Everyday life
Mexican-born Gaby van Asseldonk came to the Netherlands for love 24 years ago. Only after a while did she learn Dutch really well.
‘Ze leren je hier spieken’
Hoe is het om bij Regina Coeli te verblijven en je onder te dompelen in een taal? Marlon van der Horst volgde twee weken taaltraining Duits om beter met zijn Duitse klanten in de financiële dienstverlening te kunnen praten. Tijdens de tweede week was Maren Pfeil een van zijn taaltrainers. Samen reflecteren ze op de week.
High Tech Campus
‘I took Dutch lessons during the civic integration programme. Later, I followed a week-long training course at Regina Coeli because I wanted to work again and needed to upgrade my language skills. I had started making little mistakes by then. Those are hard to unlearn. I recently followed another Regina Coeli training course on the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven. That one mainly focused on speaking in a group. That one, too, served me very well.’
Spanish and Dutch
‘I mostly speak Dutch with my husband’s friends and family. At first, I mainly communicated in English or through my husband. A pity in hindsight because you do miss a lot. Fortunately, the family is very close, and I have always felt at ease. At home we speak Spanish and Dutch. When my four children were little, we were advised to speak only Dutch to them. But I wanted them to be able to speak two languages, and now they speak Spanish and Dutch fluently.’
‘It’s never too late to learn, but it’s better to learn it properly from the start because mistakes are hard to unlearn’
Suitcases full of food
‘These days, you can fortunately buy ingredients for Mexican food everywhere in the Netherlands. I missed that a lot in the beginning. Whenever I returned from Mexico, my suitcase was full of Mexican food. I really had to get used to Dutch food, but I’ve learned to love it.’
Easy contact
‘I try to go to the gym three or four times a week. I especially like group classes and aqua fitness. I enjoy being in a group. I’m convinced that if you speak Dutch fluently, you can connect more easily with everyone.’
Dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s
‘Since the Regina Coeli courses, I’ve noticed that my Dutch has improved and that has helped me a lot. I can perform my tasks better in my work in an HR department. I speak Dutch with my colleagues. That’s going well, although I keep noticing it’s not my mother tongue. For the finishing touches, I want to spend another week at Regina Coeli. My children are grown up. Now I finally have time!’
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Photography Agnes Keijzers & Bas Quaedvlieg