ROMPRO Foundation organized between 15 and 17 September 2017 the first edition of the festival Romanian Days, to provide the opportunity and the context to create a closer and stronger Romanian community. This has been achieved through a series of cultural activities and personal and professional development workshops.
The attention paid to the economic and professional field makes this festival a trailblazer in the evolution of the Romanian community in the Netherlands. Integration into a new context requires both openness to the new and adaptation from a cultural, professional, economic and psychological point of view. This last aspect was included in a workshop on interpersonal relations in which there was an applied discussion about how we interact with people around us.
As the first event of its kind, the professional development workshops focused on elements of general usefulness in all areas. Members Romanian Business Community were active throughout the festival, supporting workshops and interacting with the public. The networking sessions were relaxed, providing an opportunity to put into practice the elements presented both during and outside the workshops.
Cultural activities were equally varied. They brought to the fore literature, photography, music, poetry and dance. The performances on the opening night and Saturday evening, and on Sunday during the day, were of particular beauty and energy. The artists who delighted us brought with them the artistic spirit full of excitement and joy so familiar and dear to us. The list of people is long and impressive and it would be inappropriate to mention just a few names, when each made an essential contribution to the spirit of this festival. I therefore invite you to meet them all here
Because it was primarily a cultural festival with a large number of families attending, there were also a number of activities for children. Romanian School Amsterdam supported with four workshops for children and a Romanian language workshop for adults. The chosen location, De Rijp, is 30 minutes north of Amsterdam, in the middle of an area full of greenery and water. The hotel complex De Rijper Eilanden is a relatively recent building, but captivates with its impressive collection of historical artefacts, scattered throughout. To some, however, this amalgam of elements may seem too much, but the intimacy of the place is absolutely fascinating to the eye of a photography enthusiast. The hotel staff welcomed us warmly and provided us with absolutely everything we needed. And on behalf of all the participants, I would like to thank them for making this festival possible. And finally, I think the most important things to remember from this achievement are its relevance for our development in the Netherlands and the elements that will be reflected in Romania through our personal and professional lives.
One of the most important elements in our individual development are the life lessons we learn and how they affect us. But these lessons are not only on a personal level, but also on a national level. Every culture, society and country learns over time from its history. It does not learn from history books, but by living it and passing on what it has understood to the collective memory. One of the lessons that Romanians keep being given to learn is that of trusting both in their own strength and in collective power. Our collective memory emphasizes national suffering, but this should belong to the past. Today, it is important to look forward and focus our forces on what we can achieve together from now on.
From this point of view, what ROMPRO has created is of particular value. Cătălina Negru, Dana Popa and Ana-Maria Murariu, the three who set up this Foundation have brought us to a special point. And, together with a fantastic group of volunteers, they gave us the opportunity to get to know each other, to discover each other and ourselves. They have facilitated connections with people who teach and support us professionally, personally and emotionally. They have given us opportunities to collaborate for personal and collective benefit. They have made us smile nostalgically and even laugh heartily, sometimes to tears. In essence, they have brought us face to face with our personal mirrors, but without leaving us alone.
I invite you to follow their example, support them and get involved whenever you have the opportunity, thus contributing to the consolidation of Romanian culture and its promotion, as well as to the Romanians constructively involved in the Dutch culture and economy.
