Balabey continues to reiterate his gratitude for the Dutch and the warm welcome he received. For Oguzhan it is different. “They were guests and had to pay extra attention.” I was born here, we no longer have to pay attention to every step we take, he says. Oguzhan is especially grateful to his grandfather. “Imagine he had not come here, we would still be living in the village in Turkey,” life would be very different, he says. Just like his grandfather, Oguzhan feels Turkish and Dutch. “When I’m outside, I’m Utrecht, at home I’m half Turkish and half Utrecht.”
From Turkey to the Aluminum Factory: 60 years of Turkish guest workers in Utrecht
