When Rianne from Limburg goes on an adventurous trip to Italy, she meets her dream man there. She decides – quite literally – to dive into the deep end.
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Bella Italy
Rianne grows up in a village environment in Limburg. At the age of 21 she goes to Italy for three weeks with a friend. ”We really wanted to put the flowers outside. Enjoying the country for three weeks, good food and many adventures.” Rianne and her friend travel with a holiday organization for young people. Not one where the emphasis is on tanning in the sun and drinking cocktails, but on sporting activities. “For example, you could sign up to climb, abseil or discover the Italian caves.”
Blonde hair and blue eyes
Right at the start of the trip, Rianne sets her sights on Jeroen: a handsome tourism student who is also a sports coach. He had blond hair and blue eyes. He also looked very fit, of course. In terms of appearance, he was completely my type.” Still, Rianne has it in her head that she should keep some distance. ”I thought: a boy like that sees a different group of girls every few weeks. It makes no sense at all to start something with that.”
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Jump into the deep end
Yet something beautiful is blooming there in Italy. Jeroen knows how to impress Rianne in a special way. ”We did canyoning: a mountain sport where you climb, jump and abseil a lot. At one point I had to jump off a fairly high point. I thought that was terrifying. At that moment Jeroen was standing down there and he managed to reassure me. He really talked me through that moment and gave me confidence. Thanks to him I literally jumped into the deep end.”
He looked at me and said he really liked me
Dancing on the table
On one of the last evenings of the holiday, Rianne realizes that it is really something special between her and the handsome sports instructor. “We had a party with our tour group and I had been dancing on the table very exuberantly. When I jumped off the table, Jeroen came to me. He looked at me and told me he really liked me,” Rianne recalls. “I then decided to just go for it.” And so it is that Rianne met her dream man in August and was invited by him in September to spend the rest of the season with him in the Ardennes. ”I immediately said yes. And a few months later we moved in together.”
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In the evening in the subway
Both Jeroen and Rianne do not like a long-distance relationship. ”Fortunately, Jeroen was very enterprising in this. He arranged a job in the Netherlands through a friend’s father and shortly afterwards we found an apartment in The Hague.” Rianne spends almost a year in the royal city. “I didn’t feel completely at home there. Of course I was used to a Limburg village, The Hague felt huge and busy. I liked the urban on the one hand, for example when I went shopping for an afternoon. However, there were also many times when I felt less comfortable. For example, if I had to travel home by tram late at night. Then I missed the village.”
Dream house in Zoetermeer
Then Rianne and Jeroen end up in Jeroen’s home town, Zoetermeer. ”I used to only know Zoetermeer by name, I had no idea. However, when I went to apply for a job at a daycare, I immediately felt at home there. I was welcomed so warmly here that I immediately knew I wanted to work there.” In addition to a job, Rianne and Jeroen eventually also find a house in Zoetermeer. First in Seghwaert, later in Rokkeveen. ”During a walk we ended up in Rokkeveen. There we came across a beautiful street, which I had a very strong feeling about. I said to Jeroen: this would really be a dream place. A few months later this house was for sale.” Rianne (41) and Jeroen (44) have now been together for over twenty years and they have two daughters: Tessa, aged 14, and Lieke, aged 11. Rianne: “Italy will always be special to us, but now we are discovering the country as a family.”
Who is the next Zoetermeer of the week?
Do you also have a special love story? Or do you know a Zoetermeer that we really need to interview? Let us know at [email protected].