Members of the international community answer 10 key questions about their lives in the Netherlands
‘Having a baby isn’t a medical procedure here, it’s just part of life’ Irish national Eva McLaughlin (43) moved to Amsterdam from Dublin in 2008 to work in the music industry. She’s a huge fan of the Dutch maternity care system and oliebollen and a great believer in the power of community and the support it brings. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I moved to the Netherlands in 2008 for work in my previous career in the music industry. I met my now husband, who is Dutch, two years into... More >
‘You don’t have to be rich to have a good life in the Netherlands’ Roberto Payer, 72, came to the Netherlands from Italy in 1969 to pursue his dream of becoming an international hotel manager. He worked his way up from bus boy to become Cluster General Manager of two of Amsterdam’s most prestigious hotels, the Hilton and the Waldorf Astoria. He retired in 2022 but continues to act as a consultant to Hilton Hotels. How did you end up in the Netherlands? When I came here in 1969, Europe did not exist. All... More >
‘The Dutch are the tallest people in the world, with the smallest houses’ Fiona grew up in Washington DC and first came to Europe as a student. She now lives in The Hague and is a speaker, author, blogger, YouTuber, leadership coach, and comic book illustrator in addition to working as a senior culture and engagement manager for a large multinational. She would like to meet the people behind Droog Design and recommends tourists spend a day on a Texel shrimp trawler. How did you end up in the Netherlands? Well, it... More >
‘I would, 100%, recommend having a baby here to anybody and everybody’ Elizabeth de Libero lived in various places across Europe and America before she moved to the Netherlands with her family. She currently works at the British School, would love to meet Iris van Herpen, and relishes the challenges of beach walks on cold and windy mornings. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I guess it starts with the fact that I’m married to an Italian. We met while I was studying abroad during university. I moved back to... More >
‘Since I left my home country, I have got to know it.’ For French-Canadian Julie Couture (41), project coordinator at Amsterdam’s Anne Frank House, it took a move thousands of miles away from her family in Québec to rediscover the history of her people and their special connection with the Netherlands. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I met a Dutchman in Spain in 2005 when I was there travelling with my sister. She just had a relationship which had broken down and she did not want to spend Christmas... More >
‘Our son is growing up Dutch. He has all the Dutch traditions’ Beatrice Murch spent her childhood in and around the film industry in both America and Britain. The daughter of Academy Award winning filmmaker and editor Walter Murch and author Muriel Murch, she’s lived all across the world and now works as a photographer and designer. She currently resides with her family in Utrecht, would love to have met Rutger Hauer, and enjoys Dutch directness. How did you end up in the Netherlands? My husband was recruited by Bol.com, so we... More >
‘I’ve got all of Europe at my doorstep here, and I’m ready to roar’ Stephen Judd grew up in Winnipeg and met his future wife while volunteering in East Africa. Nearing retirement years later in America, they became frustrated with its turbulent political scene. They, literally, set sail for the Netherlands the day after Donald Trump became the US president. How did you end up in the Netherlands? It’s a long story. It begins with my mission from Canada to East Africa where I met a Dutch woman who was, like me, doing volunteer... More >
‘There’s a lot of freedom here to be yourself’ Californian-born artist and painter-decorator Sharma Peterson (52) has lived in the Netherlands more than half her life and has dual nationality. She loves the Netherlands for its gun control laws and goofy comedy, and likes getting lost among the wonderful people and streets of Amsterdam. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I met a guy in a bar in California and it turned out he was Dutch and he was going to be in California for a few months... More >
‘Here I feel like I’m a valued member of society’ Nigerian Nelson T. Ajulo from Rotterdam lived in eight different countries before settling in the Netherlands in 2017. When he’s not working, you’ll find him relaxing on Scheveningen beach or playing sport. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I came to visit once for a business conference and fell in love with the people. The people were just super straightforward and direct and, for me, I translate that as openness and transparency. It makes life a lot easier.... More >
‘I really like how people here enjoy the small things in life’ Amit Biswas is a marketing and business strategist as well as the author of Logo Land, a book about the history behind the logos of the country’s 355 municipalities. Originally from Bangladesh, he’s currently based in Eindhoven, enjoys gezelligheid, and would like to grab a cup of coffee with Armin van Buuren. How did you end up in the Netherlands? It happened as a sort of accident. I wish this hadn’t happened, but it involved my father. He was in... More >
