Basketball stars Moses Ehambe and Troy Devries: "Catalonia is one of the best countries in the world"

Badalona/Manresa (CNA).- In a globalised world, immigration is a crucial factor to understanding how societies are organised. But there are different kinds of immigration. The most common immigrants are those who come to look for work. They are mostly workers from developing countries that are in a situation of poverty, but others come to do unusual jobs, in which they may earn big money and can leave their mark on local people. Moses Ehambe (Arlington, Texas, 1986) and Troy Devries (Mount Vernon, Washington, 1982) are basketball players for Fiact Joventut de Badalona and La Bruixa d’Or Manresa. Despite being foreigners, they prove that sport stars can adapt to the Catalan way of life.

What is your previous experience as players in Catalonia, apart from this season?

Ehambe: No experience. I played in Orense in 2010, but not in Catalonia.

Devries: I played in Lleida in the season 2008-09 and in Girona in 2009-2010. Then I played in other parts of Spain, in Melilla and Malaga.

What did you know about Catalonia before coming to play here?

E: I only knew about Badalona because Ricky Rubio played here.

D: I didn’t know anything. But I think that’s normal. If I ask Catalans I’m sure they don’t know anything about the state of Washington, which is bigger than Spain, they probably won’t know anything. People only look at what’s in front of them.

And since you arrived, what’s your opinion of life here?

E: I really like the fact that there are so many holidays here, I really think this is positive, especially for the working class. The people, food and culture are all great.

D: I really like the place, the people seem to be nice, and food and culture are absolutely fantastic.

Have you been to other places apart from Badalona or Manresa?

E: Yes! Badalona, Barcelona, Tarragona, Montgat, Tiana, Manresa, Olot... These are the only ones I know. I think Catalonia is amazing, one of the best countries in the world.

D: Definitely. My wife and I have been to Andorra numerous different times, to Montserrat... We’ve made different friends here who’ve taken us to different places and see different things.

Have you tried to learn Catalan?

E: No. My wife and I speak to our children in Spanish, that’s what we know. But I can understand when people are talking in Catalan or in Spanish.

D: Not really. In the three years I’ve played in Catalonia I hear a lot of English during practice. My daughter Alexia is three and she has gone to the Catalan school and was learning Catalan so she probably knows more than me.

Have you discovered and got involved with traditions here since you arrived?

E: Oh, yes! My family tries to celebrate almost all of the holidays. We’ve celebrated the ‘Cremada del dimoni’ here in Las Ramblas in Badalona and others.

D: Most of my life is spent with my family and basketball. When we see a celebration with my family we go and we ask what’s going on. We don’t know many things, but we ask a lot of questions and try to learn.

As a part of this adaptation you may have tried different kinds of Catalan food.

E: I don’t know if it’s typical from Catalonia, but tapas are amazing here. It’s worth living here just for the tapas.

D: I’ve tried lots of different food. I’ve tried tomato bread, and these kinds of onions, ‘calçots’. I liked them a lot. And I’ve tried the snails too, but I didn’t like those.

Talking about different things, you must have realised that Catalonia is not like the rest of Spain. What’s your opinion about the political situation here?

E: I heard Catalonia doesn’t want to be a part of Spain. This must be a very complicated issue, but there’s no perfect country.

D: I don’t know very much but I know people here are very proud and want their own country, because they have been mistreated in the past.

To sum up, what is your opinion about the experience of adapting to a new culture and country like Catalonia?

E: Some players try to live like people from here but some others miss home and they don’t want to adapt to the culture here. My family has got a point: everywhere we go, we want to adapt to the culture because it’s an amazing experience. You never know where you’ll be able to travel and we want to soak in everything that we can. And we love it. When we’ll leave, we’re going to miss Catalonia.

D: It opens your eyes in so many ways. Because when you live in America, all you know is what is in front of you, you don’t see the different cultures, you don’t hear different languages. When you come to a foreign place, a whole new world opens up. You realise that the world is a big place; there are a lot of different people, a lot of different things... It’s amazing.