‘Shortly after our registration with the municipality, the Italian police was at the door’

We were so looking forward to this day: finally we can register in Puglia and it feels like we have officially emigrated. A goal, somewhere to take root and a kind of acceptance for everything you’ve been through.

Make dreams come true

We don’t like things that everyone else does, we don’t like superficial but only real. We walk our own path, follow our own ideas and thoughts. By researching, trying, learning, winning we found our goal, our dream that we managed to realize with our own strength. We don’t care if we get credit for that or not, it doesn’t make us any less happy with where we are. But the fact that the municipality welcomes us so warmly here, and accepts us in this place, remains very valuable. This is who we are, we stand for adventure and we want to live in a culture where love, health and family are of paramount importance.

Barolo woke up and wanted to breastfeed right away, usually he doesn’t want that until one and a half to two hours after he wakes up, but no, right now he wanted to breastfeed. After half an hour of feeding, I quickly hopped in the shower and got myself ready in five minutes, packed my prettiest Gucci bag and off we went.

Visit to the municipality

Miraculously, we were at the municipality with three fresh and clean children, literally the minute we had to be there. For the second time now, because this time we had all documents with us, which were not yet complete on our first visit.

Our lawyer Adalisa had already partly told us that the Fiscal Code was particularly important, but also a registration of the lease contract, an agreement from our landlord and a solvency statement from our Dutch bank.

You must have a certain income if you want to register here and they prefer to see that you can really do something for the city. Something everyone probably already knew, but I only found out during the conversation is that Paesi Bassic another word is for the Netherlands. Learned something again.

decent man

Finally, after sitting in front of a very dignified man with a serious but quite handsome head for over an hour, all the data had been entered manually by him and he happily said: ‘Auguri’, in other words: congratulations!

For each form, he took the trouble to type and check everything himself. He looked neat and fresh. Beautiful brown skin from the sun, blue blouse with a blue beaded necklace and a matching bracelet, glasses with thick black frames. It looked fantastic on him! He had a magnifying glass in his hand to read everything accurately. I watched with admiration how precisely he carried out every action. His name was Giovanni.

Serious and accurate

I was a little nervous because I’m the one who speaks Italian the best in our family, so I had to do my best this time. Before Giovanni handed us the official papers of the registration, an agent came over and watched what he was doing. Giovanni explained to the agent that we were moving here and that he had put everything in the system. How strange, I thought, that an agent – ​​a very serious man too – comes to check all this. Well organized actually, since in the Netherlands we were too lazy to double check whether the names of the boys were entered correctly when applying for the passports and so just before we emigrated we received two passports in which the date of birth had been mixed up. Or as with the birth registration of Barolo Dolce, that I received a registration from myself. Bad luck and a coincidence that it went wrong again or just total laxity?

So far they arrange everything here fantastically, seriously and very accurately. They take their job really seriously. From garbage collector to mayor, they’re determined to make the most of it. Valuable to see as an outsider.

Also read: Bien is getting married: ‘We celebrate our love and only need each other’

Fidgety

‘Let’s celebrate this,’ said Arjen happily. “Congratulations honey, what a milestone huh?” I was silent for a while. Tired too, because Brunello was really annoying and I had to play the policeman all the time when we had to wait all this time at the council and he had no patience to sit still and I refused to bribe him with my phone.

Luckily we had the basketball with us, so we walked to our favorite place in the square, the ‘Grand Café’ where we always drink homemade iced tea with lemon ice in it. So sweet and so damn delicious. The kids played in between and we tried to enjoy our coffee for those few minutes that we were allowed to rest, without arguing over the ball.

After a delicious lunch, of course with pizza, focaccia and coffee, we decided to pack our things at home and get a breath of fresh air on the beach. I was restless and not comfortable in my own skin, and even though I should be happy at moments like this, all kinds of emotions go through me. Precisely by daring to feel in that happiness, to process what you have run away from, to let go, to start again and to go through something again to realize and feel where we are now and what we have chosen. This was no longer a holiday, this was not temporary. Not the last day that we could enjoy a nice holiday, this is for the rest of our lives.

Police at the door

Arjen packed the things, I quickly cleaned up the toys in the room, put on my bikini, but less than twenty minutes after we registered with the municipality the Italian police was at our door. Brunello looked at me: ‘Mama, tutu-am, the policeman!!!’ Brunello is completely impressed with the police here, as well as with the ambulance, the fire brigade and all the chiefs. This man has fire in him and goes wild with the ‘tutu-am’ as we call it.

It is very common here that when you register, the police quickly, and sometimes immediately carry out a check at someone’s home. Our landlord had already informed us in the beginning that it is quite normal here and that you should not be alarmed if the police come by to check whether you live at that address. We now know this policeman well by face and after a bit of looking around everything was fine.

We are home

He also helped us with applying for a parking permit, so that we have a parking space in front of our door for fifty euros a month. You can’t imagine that in the Netherlands, you might rent one meter of grass for that. The kids thought it was exciting, and we spent the rest of the day using the police officer’s visit to get things done, such as cleaning up their room, eating a plate and being nice. I’d just listen, or the police officer will be checking on you in a minute. Well, it did help quite a bit I must say.

It’s official, we’re home. That feels so unreal but so nice. Now it is important to take care of all kinds of other things that we can request now, but above all to find a transport company and a warehouse to store our things. That’s really nice to look forward to, our own stuff. Perhaps we will hear from our broker within the next two weeks and we can finally start working on our own place. Anyway, the rule applies here: the suffering that is called patience.

Baci, Bien!

Would you like to read more beautiful and recognizable stories from fellow moms? Subscribe now and receive Kek Mama first on your doorstep every month.