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 left thinking that I’d gather knowledge and experience and then I’d return to Romania, to help improve something there. For instance, I’d like to change something in the academia, people should be more open to new ideas. And if something is not going well, we should try to find a solution together, instead of having an attitude along the lines of “I’ll pack my things and go.”
“If the community you refer to is the people who participate in the life and society in the Netherlands with all their heart and soul, I am one of them. But I want to stress again that I feel I am an international citizen.”
“…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.”
I remember a sunny day when I was sitting in the old garden of the Stedelijk Museum; I bought a book, ordered a cup of coffee, read for hours and felt really deeply happy inside. At that moment I told myself I would never leave this city.
Copyright Noi Rădăcini – ©
