I was born and bred in The Hague in the Netherlands. My family on both sides originate from Limburg, a province in the south, near the German and Belgium border. This implied that we as a family lived quite separately from “the rest of the tribe” seeing them once a year at the most. Apart from school, I had piano and ballet lessons, played tennis and loved skating.

After I left school, I simply didn’t have a clue about my future and thus decided to try and improve my languages. I started off in England, to be followed by periods in Brussels and France. I passed the necessary exams and became sufficiently independent.

I returned to England, to Bristol this time, to start a nurse-training at the Children’s Hospital, which I left after 2 years, but I acquired another English Lanquage exam during this time.

When I got back in The Hague, I worked as a guide taking British and French tourists along the Rhine through Holland and Germany ending up in Strasbourg and had a fantastic and jolly time.

Then, all previous things got a bit together as I started working as a Medical Secretary for a professor at the university hospital of Leyden, who published a lot of papers in English. But I enjoyed above anything else the contact with patients, wheras I was able to survive the administration involved. 

In Leyden I also met my future husband and we were together for 47 years having 3 children ( 2 boys and 1 girl ).

My husband became a psychiatrist and apart from his clinical work, we had a small practice at home. In fact, after the children were born, I stayed at home “to organise things for everybody”, did a lot of voluntary work, followed art classes, learned to play flute, had ballet lessons for years and years and worked in an art gallery for 12 years.

My husband died after a long illness in 2017 and I decided in 2021 to join my eldest son and his family in Périgueux. I have been a member of the DLCI since the beginning of my stay in France participating in the Book Club and Coffee Mornings in Sainte Foy. I also enjoy the monthly meals a lot.

In Périgueux, I joined the UTL, started last year to participate in a French Book Club as well, attend concerts and I’m getting to know people.

In short, I am very happy here!