When Indonesia became independent after WW II after years of fighting, more than 300,000 Indonesian Dutchmen repatriated to the Netherlands between 1946 and 1964. Upon their arrival, they were put up in contract pensions. Hetty Naaijkens-Retel Helmrich visited repatriates and talked with them about their sometimes unpleasant initial period in Holland. Some of them ended up on horse blankets in Westerbork, while others were lucky and stayed at the Loo Palace. Many repatriates did not feel at home. Dutchmen considered people 'from the tropics dirty', thinking they came straight from the jungle. 'You must be glad to finally live in a brick house', someone was told to his great dismay. They also got insulting lessons - 'as if I don't know how to brush my teeth!' - and it turned out that money for a new inventory was a loan, which some had to pay off until their death. The filmmaker also speaks with Dutch people who experienced all of this from the other side.
won prizes
NL - NFF Crystal Film (10,000 visitors documentary)
