After living for so many years in the Netherlands, we started to appreciate the idea of a community of Romanians, we started to understand that it would be very good to find out about one another, who we are, why we are here, why we feel good in this country.
And so the project Noi Rădăcini – New Roots – was born: a format based on short interviews, which will be published every week for a year. 52 interviews in total.
Who is it for? First, to say that Romanians feel good when living in the Netherlands. We can collect their stories, some different from the culture and traditions they left behind, and we can learn from them. We, Romanians, want to learn about other Romanians, to understand the different facets of living and being successful in the Netherlands.
Second, Noi Rădăcini wants to be a credible source of information for the Dutch people, focusing on the good things Romanians actually do in the Netherlands, from things that are tangible and easy to appreciate, to less tangible things that nevertheless make the Dutch society work.
There is also a third reason for Noi Rădăcini to exist, a reason perhaps only meaningful to the authors: we were and remain curious about Romanians living in the Netherlands. Who are these beautiful and courageous people?
“…I still don’t feel at home, but still, it’s getting better and better. Through my work I come very frequently into contact with the structure of the Dutch society and I feel I’ve started to know it increasingly better.”
“The biggest reward is when a Dutch child thanks you for the lesson and they wish you a nice weekend. And there’s something else I like. Sometimes they come and ask me “Are you looking forward to the lesson? Because we are!” That’s a big deal for Dutch kids …”
“I had to go through some moments when I had to accept my cause, to understand that I would not become a world-famous soloist, that I wouldn’t be such a big name, as it is, in fact, expected of you in the schools in Romania. But success does not reside in these things, but in the perseverance with which you build something.”
“Amsterdam is my city. I came here in 2001, to audition in the Hague, and I stopped by in Amsterdam for a couple of days. Ever since I’ve been in love with this city. I told myself that, at some point in my life, I would have to live here. And here I am, six years later, that dream has come true.”
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