🖊 WRITE 🖊

Now that I feel more courageous to cook the Creole dishes of my upbringing, I’ve developed a strong desire to also learn my mother tongue: Papiamento. Growing up, I experienced a bilingual environment where both Dutch and Papiamento were spoken. My mother communicated with me mainly in Papiamento, while my father mainly spoke Dutch. That’s why I can converse in Papiamento with a Dutch accent, understanding the majority of words. Although my Dutch is nearly accent-free, I’ve noticed a subtle Antillean accent here and there.

As my love for my cultural roots deepens through embracing the flavors of my childhood, I find myself compelled to express this affection through language. It’s a journey for me to reconnect with my origins, focusing on the positive aspects. So, I first started with exploring traditional dishes, and who knows, perhaps language will be the next step.