The story of

A lot of different friends from different cultures. A lot of bustle and always something to do. New Year's Eve with hundred thousand of fireworks. Everyone is just the way they want to be. It was a culture shock when I moved from Amsterdam to Zeeuws-Vlaanderen at the age of 6.

A real Zeeuw, so I may not call myself that. Although I feel more like a Zeeuw than anything else. It was a real culture shock for me and my parents to come and live here. My mother started her own fashion store just across the border and my father also worked here. They thought it was a better idea to raise me in Zeeland.

I came to live here in 1996. In Amsterdam, I had many friends. Here, of course, I had to start all over again. I remember sitting alone on the bench in the schoolyard. Homesick for my friends and parents. I had no one to talk to here. Things were very difficult. Until a girl came up to me, Kyra was her name, which meant a lot to me then because I still remember it to this day. Then it didn't take long before I also got many friends here and started to settle myself in. (I never really got used to praying 3x a day at school ;))

I have always heard the saying: ‘just act normal, reality is crazy enough already’ in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen. Unfortunately, I could never quite identify with that and just did my own thing. In the beginning, it was difficult to find work that really suited me. I took a course at the ROC for retail and then went to Breda to study Media and Entertainment management. That entertainment business is not to be found around the corner, of course. Nevertheless, I found a job at The Dog Company in which I could apply everything I learned and which I really enjoy. And that less than 2 km from our home in the polder of Walsoorden. Who would’ve ever imagined that?

In my younger years, I dreamed of moving back to the city, but if I am very honest with myself, this was not what I really wanted. The silence and the sea are things I could never miss. Now when I go to the city, I am so incredibly happy to be back home. I have become a real country girl. That's why I'm still incredibly grateful that my parents moved here.
It can sometimes be difficult to find your niche here if you come from outside Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, but once you do, you will probably never want to leave.