identity, because I am Yezidi, ISIS attacked us.”

“Rotterdam has so much to offer. There are always opportunities to broaden your worldview. And you have to seize them. Preferably with a Dutchie by your side, haha!”

“There, because of the war, people really live in the now. In the Netherlands, everything is well organised; we plan.”

“This is the gateway to Europe!”

“You come to the Netherlands with an identity. Here, you have to enrich yourself without losing that identity.”

“Everyone thinks Amsterdam is the best. Until you come to Rotterdam and discover the nice places.”

“Meeting my current wife, like it was my destiny to stay here.”

“I live very happy to live in the boat at Coolhaven; I do feel at home here. Maybe also because I also do voluntary work here.”

“It’s a pity that spontaneous appointments are almost impossible.”

“In the beginning, Dutch seemed impossible to me, but I had to learn it if I wanted to work.”

“I love that in Rotterdam you can make friends from different countries. That’s why I feel at home.”

“I love the reflection of all the lights from the city on the Maas in the dark.”

“I didn’t leave Lebanon because things were bad—I had my friends, my job, and my family. But I wanted adventure.”

“The more Liberian and Malian I cook, the more I get to know those sides of myself.”

“The gap between each other is widening. So I hope we all continue to be considerate of each other.”

“In Rotterdam, I could finally make the connection between art and real life.”

“In Rotterdam, everybody is on the move. It reminded me of the US, but people are here more open.”

“I still see a lot of islands. I hope that the new generation will communicate more with others and with each other, creating more connection.”

“I greeted dark people in my language, but nobody answered! Now I understand that they were not from my country but from Suriname or the Antilles.”

“The many faces and cultures here are an opportunity to learn something new.”

“If you want to achieve something, you have to try hard. Then you’ll always be helped in this city.”

“I love getting to know all the cultures of Rotterdam and all the festivities that go with them. I would like to be at all the parties!”

“People here are down-to-earth; they don’t show off with expensive cars. That feels more equal.”

“Mongolia doesn’t feel like home. Rotterdam does; i always felt accepted here.”

“In Rotterdam you can be who you want, that is not evident for the rest of the country.”

“I have been beaten by Rotterdammers to become a real Rotterdammer. And I intend to remain a Rotterdammer.”

“I live in Spangen because i saw many different people and cultures here. I found that interesting.”

“After the election results, I wondered for a moment: do people even want me here?”

“We can enjoy parties and good food together. Rotterdam must remain a place where everyone can feel at home.”

“Hold on to the good values of your country and your own identity. Rotterdammers don’t want you to become like them.”

“I am a Nigerian. I lived in Germany so I look at something with German eyes. But now that is also becoming Dutch. That fits in with the globalisation we live in now right?”

“I decided to go out and meet new people. Luckily, that’s very easy here.”

“In Rotterdam, all the cultures are really part of the street scene.”

“Here you have the freedom not to practise. That’s a freedom I want.”

“The city has good facilities like public transport, lots of cycle paths and greenery. And you can do so many different activities here.”

“I also feel support from the government for people who want to grow.”

“You must have a bike! In that way you can get to many different places quickly. And it also feels safer with my bike than walking.”

“Because of the drugsaddicts around Rotterdam Centraal in the ’00, i thought about leaving for a while.”

“At work I sat with Dutch people instead of Polish to learn Dutch.”

“You can’t find a job ánd a house right away. It’s not as easy as it was 30 years ago. So you have to go slowly, then you can enjoy Rotterdam.”

“In Romania, most of the people are not open to new things. If you have a new idea in Rotterdam, others think about it and maybe even implement it.”

“There are some differences between different places in Rotterdam. Some do have a lot of garbage; but the Kleiwegkwartier is nice and neat place.”

”I think it’s beautiful how they honor those kinds of ceremonies like weddings and funerals.”

“In Rotterdam, you can follow your dreams.”

“In Rotterdammers it is easier to say no. That creates fewer problems.”

“I am a real and proud supporter of Feyenoord.”

“Sometimes Rotterdammers can react bluntly. But they don’t mean it personally. They are actually very social.”

“I love the markets here – every saturyday I go to the Binnenrotteplein.”

“I love that when you walk down the street, you hear so many languages and see many different cultures, food and art. It’s magical.”

“I also liked that people in Rotterdam assessed my background differently: Surinamese, Portuguese… So people couldn’t push me into 1 box.”

“I think South Africa can learn from Rotterdam in terms of respect for other cultures. Every culture is something special and has beautiful things you can learn from.”

“I wanted a city that is raw and not too touristy. Many people have come and gone in Rotterdam… it’s a city where you can grow up.“

“All this you might also find in other cities like New York, but Rotterdam is not that big. So that’s why it feels a little more connected here.”

“Rotterdam is diverse; that suits me. If I eat with 5 people, they often come from different countries.”

“I had to stand my ground in the face of discrimination. It has made me the person I am today.”

"When it was my husband's birthday, everyone congratulated me. I didn't understand that, we don't do that in Sweden," Lotta says. "Also, in Sweden we always take off our shoes when we enter someone's house. You often don't do that here." Furthermore, Lotta hardly sees...

“In general, Rotterdam is diverse, but certain neighborhoods also have many residents from certain cultures, which means that they are not as diverse.”

“I am Syrian, Kurd, filmmaker, refugee, Muslim, Arab ánd Rotterdammer.”

“In Rotterdam you can develop yourself so much and at the same time maintain and share your culture.”

“In the Netherlands, people live more individualistic, but Rotterdam still has that open atmosphere.”

“I feel a part of the city because of the international community here. We have the same experiences and find communities important.”

“The directness can come across as rude; for example if you almost hit someone on your bike and they insult you.”

“Rotterdam is more cosmopolitan than Amsterdam. This city has a different lifestyle; it feels more welcoming and authentic. And there is more space.”

“Even back then, there was a group of people who said that if you weren’t from here, you had no business being here. But Rotterdam remains a city of migration.”

“I know where I come from and am actually proud of that. That also helps me to be open to learning new people, cultures and languages.”

“Now I still have my house, but a bombing destroyed the windows. Thank God no one was present in the house at the time.”

“I don’t think there are any other cities of this size that have so much to offer, especially when it comes to culture and design.”

“According to Rita Verdonk, I was only allowed to stay for 90 days. So we found an IND employee who found a loophole in the law.”

“You have to belong to the society where you live, but also preserve your culture and pass it on to the next generation.”

“I still eat hot meals for lunch – I never got used to just bread during the day.”

“Western people there can not change the strong culture. Rotterdam is shaped by all those different cultures.”

“People here can be reserved. I had to work at the toilets in a nightclub to make friends.”

“It is important to connect with different people when you are new to a city.”