Over the weekend, I went up to pick my friend, Dai up from Weeze airport near the Dutch border. He had been spending the weekend down in Italy for the rugby and as the airport isn’t exactly regarded as a bustling metropolitan international, he asked me to pick him up and drive him to actual civilisation so he could catch a train.
So, I went up to the flat lands of what was nearly the Netherlands, I noticed I was running a little early. I decided to take a look and see what Weeze itself had to offer.
Nothing really.
The village seemed typical Dutch, with roads made of brick and the houses and buildings made of red brick. And nobody around. The only place that seemed open was a kebab shop and a chippy.
However, I did find something of interest, a canal bank with a small castle manor thing upstream (or upcanal), but that was a bit too far to take photos of, especially with trees in the way. Oh, there were ducks, too! Feeding them was verboten, though, as a sign stated our food would make them ill and fat.
I went over to see what the Rathaus was like. It seemed very interesting, in fact. Picture a typical Rathaus in a typical German town. They have a historical and detailed architecture, with high roofs and possibly some sculptures and little statues of local prominent people, or a King, or a Saint carved into the stone. Then there is another carving of the town’s Wappen, maybe in a shape of a simple shield or decorated with all the works, like leaves and lions and such.
But the Rathaus in Weeze was not like that.
Picture a city, an industrial city with a high population. Picture all those blocks of flats that would accommodate these people. Picture Nelson Mandela House.
This building was literally something salvaged from the block of council flats that previously occupied the site. It was hideous. I don’t think I’ve seen such a Rathaus before, but I have seen buildings just as bad. Thing is, they normally came with graffiti all over them, a couple of burnt out cars outside, a few boarded up windows and a group of dodgy looking people with cans of Special Brew.
However, outside the Rathaus I did notice something else that reminded me of home. I guess, twinned with Watton, they received a British red telephone box. But as I got closer to it, I noticed that all the windows were smashed to bits, as if some chav lobbed a grenade inside it. Pity really… the red telephone boxes deserve some respect, at least from the German/Dutch people. But next to the telephone box there was also a British red post-box, too. Not the pillar type, though. It was one of those types that were built into the wall. But they had to build a wall to put this thing in.
Anyway, time was up and I went over to the airport to meet Dai.
And as I drove through, I was convinced some nuclear war broke out and wiped this place clean of everyone. It was definitely an old military base, as I recognised the layout of the buildings and their shape after being to so many others before. But these buildings were surrounded by trees, and all overgrown and obviously just abandoned and left to rot. It was really eerie to see weeds sprouting from the road and ivy suffocating the walls. Even the parade ground had its own little nature park.
The streets were all fenced off, too. But there were still cars parked there. I drove past other buildings that looked like old offices or supply stores, but the windows were missing. An old hangar was red because it was all rust. I really felt as if I were driving through a war-torn base. The only things that were missing were bullet holes and burnt out tanks.
But no, it was not war-torn; it was just left as it was. Seemed very authentic, yet surreal. It seemed like something out of one of those films where civilisation survives no more and the population has been wiped out, like 28 Days Later or I Am Legend.
However, as I turned the corner, there were large car parks full of cars, and the modern Weeze Airport terminal. It was like stepping in and out of two different worlds. But it wasn't a result of a nuclear fallout, it is the former RAF Laarbruch, which closed in 1999, but I'm afraid I don't know what goes on there now, as some buildings still seem to be occupied.
So, I went up to the flat lands of what was nearly the Netherlands, I noticed I was running a little early. I decided to take a look and see what Weeze itself had to offer.
Nothing really.
The village seemed typical Dutch, with roads made of brick and the houses and buildings made of red brick. And nobody around. The only place that seemed open was a kebab shop and a chippy.
However, I did find something of interest, a canal bank with a small castle manor thing upstream (or upcanal), but that was a bit too far to take photos of, especially with trees in the way. Oh, there were ducks, too! Feeding them was verboten, though, as a sign stated our food would make them ill and fat.
I went over to see what the Rathaus was like. It seemed very interesting, in fact. Picture a typical Rathaus in a typical German town. They have a historical and detailed architecture, with high roofs and possibly some sculptures and little statues of local prominent people, or a King, or a Saint carved into the stone. Then there is another carving of the town’s Wappen, maybe in a shape of a simple shield or decorated with all the works, like leaves and lions and such.
But the Rathaus in Weeze was not like that.
Picture a city, an industrial city with a high population. Picture all those blocks of flats that would accommodate these people. Picture Nelson Mandela House.
This building was literally something salvaged from the block of council flats that previously occupied the site. It was hideous. I don’t think I’ve seen such a Rathaus before, but I have seen buildings just as bad. Thing is, they normally came with graffiti all over them, a couple of burnt out cars outside, a few boarded up windows and a group of dodgy looking people with cans of Special Brew.
However, outside the Rathaus I did notice something else that reminded me of home. I guess, twinned with Watton, they received a British red telephone box. But as I got closer to it, I noticed that all the windows were smashed to bits, as if some chav lobbed a grenade inside it. Pity really… the red telephone boxes deserve some respect, at least from the German/Dutch people. But next to the telephone box there was also a British red post-box, too. Not the pillar type, though. It was one of those types that were built into the wall. But they had to build a wall to put this thing in.
Anyway, time was up and I went over to the airport to meet Dai.
And as I drove through, I was convinced some nuclear war broke out and wiped this place clean of everyone. It was definitely an old military base, as I recognised the layout of the buildings and their shape after being to so many others before. But these buildings were surrounded by trees, and all overgrown and obviously just abandoned and left to rot. It was really eerie to see weeds sprouting from the road and ivy suffocating the walls. Even the parade ground had its own little nature park.
The streets were all fenced off, too. But there were still cars parked there. I drove past other buildings that looked like old offices or supply stores, but the windows were missing. An old hangar was red because it was all rust. I really felt as if I were driving through a war-torn base. The only things that were missing were bullet holes and burnt out tanks.
But no, it was not war-torn; it was just left as it was. Seemed very authentic, yet surreal. It seemed like something out of one of those films where civilisation survives no more and the population has been wiped out, like 28 Days Later or I Am Legend.
However, as I turned the corner, there were large car parks full of cars, and the modern Weeze Airport terminal. It was like stepping in and out of two different worlds. But it wasn't a result of a nuclear fallout, it is the former RAF Laarbruch, which closed in 1999, but I'm afraid I don't know what goes on there now, as some buildings still seem to be occupied.
just found your blog by chance.
ReplyDeleteI know the post is rather old (2009!) but Weeze is near the place I live.
I totally agree with you: Laarbruch is surreal.
Some of the buildings are still occupied, yes. There are people living in the houses where the soldiers used to live in with their families. A friend of mine used to live there. The heating didn't work properly but the rent was really cheap.
They also built up the old school again. The police used to train special "missions" there. For example they prepared everything so it looked like there had been a "killing spee" (can you really say so? I mean an "Amoklauf") or something similar.
Now the building has been renovated and became a museum. Some of the other bulidings like the old cinema also became museums.
Some companies have rented a few old buildings there and made offices of them.
The whole place looks really strange and I even think it's frightening in the evening. Like a ghost town. creepy!
well, I just felt the need to give you some information :D