From Italy to Singapore | Here To Stay - video Dailymotion

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“I think to be a Singaporean is really a privilege.” Born in Italy but raised in Singapore, Silva recalls embracing Singlish, and finding a lasting sense of belonging in the city she now calls home.  Watch more: https://www.asiaone.com/video

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00:00Sorry, uh, uh, is this Sylvia? Oh, because, uh, your face and your voice, uh, doesn't match.

00:07I assure you that it's Sylvia. I say, yes, yes, I'm Sylvia.

00:10Hi.

00:10Hello.

00:11Hi.

00:12Hello.

00:13Hello.

00:14Namaste.

00:14Hello.

00:15Hello.

00:16Hello.

00:17Hello.

00:18Hello.

00:19Hello.

00:20Hello.

00:21Hello.

00:22Hello.

00:23I'm Sylvia Checco.

00:24I'm 37 years old and I was born in Valle d'Aosta, Italy, and I was born in Valle d'Aosta,

00:29even though my origins are from Reggio Calabria, which is a very small town in the south of

00:46Italy. My life growing up in Italy, it was a lot of fun. My memories are just being with

00:52family. I remember playing with my cousins, being at the beach a lot, you know, so a lot

00:59of love from grandparents. My family moved here in 1991, so we only spoke Italian at home.

01:05We only ate Italian food at home. In 1991, there wasn't any olive oil or pasta or tomato

01:11sauce available, so we used to ship containers from Italy. So I think that really helped keep

01:18my Italian roots intact. So when I first moved to Singapore, I was three, so I didn't speak the

01:24language. And thankfully, you know, being young and a sponge, I learned English very, very quickly.

01:29Going to primary school was really fun. It was my first experience in school in Singapore.

01:35I went to Fawli Primary where we had a lot of mixed children, mixed race. So I never really felt out of

01:42place. I learned a lot about the culture and that was where I really built a very strong patriotic

01:48sense. We would sing the national anthem every day and the pledge and I would do it very proudly.

01:54So I think that kind of already made me have a sense of belonging from a very early age. Being

02:01born in Italy and then coming to Singapore, I think there's two different cultures and you kind of like

02:06have to learn how to maneuver through that. I think I have embraced that and my identity is

02:12Italian Singaporean. It's just who I am. Well, I mean, Italy will always be a very big part of my life.

02:20My children are half Italian and I think for me, Italy is very important that I bring my kids to

02:26Italy at least once a year so that they understand that half of them is actually Italian. When you go

02:33back to Italy, it's really the simple life. We will go to the garden, you know, we will get our hands dirty

02:39in the soil, no snacks. Just go to the garden, pluck your own fruits, pluck your own vegetables and

02:45that's life. And I love that for them and really just sometimes enjoy doing things with your hands.

02:53So I think going back to Italy helps me reconnect with that experience and giving that back to my

02:59children.

03:03I love my life right now. Like sometimes I don't believe that this is my life. I was blessed with a

03:08wonderful husband who loves me and inspires me. I have two wonderful children. I have a job that I

03:15love. Like sometimes I need to pinch myself, you know, I'm just so grateful for the opportunities that

03:21I've been given here in Singapore. I'm just really, really lucky. I'm so blessed.

03:29So I'm a, I'm a recruiter. We talk on the phone a lot with candidates and clients. I love the reaction of

03:36people because every time I'm on the phone, they will need to check with me. Sorry, yeah.

03:43Is this Sylvia? Then I'm like, yes, yes, I'm Sylvia. Why? Oh, because your face and your voice

03:50doesn't match. Are you sure you're Sylvia? I say, yes, yes, I'm Sylvia. You know, they're so shocked that

03:55how come this Angmo girl can speak so Singlish? And you'll be like, hey, you really speak more

04:01Singlish than me, you know? So yeah, yeah, I know. And I love that because I always say that

04:05if I could get a dollar for every time I said that I'll be rich by now.

04:13Now I'm also doing a lot of community work. So I got into the resident network because every year I

04:18would see that there's a very big Halloween party that is organized in the neighborhood. And this year,

04:24I will be doing up a booth myself. So this is for the Halloween Fiesta that is going to be on the 18th

04:31of October. And this will be one of the booths that will be part of the games on that event.

04:38The idea is that yalah, you toss the superhero down.

04:43I have been participating in the events as a guest for the past few years. Only now do I realize the

04:53hard work that goes behind it. It's very fun and very rewarding because not only are you giving back

05:01to the community, but also the children are involved and they get to meet new friends and new people.

05:06So I love the community aspect of things because I can tap onto my creative side that I don't really get

05:13to do at work. So we get to do arts and crafts, decorations, events. So I love that part. It's

05:19something that I truly, truly do enjoy. And the fact that everyone get together and organize a big

05:24Halloween festival for the whole community. I think that's so beautiful.

05:31So my husband and I have been married for eight years now, and I think we have very similar values and

05:37outlooks on life. And we decided that we are a good team to kind of do life together. I think meeting

05:44my husband definitely solidified my existence here in Singapore to begin with. He's really inspired me to

05:52take whatever I know how to do and bring it to the next level. And it's something that maybe I had in

05:58me, but he really brought out. So meeting my in-laws was surprisingly easy. It wasn't too difficult

06:05because my in-laws all married out of their race. The eldest sister married a Chinese and the second

06:10sister married a German. So yeah, I think they welcomed me very quickly and with open arms.

06:16Yeah, I think I have very, very strong family values. Of course, growing up in Singapore without my

06:22extended family, you just kind of like solidify your own family unit a lot and you learn to appreciate and

06:28value family time. Every week, at least once a week, I'll make sure that I'm organizing and I'm always

06:34bringing the family together. So I think my mother-in-law really appreciates that I have my in-laws. I can

06:41call and they'll run. So I'm so blessed that I have now a second family here in Singapore that I really

06:47feel is my family. How do I see my next five years? Well, I see my daughter being in primary school, my son

06:53bringing primary school. I envision our work doing very well and just having my family close to me,

07:01continuing to have close-knit relationship with my friends, continuing my community work and just

07:08continuing to contribute to society and being a good citizen.

07:15I think to be a Singaporean is really a privilege. I think we are really given every possible opportunity

07:22that you can dream of. So really, the sky is your limit. It's really about how much hard work you are

07:28willing to put into it and how much determination you have. I think it's really just to have the

07:33ability to achieve anything you can possibly dream of. We are in a country that really all your dreams

07:40can come true. I think that is the essence of Singapore.

07:49Caro Singapore, ringrazio Dio che il destino è ovviamente mio padre che mi abbia portato da te

07:57tutti quegli anni fa e che tu abbia continuato a offrirci opportunità e numerose ragioni per restare.

08:05Grazie per tutti i ricordi, dai momenti più piccoli, come catturare i girini nel long can con gli amici

08:13d'infanzia, a momenti più grandi, come il nostro matrimonio e la nascita dei nostri due stupendi bambini.

08:20Grazie per gli amici che sono ormai parte del mio cuore. Grazie per tutte le opportunità che mi hai dato,

08:28per avermi fatto sentire che tutto è possibile grazie a un sistema che ci sostiene. Grazie per avermi accolto

08:36nella comunità e per avermi permesso non solo di sentirmi parte di essa ma anche di contribuire e restituire

08:45qualcosa a mia volta. E più di tutto grazie per avermi fatto incontrare mio marito. Lui e i miei due figli

08:53sono il dono più bello della mia vita. Con questi doni meravigliosi ormai sei parte di me per sempre.

09:02Con tanto amore, Silvia Checco Pilei

09:23Grazie a tutti.

From Italy to Singapore | Here To Stay

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