By J.Th. (Jan) Hoekema, Mayor of Wassenaar.
Crunchy crumpets for breakfast, a plate of mac ‘n’ cheese -only works with a second helping-, the rotten smell of durians at the market, a secret stash of Yam noodles, HobNobs to dunk into your cup of tea…. Every expat has been there. In a bout of melancholy you suddenly find yourself in an expat store, desperately looking for comfort food that makes you feel a bit closer to home. Only to realize that to go looking for the things you miss most, you feel even more homesick than before.
In my younger days, working as an officer for the MFA, I often wondered what exactly made me feel like home. Living abroad changes your concept of ‘home’. Expats may sometimes feel a bit unrooted as to them ‘home’ has become a transitory place. It is a new place, in a new country, with new people and new customs and at the same time it is also the place you left behind, where your family and friends live, where everything is familiar. However, returning to the homeland for a shorter or longer period of time always needs adjusting for you never really return to the place you left behind. During your absence your familiar world has moved on as well. And to your own amazement going back to the host country feels more like homecoming than you could ever have imagined.
During the years I spent abroad to me ‘home’ became not so much a location, as a feeling. A feeling that I was welcomed, a feeling that I could share and contribute. And above all, a feeling of belonging, safety and being in sync with the environment. For several years now, the beautiful village of Wassenaar has been this home to me. A village I am very proud to be Mayor of.
Elsevier magazine, the Dutch equivalent to Time Magazine, proclaimed Wassenaar to be one of the ten best places to live in the Netherlands. Wassenaar is an authentic Dutch village, located in a National Park that comprises historic properties, dune landscape and meadows. This green pearl on the Dutch coast offers an oasis of peace and quiet near the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague -and their great museums, concert halls, theatres, universities amongst other big city pleasures. Wassenaar is the hometown of our beloved Royal Family.
The safety of Wassenaar offers them a peaceful and private setting in which they can retreat from their public lives. At the same time Wassenaar is a safe haven for refugees, who can here start to recover from the atrocities of war to take their place in society again.
Wassenaar has a strong sense of community and a vibrant cultural life. We take pride in sharing our beloved residential area and our habits and customs with people from all over the world. It is with good reason that many internationals choose Wassenaar as their Dutch home town, amongst which 35 ambassadors.
Approximately 20-25% of our inhabitants are expats which clearly contributes to the flavour of our open community. Footprints of the integration of our expat community can be found in the annual Open Air performances of The English Theatre at Town Hall De Paauw, the International Chamber Music Festival Wassenaar and the campus of the American School of the Hague being located in Wassenaar.
I hope that during your stay in Holland we can provide you with a feeling of home. So that somewhere in the future, you find yourself longing for our good old Dutch favourites: warm chocolate, stroopwafels, salt liquorice and gold Gouda cheese…
City of Wassenaar: http://www.wassenaar.nl/english/municipal-wassenaar_42228/
