[This text has been translated electronically] Is home a landscape or a place for you?

«My home is a landscape. I need the forest, the mountains and the sun to feel my home.«

«My home is a person whose two arms are my home, whose voice is my peace and whose eyes are the most beautiful work of art.«

«Syria is home for me. I think the sea in Syria is beautiful. My family lives in Syria. I like to walk along the sea. My family and I eat Syrian food there.«

«My home is also my mother, my sister, my dog and my best friends. dog and my best friends. For me, it means home when everyone is together and we are doing well.«

«I don’t care whether I’m in the city or in my village where I come from. The main thing is that I’m in the country.«

«My home is Serbia and Croatia. I am happy when I see my family and the sea. My grandma in Serbia makes the best food.«

«In my home country, Slovakia, there is very tasty food food and it smells different in my village than in Germany.«

«My home is Stuttgart. I was born there and lived there for the first few years. And Ludwigsburg, because I live here now.«

«Besiktas means home to me because I grew up with it in my family. Everyone, but especially my father and my grandpa, are big fans. I’ve been with this team for 14 years, since I was born. Sometimes it makes me happy and sometimes sad and aggressive.«

«Home for me is a certain place where I have peace of mind«

«Chennai is my home because it is calm for me. I have many friends, we play outside every day. But it’s very hot in Chennai, around 40 degrees. My family visits us and we have big parties.«

«The Ukraine«

«My home is my house and I just feel comfortable. You can meet up with friends and you feel at home. The house is important to me and my village is also important. And I think it’s nice that we have our peace and quiet.«

«My home is a whole country.«

«Metzingen is my home: my old school and good friends were here. In the evening in winter or when Christmas is coming up, the town lights up beautifully. Me and my parents went on the Ferris wheel and it was great.«

What do you need to feel at home?

«The mountains in my home country, Kurdistan. Dersim. My family.«

«The Turkish flag is home for me because Turkey is beautiful. I always go on a boat with my family and we take this boat to another city. When there’s a soccer match, we always go to the stadium. Then we go out to eat and there is often a party. We also buy nice things in Turkey: socks, T-shirts, pants, hazelnuts or lokum.«

«Russia«, »My bed«, »Playstation 5«, »My room«, »The gym«, »My cell phone«, »Friends«, »Sun«, »Sand«, »Stones«, »People, language, air, food, sunset«

«I need sun and mountains.«

«I need everything. My people, landscapes and culture too.«

«I need beautiful landscapes to go jogging; the sun to make me feel good and then also my family.«

«Peace, family, the night sky, nature and friends.«

«I need everything. I need people, scenery, etc.«

«When I’m chilling in my room and it’s tidy and I’m drinking Red Bull, it’s perfect. Mercedes is number one for me, I feel very comfortable when I’m in a Mercedes.«

Are there people who are home to you?

«My friends and my family«

«I love my grandpa’s garden. It’s full of big grapes and when I go to him, I feel at home and happy. And he’s also happy to see me and he looks after me and we eat the sweet fruit together.«

«Yes, even two. I’ve known one person longer than the other, but both are equally important to me and make me feel at home.«

«People who live in my heart.«

«Yes, because my family is a piece of home.«

«My mother, because she lives in Croatia and I live in Germany.«

«My family and relatives.«

«My family is home to me because my family lived together with grandma, grandpa, my aunt and my cousin etc. in one house. I came to Germany in 2014 and got my CIs [cochlear implant]. My family is always there for me, no matter where I live. I’m very happy about that!«

What does home mean when the people we love are no longer there?

«It feels terrible when people we love are no longer in the same place.«

«Sadness«

«It makes no difference to me.«

«When I’m at the train station or airport.«

«Home remains home for me, even if the people we love are unfortunately not there.«

«You lose a part of yourself.«

«Empty home«

Do you stand up when the national anthem plays?

«Yes, I’m proud of my country and sing along to the national anthem.«

«Not always.«

«Yes, always. Home is important to me.«

«Yes, it’s the national anthem, standing up is part of it, of course.«

«No, I don’t stand up.«

Can you be proud of a country?