‘I never expected to find Asian cuisine in the Netherlands’ Yuven Muniandy fulfilled a childhood dream when he moved to the Netherlands to work on his PhD. Originally from Malaysia, he’s since fallen in love with the country and its bike culture. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I came to the Netherlands to do a PhD program. Back in Malaysia I was working at a stem cell manufacturing company. I had a secure job but I felt there was something lacking. Basically, I didn’t know what to... More >
‘You have to have an opinion in the Netherlands’ Indonesian national Irene Anggreeni from Rotterdam came to the Netherlands in 2006 to do a PhD in Industrial Design, but clinical depression forced a change of direction and she retrained as a psychotherapist and mental wellness coach, drawing on her own experience to help others recover from trauma. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I came to the Netherlands for a PhD position in industrial design at the University of Twente in Enschede. I have a Bachelor’s from... More >
‘Dutch is a rich and enlightening language. There’s so much historical context’ Frank Heyn grew up in Baltimore and became a cook after finding himself in Paris. He later came to the Netherlands to work as a private chef for the American Consulate General before he opened his own business. He’s now the owner and director of Frank’s Smoke House, a popular deli in Amsterdam. How did you end up in the Netherlands? Back in 1985, I was living in Paris and working as a cook at the American embassy in Paris.... More >
‘People will laugh, but I actually like the weather’ Cameron Jinks (30), originally from Northern Ireland, came to the Netherlands after being offered a spot at a Breda amateur rugby club. After googling the city, and deciding he liked what he saw, he moved to the Netherlands. He’s now a tech recruiter and a coach for the first team at Amsterdam rugby club AAC and has no plans to move anywhere else. How did you end up in the Netherlands? Well, 10 years ago I was still living in... More >
‘The Dutch have a bedroom window open for fresh air, even in winter’ Mayumi Konishi is originally from the island of Kyushu in Japan. She first came to the Netherlands while serving as a coach for a group of junior tennis players. She now lives in Amstelveen, loves French fries with mayo and would like to meet kickboxer Ernesto Hoost. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I first came here in 2004 for a junior tennis trip. I was with a group of players of between eight and ten years old... More >
‘It’s nice to live your life where, most of the time, you’re able to say what you think’ Milos Mandic grew up in Belgrade and lived in the UK and the US before relocating to the Netherlands. After the pandemic forced him to stay put in Amsterdam, he used his spare time to build Socializer, an app that helps its users expand their social circle. He would like to go for a cycle ride with Mathieu van der Poel and wishes he’d known about hagelslag as a kid. How did you end up in the Netherlands? Pretty much... More >
‘Street life here was a good lesson. I see people differently.’ Greek-Australian Apostolos Dimas (52), a trained machine operator and forklift driver, moved to Helmond in 2000 for love, but his life took an unexpected turn and, until recently, he was living on the streets of Amsterdam. He loves any excuse for a party, but just don’t ask him to get dressed up. How did you end up in the Netherlands? It was a love story. I met a Dutch woman in Greece. I had a cafeteria near Corfu, and I... More >
‘Somehow, Dutch people have this smile built in’ Polish national Monika Stępień (40) from IJburg, Amsterdam is the writer and director of the online comedy series Samen.pl which draws on Monika’s experience of living in the Netherlands, poking fun at the differences between Dutch and Polish culture. She has discovered a surprisingly good Latin dance scene here, has embraced the Dutch appointment system, but is less enthusiastic about the litter. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I grew up in Warsaw and I met a Dutch... More >
‘I love sandwiches and I love Tikkie so I’ve become Dutch in those ways’ Richard Walker hails from London and came to the Netherlands to work for Dutch world service radio. The comedian, impresario, and freelance journalist spends much of his time these days doing stand-up. He’ll be hosting a benefit comedy show for Ukrainian refugee charities at the Plein Theatre in Amsterdam on Thursday, 10 March. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I came here to work at the Dutch World Service radio station Radio Netherlands Worldwide in 2003. I worked... More >
‘I’m a foreigner, basically… I’m definitely not an expat or something like that’ A project assistant for the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in The Hague, Ciaran Hickey (34) from Zaandam says he’s wary of terms like ‘expat’ that divide newcomers into groups. The British national loves the Netherlands for its football and fried snacks, but wishes the Dutch could be a bit more spontaneous. How did you end up in the Netherlands? I’d been living outside the UK for a while. When I was a teenager I worked in Italy, then ended... More >
