Holland from a new Perspective

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Holland from a new perspective

Each edition we try to find an international student to talk about their experience in the Netherlands. This time it is Yinan’s turn, who has decided to leave her home in China a couple of years ago to pursue her studies here. Text & Images: Yinan Zheng, HTI student

8800 kilometres, it is the distance between the Netherlands and my home in the far east. Sometimes, I just feel like everything is so unreal. In middle school, I learned about maritime trade in history class; I heard about windmills and tulips from my grandparents’ Europe tours; I got to know the uncrowned king of the World Cup because of football. All of these pieces of information gave me the first impression of the Netherlands.

But honestly, I once dreamed of studying in Germany, and I never thought my life would be related to its neighbour. Then after 6 years, I arrived here, as a junior student. Actually, it’s a bit of a “shame” that I can speak only a little Dutch after two years. I’d like to “blame” it on Dutch people. I still remember the kind old couple I met the first time I went back to China on my own. It should have been

an awful morning, the train ticket couldn’t be downloaded to my NS app because of some system error. I was super tired and worried when the old couple came and sat opposite me. They asked about my situation and explained it to the train inspector. We transferred together, chatted all the way and said goodbye to each other at the airport. It happened just before my last bachelor semester. Although I didn’t speak Dutch and they couldn’t speak Chinese, our communication in English went well and made me feel soft but strengthened that morning. This experience, more or less, helped me make up my mind to continue studying in the Netherlands. Every time I recall it, I feel as impressed as I did then. This beautiful memory is all due to the kindness and English ability of that couple. I am not

“I miss Chinese food

sooooooooo much”

sure if I will learn more Dutch in the future. I do appreciate that so many Dutch people speak English so well. And I’d like to say that the Netherlands is a foreigner-friendly country.

Another thing is about football, which is not a novel story here but means a lot to me. I have been fascinated by European football atmosphere for 12 years. I grew up with my cousin. We cheered for the same team, Bayern Munich, at midnight and in the wee hours due to time difference. We didn’t do that together after he went to university in the USA. Now he is envious of me as I am in the same time zone as Bayern. And I do enjoy each football match without staying up late. Last year, I went to Philips Stadion twice for the matches PSV vs. Ajax and PSV vs. Groningen. I have to say that I’m really into the football atmosphere here. When I was in the stadium looking around, I noticed everyone enjoyed the matches, young and old, men and women. It doesn’t matter who you are, as long as you love football. Even though I had heard about it a long time ago, I still felt impressed and touched when I stood within these football fans. Somehow, I felt a sense of belonging among these strangers.

In China, we have to leave home to go to university. Homesickness is so familiar to me that I am able to cope with it. But there is one thing that seems insurmountable for me, that is food. OMG, I never expected that I would miss Chinese food sooooooooooo much. Please forgive me that I still cannot appreciate Dutch food after living here for more than two years. I mean, bread, milk, fries and kibbeling are fine. About others… Hmmm, let’s move on to another topic then. Theme en

Europe is definitely a brilliant place for travellers. There are so many different cultures within several hundred kilometres. I never feel tired of exploring them. And of course, even if I did not go anywhere, staying in the Netherlands itself is already an adventure for me as a foreigner.

The difference between the east and west is huge. The flight of 10.5 hours is also a bit annoying, although it is worth it. I enjoy the enthusiasm and confidence of people here while I still love the restraint and humility of us oriental. I’m always feeling so grateful that I get the opportunity to personally experience this difference. I do appreciate every second I spend here. Even though I still have two years before graduation, I’ve already started to miss the time I spent here. Although the exploration still goes on, I believe I will miss it very much when I go back to China. When I talk about Germany in the future, I will then say “it is a country next to the Netherlands, the place where I found more possibilities of my life and enjoyed a new world.”