“I’m more shy myself, but I appreciate that everyone in Rotterdam is open and direct,” says Mo from Kuwait. He was seven years old when his family fled the Gulf War with Iraq to the Netherlands. He doesn’t remember much about his homeland or the journey to the Netherlands. When asked about the circumstances of his departure or his homeland, he never answered. “I only remember arriving at the airport and that it was very cold here,” he laughs. He ended up in a large house in Apeldoorn that he shared with others. “I had my own room. Quite luxurious compared to today’s asylum seekers’ centers.” He joined a third-grade class, where he picked up the Dutch language in a year.
Back to your own country
After that, the family lived in Goes for ten years. There, he was the only student in the class with a non-Dutch background. “There was a lot of discrimination. I was treated differently by other students, and I was bullied a lot in secondary school. They told me I should go back to my own country because I didn’t belong there.”
Sticking around for Blijdorp
At the age of eighteen, he moved to Rotterdam to study nursing and be with his friends. He has now been living here for 22 years. “After completing my studies, I did an internship at Blijdorp Zoo, among other places, and I ended up staying there.” He felt more at home here. “Because there were so many different cultures and activities here. It is also centrally located; you can easily get to Amsterdam and Brabant. I had many options for volunteer work.” He took advantage of the latter: he helped Groenten zonder grenzen (Vegetables without Borders) cook free meals for people, packed packages at the food bank, and helped at Rotterdam’s first food bank store. This quickly made him feel at home in Rotterdam.
Knowing what to expect from Rotterdam residents
Although he did have to adapt. “Because I was, and still am, a rather shy guy. The mentality here is also tougher. Everyone is quite open and fierce. But that’s also what’s nice about Rotterdam. Personally, I’m more shy, but I do appreciate that you know what to expect from Rotterdam residents. When people are quiet, you don’t know what’s going on. That makes communication more difficult.” But there are also disadvantages. “People were friendlier in Zeeland. And cars are quicker to stop for you there.”
From tranquility to hustle and bustle and new buildings
Unfortunately, he couldn’t continue working at the famous Rotterdam zoo due to budget cuts. He has now been caring for small monkey species and lions at the Antwerp zoo for 14 years. Yet he continues to live in Rotterdam, the city that has everything to offer. “Here you can find peace and quiet at the Kralingse Plas, but also the hustle and bustle of the city center.” He has already explored all the neighborhoods.“When the weather is nice, I cycle through the city for an hour after work: sometimes through Kralingen-Crooswijk and Hillegersberg, other times to the Erasmus Bridge, where I look at the skyline. I find those buildings fascinating to look at. There is also a lot of new construction going on, which I find remarkable to see.”
Mo travels a lot, from Bali to Madagascar, Uganda, and Brazil. “But I’m always happy to be back home.” Although his home is in Rotterdam, he brings customs from his Iraqi home with him. “For example, I take my shoes off when I come home. And I’m hospitable to others in my home.”