Expat's Journal

Dutch Design week

You can't truly say you're part of a place if you don't actively participate in a local event

This is the conclusion I've reached after six years of living abroad. Being an active part of the community, creating an event, or participating in one at any level, is an important step toward feeling part of the society you've chosen to live in.

And it’s something that work doesn’t always allow you to do or feel. The expatriate experience is very different depending on whether you work or don’t work, and this difference is present on many levels. It’s as if you’re living in different bubbles.

When you move abroad with a job contract in hand, you enter the company bubble, where, in most cases, you speak English rather than the local language (of course, in English-speaking countries you have an advantage, but “international” English isn’t the local slang, nor does it match the speed of native conversation). Your colleagues come from various cultures and countries, so contact with local customs and traditions can remain vague and occasional.

If you don’t work, you're the partner of the one who found the job (the "expat spouse"), living in a different bubble within your community and that of other internationals. But contact with locals is more frequent, and you start to learn the language—at least you come to understand it most of the time.

For me, the next step was getting actively involved in initiatives around me: my daughter’s school activities, neighborhood events, and more recently, local and work-related events.

I love the Netherlands and Eindhoven. They are a piece of home, and they've saved me—literally. Seeing the city “transformed” during Dutch Design Week was exhilarating.

The Dutch Design Week is one of the liveliest weeks for this city. Thanks to Sandra Placentino, I had the opportunity to speak, in this colorful and futuristic setting, about sustainable work—a kind of work that aligns with our values and priorities. It was a beautiful experience: the warmth of Sandra’s kitchen welcomed me and the guests, giving us a chance to work in an intimate space. That’s not something you can take for granted when discussing work..

I felt like I made my contribution to this important international event, and I felt more like a local than an expat. This is significant because it motivates you to contribute to the area and, for me personally, pushes me to further deepen my knowledge of the language and my connections with those who have always lived here.

And for them, it’s a kind of reassurance: one of the most common questions locals ask when you live abroad is, “But how long are you staying?” Seeing someone actively contributing to the community helps reassure them—"My intentions are serious!” And the relationship shifts.

Try it to believe it.