Until 2015, Peter van den Boom (49) ran the Pasta Company in Zoetermeer with great success, until a brain haemorrhage changed his life. Peter moved with his family to Curaçao! We spoke to Peter about his foreign adventures.
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A new house
When we speak to Peter, he is sitting on a sunny terrace. He has just moved to Leersum and does not yet have WiFi in his new home. “My kids were already complaining that we still don’t have internet. We have only been in our new house for two days. In Curaçao you can easily wait five weeks for the internet.”
Curaçao is not the only foreign destination where Peter has lived. This 49-year-old entrepreneur, originally from Brabant, has had an adventurous career.
around the world
Peter grew up in Berkel-Enschot and went to study at the hotel school in Tilburg. During this training he left for the first time to Curaçao to do an internship there. “That was in 1994, it was very different then than it is now. You couldn’t skype or video call. To reach the home front you had to go to a square with telephone booths. You had to insert coins there to make calls.” Peter immediately fell in love with the island, but he did not return immediately after his studies. Peter: “After my education, I worked on a cruise ship for a year and sailed all over the world with it. From Nice, to Africa, to Hong Kong… You name it! I worked there as a head waiter. Hard work, but a lot of fun.”
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Tie Ties
And it certainly was hard work: three shifts a day, seven days a week. “After working for about five months, you had two months off.” Peter got to know many people on the ship. “We had a pleasant group of colleagues from all over the world. The machines were mainly operated by the Philippines, the management was largely Norwegian. Everyone helped each other where possible. I was one of the few on the ship who could tie a tie neatly. I did this for many of my colleagues. In return, I got extra beer from the catering or someone cleaned my room.”
Swiss hotel
After working at sea for several years, Peter decided to realize another dream: working in a star hotel in Switzerland. “People in the hotel world know: if you can work in the good hotels in Switzerland, you can work anywhere. That’s why I aspired to do that.”
Together with a friend from the hotel school, Peter drove to Switzerland on spec and knocked on the door of several hotels. He was eventually hired at a leading five-star hotel in Zurich. “I learned Swiss German very quickly on the work floor.”
Pasta Company in Zoetermeer
Peter’s next adventure was one within our own borders, namely in our beautiful Zoetermeer. “A good friend I met on the cruise ship owned two Pasta Company restaurants. I often spoke to him about it and always told him: if you’re going to open another one, I’m in! Shortly afterwards, the branch was opened in Zoetermeer and I became manager there.” The first branch of Pasta Company opened on the Markt, later it moved to the Dorpsstraat. The new location also houses a grill restaurant.
Teasing the Mayor
Peter enjoyed working in Zoetermeer. In 2003, together with Tom, the friend he worked with in Switzerland, he became the owner of three Pasta Company businesses. “I loved doing business in Zoetermeer. We were on Market 1, the town hall on Market 2. I always thought that was so funny, that we use number 1 as the house number instead of the municipality. I often teased the mayor about it. I had a very good relationship with the people at the town hall anyway. They often came to our place for dinner or drinks after working hours. Whenever I needed a permit for something, I just popped in. It actually felt like I was in a small village.”
Most Powerful Person
Peter was involved in the Zoetermeer hospitality life in various ways. He was active in a number of associations that guaranteed the quality and hospitality of the local catering industry. He was very fond of the customers in Zoetermeer. “People knew my story and I knew theirs. I have really bonded with many of my clients. When my child was born, for example, it was celebrated in the store.” Peter was also once named one of the most powerful people in Zoetermeer. “I thought that was a bit strange, but it is true that I have many connections through my work.”
Stroke
However, in September 2015, something happened that turned Peter’s life upside down: he suffered a brain haemorrhage. “I was in Woerden for a meeting with many people from the hospitality industry, and I actually felt fine. Suddenly I dropped a paper from my hand. I wasn’t worried and still felt good… Then bystanders noticed my face was beginning to sag. Shortly afterwards, I was taken to hospital by ambulance.” Although Peter was still joking in the ambulance, it was immediately apparent in the hospital that it was serious. “The bleeding was in the brain stem, which is really dangerous. I soon lost my sight and could no longer stand on my legs.”
No more stress
Ultimately, Peter manages to recover from the brain haemorrhage. “That took a year. I had to relearn everything: walking, talking, eating… Of course it made me sad, but I also quickly accepted it. I knew I couldn’t change it. I could get mad at the situation, but no one was to blame. So I decided to make the most of it. When I started to pick up my life again, I decided one thing: I never want to be stressed again.”
Departure to Curacao
Peter closed the Pasta Company and left for Curaçao, the island where he felt so at home. “First I went on a preparation holiday with my family. It was necessary to get them used to my plan. In the end everyone agreed. We found a good school for our children and my wife soon found a job. By renting out our house in the Netherlands, we had a fixed income anyway.” During the first period in Curaçao, Peter mainly spent time on the beach. “I found out that doing nothing is not for me, I want to occupy myself anyway.”
In front of the class
And soon Peter discovers a new passion: teaching. Through a Dutch acquaintance, he gets a job as a teacher within a catering course in Curaçao. “I had a very good relationship with my students, we clicked right away.” In addition to his work at school, Peter was also asked as a consultant in hotels. “Between those two jobs, I always took an afternoon nap. I had to take care of my body. Since the brain haemorrhage, certain things, such as switching quickly, no longer happen by themselves.”
Back to the Netherlands
Peter and his family spend three wonderful years in Curaçao. When Peter and his wife split up, Peter remains alone on the island for another year while his ex-wife and children return to the Netherlands. “I traveled to the Netherlands every six weeks to see my children, but that was emotionally heavy. It’s hard to leave them behind after that.” Peter therefore quickly decides to return to the Netherlands for good. But he does not leave his experiences in Curaçao completely behind him…
happy ending
Once in the Netherlands, Peter decides to start teaching again. He is now undergoing training for this. In the meantime, he is already teaching at the hotel school. “Teaching is really something for me, I like to connect with people. Connecting people.” When asked whether Peter ever wants to go into the hospitality industry again, he answers in the negative. “I enjoy being involved from the side, for example as a consultant. But your own business again? No, my head can’t handle that anymore. What I’m doing now is better for me.”
Peter is also happy in love again, because he has been reunited with his childhood sweetheart, whom he has known for thirty years. His love for Curaçao has not cooled, however. “I still like to go on holiday there and keep in touch with the people there on a daily basis. I think that’s great: I have a large network both there and here. And with both, I am very happy.”