What advice would Nicola give people moving to Holland?
• Be prepared to stand on your own two feet. • Have a sense of humour. • Accept things won’t necessarily be straight-forward and definitely not as they are at home. The bureaucracy is a contradiction – terrible in some ways fantastic in others. • You must ‘ask’ the locals for information and help as it is likely that they won’t volunteer information unprompted but will give it willingly if you just ask. • Make friends with someone local and/or an expatriate, who is perhaps older and wiser, someone who can be your reliable source of info. They are your integration advisor almost. • Learn the language because otherwise people will treat you as a tourist which is great initially but doesn’t help you to integrate. • Get involved in a local community activity, her partner belongs to a running club and Nicola is involved in an expatriate Women’s group which has many long term expatriate women married to Dutchmen or repatriated Dutch women members. Both have made friends and gained local know
