When Aart van Veen first visited Slovakia two decades ago, he travelled right across the country by train. Coming from Vienna, he crossed the plains, passed through the mountains, and ended up in Trebišov, in the far-eastern region of Zemplín. He remembers pressing his forehead to the window and whispering to his Slovak wife: “You have everything here. Except for the sea, Slovakia has it all. This country is even more beautiful than Switzerland.” That journey left him wide-eyed.
For a man who had spent most of his adult life in Switzerland after leaving his native Netherlands, this first impression would eventually become life-changing. Today, Aart lives with his wife Bernarda in the small eastern town of Nová Kelča. He plans to continue working for a few more years before reaching retirement age. Yet he insists, with a smile, that he already feels at home: “Slovakia is where I belong. Always has been, since the first time I came.”
Aart van Veen notes that comparing the two countries is unavoidable. Switzerland, with its mountains, order and prosperity, gave him decades of work but little sense of belonging. Slovakia, by contrast, feels freer, warmer and less rigid.
The very first encounter
The couple first visited Slovakia in 2004. Their daughter was born by then, and they decided to spend time in Bernarda’s native region. For Aart, the trip was eye-opening.
“In Switzerland, people are like blinkered horses,” he says. “You don’t know your neighbours, and they don’t want to know you. Here in Slovakia, when you need help, neighbours show up with tools, or at least with a bottle of slivovica. That would never happen in Switzerland.”
He remembers being welcomed into homes where his hosts laid out plates of food, despite not having much themselves. “In the Netherlands or Switzerland, people would never do that. Here, you feel the warmth immediately,” he says.
For Bernarda, who had left Slovakia years earlier, it was also a rediscovery. “We realised that life here is less about money. Even with little, people live with more openness,” she reflects.
Falling in love with Slovakia
The decision to relocate was not an immediate one. For years, Slovakia was a place of visits – family trips to eastern towns, village celebrations, and long evenings with neighbours who always seemed to have an extra plate of food to share together.
What struck Aart most was the warmth of Slovak hospitality. “In Switzerland, you can live ten years in a block of flats and not know your neighbours. Once we even invited them for coffee and cake, and they told us: ‘Neighbours do not visit each other here. It’s a principle.’”
By contrast, Slovakia felt open and communal. “People here, even if they don’t have much, share the most,” he says. “That never happens in Switzerland or Holland.”
He remembers the surprise when he visited Bernarda’s relatives in a small eastern village. “They didn’t have a lot of money. But when we arrived, the table was full of food – ham, soup, everything. I told them, you don’t need to do this. But they insisted. That mentality, that generosity, you can hardly find in the West.”
Making the decision
By 2020, the couple had been thinking about moving for years, but practical obstacles stood in the way. They owned a flat in Switzerland that proved difficult to sell. “For two years we tried; no one wanted it,” Bernarda says.
“We were here on holiday in August,” Bernarda recalls. “He told me: enough, I’m going back, I’ll sign everything off, we’re moving. That same week, we suddenly got a call that our apartment had been sold, after two years on the market. It felt like a sign.”
By then, both were exhausted from Swiss working culture. “Switzerland is beautiful, but you’re a slave,” Aart says bluntly. “Always working, always stressed. I didn’t want to live like that anymore.” So, they packed up their lives and relocated to Nová Kelča, a town by the Domaša reservoir in eastern Slovakia.
First frustrations of a new life
The move came without a culture shock. “I never felt foreign here,” Aart says. “From the start, Slovakia felt like home.” The couple settled in Nová Kelča, drawn by its landscapes and slower pace of life. “We have a beautiful view,” Bernarda adds. “It’s not about luxury, but about peace.”
Yet life in Slovakia has not been idyllic. Everyday frustrations remain difficult to ignore. Public transport, for instance, is a constant irritation. “In Bern we had trams and trains every 15 minutes. Here in eastern Slovakia, it’s sometimes only once an hour. Without a car, you are stuck,” Aart points out.
Reliability is another source of disappointment. “The worst is when you need to fix something in the house,” Bernarda sighs. “Many companies or craftsmen here are not reliable. In Switzerland, if they say they come, they come.”
Even basic bureaucracy can test patience. “Paperwork is complicated. Offices often send you back and forth. In Switzerland, everything is faster and more digital,” Aart adds.
Learning Slovak the unconventional way - with slivovica and music
One of the most impressive aspects of Aart van Veen’s story is his proficiency in Slovak. Although still accented and occasionally unconventional, he speaks fluently enough to joke, argue and tell stories.
“I didn’t take classes. No grammar books. Nothing,” he laughs. “I learned from my wife and my daughter. And from slivovica – my Slovak always gets better after a shot.”
At first, even basic words were a struggle. “He didn’t understand ‘krk’ (neck),” Bernarda remembers, laughing. “I had to explain: Krk, this is your neck. Slowly he started reading aloud, and step by step, he started to understand.”
Music also helped. “I have good musical hearing,” Aart explains. “That made pronunciation easier.”
Looking forward
Even with unreliable services and weaker infrastructure, the couple insists they made the right decision, especially when they start to compare the two countries. Switzerland offered high salaries and order, but little social warmth. Slovakia feels more human, but less predictable.
“In Switzerland life is about money and work,” Aart reflects. “Here, life is slower. Not easier, but more about people.”
He believes Slovakia could achieve more: “If Slovaks had the discipline of the Swiss, this country would be ten times better. Nature, culture and history are all here. What’s missing is trust and organisation.”
At 63, Aart van Veen is not yet retired. Because of Dutch pension rules, he must continue working for several more years before receiving his full pension. “It’s strange, but I have to work until I’m almost 67,” he explains. “That’s life.”
Despite the challenges, he is content. “Slovakia has given me peace. Here, life is not only about money. It’s about people, about family, about sharing,” he says, and Bernarda agrees: “We left behind stress and burnout. Here, we’ve found balance. We work, we live, we laugh. And that is enough.”
For Aart, the train ride across Slovakia all those years ago was the beginning of a journey that would change his life. “I said then that Slovakia is even more beautiful than Switzerland,” he recalls. “Today, I know it’s also kinder.”