«I think you can be proud of the state.«

«I am proud of my state. But that doesn’t necessarily apply to everyone. Some states can also have done something wrong.«

«Yes, you can.«

«Yes, if you were born there or your parents are from there.«

«Yes, everyone should.«

«Yes, if something good was decided, you can be proud.«

What does your homeland taste like?

«My homeland tastes like Arabic food and smells like it too.«

«It tastes like Italian food.«

«Delicious! The food is always good.«

«After Ćevapčići with ajvar, snack and side dish from Dalmatia, roasted squid, fish with peppers, grah beans peppers, grah bean soup, sarma, burgers with schnitzel.«

«Like the flavors that exist in my home country: mostly spicy.«

«Refreshing, sweet, spicy, beautiful, cheerful.«

«Like grandma’s toasted onion bread.«

«Good and like home. Trustworthy.«

Does it have a smell?

«Yes, it smells of the sea and fresh air.«

«My home has no smell and doesn’t taste of anything either.«

«Yes, it just smells different.«

«No, it’s just very hot.«

«Yes, mostly the country air in the fields, otherwise also like gasoline. So the smell of the engine on the road.«

«No, but it smells different because you’re not always there.«

«Yes, like pizza and pasta.«

Are you worried about your home country?

«Yes, there’s a war going on in my home country right now, I’m scared for my grandma and grandpa.«

«Yes, I’m worried about my home country. I’m afraid of losing them or that they no longer feel the same as me or that we’re no longer close.«

«No, I’m not worried.«

«Yes, because there have been tornadoes destroying towns lately.«

«Yes. The economy is starting to shrink and the number of truly religious people started to decrease.«

«Yes, because Dersim is often attacked.«

«Yes, because people are becoming more and more addicted to money and ruining the country. That’s why most of them are here in Germany.«

Does your homeland have anything to do with loss?

«I feel it when I’m away from home. I don’t feel so good then.«

«When you lose your home, it’s very bad. You no longer have a roof over your head and you grieve.«

«What I miss most is the warmth.«

«It’s precisely when I miss my old home that I realize how important it actually is to me.«

«I can feel and remember everything from when I was there.«

«Really a lot.«

Is it possible to build a new home?

«Yes, it is possible to build a new home.«

«No, because you weren’t born there.«

«Yes, always.«

«No, because there is no better place for me.«

«No, because I can never replace my home.«

«Yes, even if it’s hard, it’s possible. Because I can meet new people and get on with them, it is possible.«

«Yes, but you have to change completely.«

«I think not. Home is where I’ve always felt comfortable and where I was born.«

Does home have anything to do with traditions?

«For a few people, definitely. Just not for me.«

«Yes, we visit my grandmother’s grave once a year.«

«Yes, like Newroz. You go out with the family and wear Kurdish clothes.«

«Yes, definitely. For me, for example, ’Dinner for One’ is part of every New Year’s Eve. Also carnival or the Wasen in Stuttgart.«

«Yes, everything: parties, dancing, food.«

«No«

Is your passport a burden or a privilege?

«Yes, because I need the passport to fly to my home country.«

«A burden«

«I think it’s a privilege.«

«It is a privilege for me.«

«A burden, because I don’t have a German passport and can’t do as many things here as I can in my country.«

«My passport is a privilege because my passport is from Croatia.«

When you hear your mother tongue/dialect in a foreign country, is it comforting or rather embarrassing?

«It’s comforting to hear my mother tongue, I love my language.«

«No, I’m not embarrassed. I understand all the dialects of my country.«

«It’s comforting.«

«I’m always happy to hear Italian.«

Have you ever felt homesick? What triggered it?

«Not really. I just missed my bed when I was at the school camp.«

«Every time I leave my home and my family, my heart hurts.«

«Yes, because I couldn’t see my grandma anymore.«

«Yes, every night. It triggers pain, inner turmoil and much more.«

«No, I haven’t had that yet.«

«Yes, because my family is there and I haven’t seen them for five years.«