Back In Town
Tilburg Amazing? Yes! - to Africans.

In my recent visit to The Netherlands, I was in Tilburg, where day time I lectured at the university and at night I blew sax in bars for more than two decades. My eyes, which, as I realize now, had started to Africanize even before I ever went there, turned out to have continued that process: nothing had changed but everything looked different.

Was it THAT grey? MacDonald's bribed the municipality to put what must be one the world over ugliest buildings ever right on the middle of a square, that is, exactly where one should expect a little park with some nice tall trees to hide the depressing Mercury Hotel back front.

It is hard to take a picture of Tilburg not featuring at least one (decently fenced off!!) building company cabin. But to my relief my old favourite Turkish shop VATAN is still alive and kicking.

"Turkish" is politically sensitive in Holland so above his window pane you see my pet Turkish shopkeeper calling himself "Oosters" ("Eastern"). VATAN's window pane steel bars are decisively Dutch. In Turkey the shop would not have needed them. There, people even do not have locks on their bikes, they do not lock their cars and leave the keys in, so I have to agree with those in high European politics who hold that Turkey is not yet ready for the European Union. They are right! Let us wait a bit. Turkey is in danger to become Islamic, and if that happens we will certainly have no more chance ever to see any stealing there - except by some European beach tourists.

Tilburg news

I will deal with the female inhabitants (males: mutatus mutandis): the girl toddlers I saw sitting last time in the push chair now chase each other on little bicycles, those last time chasing each other on the bicycle now run after boys with heavy make-up. Those who were running after boys with heavy make-up now walk along shop windows (where - a real change! - since last time the female dummies have their aspect ratios widened a few cm at back side and middle and quite a few more at titheight) with there little ones in push chairs. Those who were walking along shop windows with push chairs now are divorced, and on display in Caf� Brandpunt ("Burning Point"), their sagged tits in tiger skin bras. Those who used to sit in Brandpunt with their sagged tits in tiger skin bras now - it is a cold dark foggy autumn - walk around in duffle coats, grey curly permanented hair and snow boots behind a rollator. But again there are, not in lavish amounts as with us in Africa, but yes! There are some new little ones running around and walked through the shopping malls in push chairs.

When children come out of their push chairs they are given money (many times the African standard wage) to buy drugs, alcohol and colourful aerosol paint cans

Tilburg's "Pius" Harbour

Laying cables, the real reason for this break-up of road and roadsides, does not appeal to the public. Though upgrading the underground infrastructure is of course what municipalities should give priority to and make one of their main expenditure items, the public tends to scorn road works and blocked streets. To appease them, the picture (right) suggests we do it to make a "Harbour Park Piushaven" (called after a catholic pope).

"Pius" harbour hosts my friend Paul's "spits", an antique late nineteenth century 40 m Flemish channel cargo ship, featuring its original 3 cylinder two-stroke ABC diesel. One of the first. The ABC owners are told to have traveled by horse coach to Germany to negotiate a license with Herr Diesel himself. The "spits" was at a ship yard five hours sailing away, for routine maintenance. Together we sailed it back to Tilburg.

1. The late 19th Century Flemish shrine work cabin wall sports some highly usual  ornaments: some of Paul's antique weaponry 2. Heavy fog no radar: delay. 3. This is no fog but our quite African exhaust 4. Cold through the "Wilhelmina" channel to Tilburg, 5. (Compare to 1) in my African dhow on Lake Victoria. My bows and rusted spears are not antique, neither unusual on ships like mine, to provide a defense option. 6. Paul's true weapon: the 19th century three cylinder two stroke diesel (you see cylinder1)