Sheldon Chapman

Hi Sheldon, when did you arrive in the Netherlands?
I arrived in the Netherlands April 4th 2023.

How did you experience the first few months in the Netherlands?
The first few months were exciting and chaotic. I started working in an office that speaks primarily Dutch so there was a lot to learn in a short period of time. That was challenging but very rewarding. Luckily most Dutch people speak and understand English so we had little problem communicating. Exploring new cities and meeting new people were the highlights of the first few months.

Does it feel like home?
Absolutely, the Netherlands quickly felt like home. I was lucky to be placed with a great company with friendly colleagues and we soon started organizing game nights after work. I even met my girlfriend at the office and we’ve just bought our own place together 😋, we’ll be moving in soon!

Do you still live in the same house as in the beginning?
For now yes, I was lucky enough that summit developers had organized a furnished apartment for me in the center of Barneveld before I even left South Africa. That was extremely handy and saved a lot of time and effort to find accommodation.

How was it to learn the language? Was it easier or harder than expected?
Both! I caught on to the language much quicker than expected. The initial lessons provided by summit developers were very helpful to create a baseline for the language and after that I took on a more advanced course provided by my employer after I transferred from summit developers.
I also work in a mostly Dutch office and spend a lot of time speaking Dutch with my girlfriend and her family which helps to develop my Dutch much faster than just following a course. In this respect, it was easier to learn the language than expected.

The harder than expected part was coming to terms with the fact that learning a language takes time and no matter how quick you learn, there will be a period where you cannot properly express yourself or you misunderstand things while communicating in the new language and that can wear you down over time. I did at times feel a bit stupid but keeping at it reduced those occurrences and the pay off was absolutely worth it!

What do you miss most about South Africa?
My friends. I’ve been lucky enough to have my family visit multiple times since leaving South Africa but I’ve yet to go back since 2023 so I do miss the get-togethers with the boys. Luckily I’ll be visiting at the end of this year (2025), so we can catch up then.