Escaping economic depression in Uzbekistan, Orzabaj stows away on a boat bound for America only to find himself stranded in Rotterdam port. Penniless and unable to speak the language, he meets Katharina and returns to her home, soon settling into the domestic life and becoming a father figure to Katharina’s young son Maarten. Orzabaj’s comfortable billet is threatened when Katharina’s fishermen boyfriend returns from the sea to discover that he has been replaced.

Ben Van Lieshout’s film won the grand prix at the 1997 International Film Festival Mannheim-Heidelberg. Orazbaj’s depression at his stark life on the Aral coast and contentment in Holland is well contrasted by the wild scenery of Central Asia and the flat landscapes of the Netherlands.