Exhibition Rap en RoeR 2025/2026

"Here we go again!"

These photos show an important motto in our lives: "Here we go again!"

After everything that has happened, we decided not to stand still. Every time something seems difficult, we say to each other: here we go again — and we take the next step.

Our life in the Netherlands is filled with new challenges. We study, work, play sports, learn the language, and build new friendships and a network. Each of these steps helps us to continue growing and look ahead.

Staying active gives us energy. It makes us feel that the future is still open and that we can continue building our lives ourselves.

Something new has also emerged from this feeling. We have written a song together in Dutch. It is about moving forward, about trying, and about believing that things can get better.

The message of the song is simple: it will be alright if you do it.

For us, this means that hope is not just a feeling, but also a choice — a choice to keep moving forward again and again.

Cooking as part of the culture

Cooking plays an important role in Ukrainian culture.

Especially in difficult times, food brings people together. It helps preserve a sense of home and reminds us of a time when life was calmer and more carefree.

After February 24, 2022, food became scarce in Kyiv. In various places, people had to wait in long lines to get a small amount of food.

Often, there were no ready-made products. Usually, we only received simple ingredients such as sugar, salt, flour, and water.

The photo shows how we baked bread in a pan. It was a simple way to put something warm and familiar on the table again — a small reminder of normal life.

First Easter in the Netherlands

These photos show us our first Easter in the Netherlands.

When we were staying with a Dutch host family, we wanted to share some of our Easter traditions with them.

In the photo on the right, you can see linivky (лінивки). In Ukraine, we also call these “lazy eggs.” They are plastic sleeves that are placed around an egg and shrink in hot water, instantly decorating the egg.

In the photo on the left, you can see pancakes, eggs, and paski — traditional sweet Easter bread with a white egg white glaze and colorful sprinkles.

For us, it was a way to share a piece of our culture. For the host family, it was a new tradition that they enjoyed learning about.

Diploma obtained

This photo shows an important moment in my new life.

Before February 2022, I was studying International Business at the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, just like my sister.

When the war started and we had to flee, I knew I wanted to continue my studies. For a while, I continued studying online, but the conditions in Ukraine were uncertain. Sometimes there was no electricity, internet, or heating, which made studying very difficult.

That is why I decided to take a new step.

In April, I enrolled at Utrecht University to study Economics and Business Economics.

Three years later, here I stand — and I am receiving my first diploma!