Archives
Just how easy it is to forget the myriad of blessings we’re surrounded with. I merely arrived home from an odd job of cleaning dorm rooms, only to realize that I got paid more for 7 hours of work than most people in my home country after a whole week of full-time labor. The catch? There isn’t one.It wasn’t even hard, let alone mundane or dull. “How is this even possible?” –… Read More
People will call you crazy for almost anything these days. Not because you are mentally ill, but because it’s the easiest thing to say. Just try it and you’ll see. Do something that’s outside the comfort zone of other people, and you’re suddenly “insane”.Dare to go against their beliefs, and you’ll soon be rewarded with the title “lunatic”.Do anything out of ordinary, and you’ll be labeled as the “madman” of society. No… Read More
24 years of age. The thought of “soon you’ll be closer to 30 than to 20” began to creep up on me.Not like it changes anything.Your dreams, friends and qualities remain the same. It’s only the calendar that shifts.Besides, you never know what the next day might bring in your way. My birthday was actually on the 18th, but the party was scheduled for today.There was only one issue with this, is… Read More
What does it mean to belong? According to the definition, there are many options. You can belong to a country, a city or a house.You can belong to your family, your friends or co-workers.You can belong to a community, a cult or a religion. The amount of things we can connect to is exhaustingly long.So how come some of us can still feel alone, lost or without a home? If the World… Read More
Waking up early can be a wonderful thing, except when you barely had time to sleep.Luckily a song from Burna Boy can make any ass shake. No matter the day, it’ll move that booty out of the sheets. It was 6 am, and we were about to go for an early morning swim. When we arrived to de Waal beach, the idea of a quick workout became very tempting. Since many of… Read More
How do you strengthen a friendship?You probably have a few solid ideas already.Order pizza and watch a movie, get drunk and go out on a Friday evening, support them when they need it, continuous honesty and reliability, a surprise or a gift, cooking a delicious meal; or offering an open ear to listen to their great news or difficulties. If we really care about our buddies, none of these should be challenging.But… Read More
A lot of people told me that it’s not going to be easy. “Dutch people are cold and distant – they might be tolerant, but that does not equal acceptance. You can try as much as you want, but getting friends will always be the difficult part. Integration is hard, even if you learn their moedertaal1, you’ll still be a foreigner in their eyes.”This was the kind of “encouragement” I got when… Read More
Clark Kent is a rookie compared to him. Even though we barely knew each other for 5 minutes, he offered an entire day to show me things.“What’s the catch?” – I wondered, baffled by the amount of friendliness.There was none, whatsoever. Such generosity came from within. It started with a trip towards our “rival” city: Nijmegen; Arnhem’s Nemesis. The route should’ve taken 1 hour by cycling, but the headwind was stronger than… Read More
“Guys, wanna throw a picnic in Sonsbeek?” None of us needed more convincing. This is the place.A huge field, surrounded by a small forest and a few lakes – barely touched by anything human-made.The grass is green, the sun is shining and the people are happy.If you ever come to Arnhem, don’t miss out on seeing this. All you need is a blanket, some snacks and a few friends to chill with…. Read More
Road to a New Life 