Stories from Nieuw-West

It was the summer after my tenth birthday. The kind of summer in the years when the asphalt sizzled for weeks. The summer in which I had grown old and wise enough to go swimming alone with my one year younger brother Luc. By bike all the way to the Sloterplas, which lay behind the end of the world. Because in 1955, Amsterdam just stopped after Mercatorplein.

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Beyond that, the long nothingness began and behind that, that delicious Sloterplas just loomed up! As big as the sea, surrounded by mountains of sand that were in no way inferior to dunes. A perilous place to swim: it slowly sloped to a depth of 30 meters in the middle. We didn't know about it, but for whatever safety, we had to bring a car tire. It was always pumped up, on our porch, just in case...

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With my bike already in hand, I waited for Luc and mom to go out with us right away. She checked that I had placed the green bathing bag properly in the bike bag and urged me once again not to bang off the sidewalk with that milk bottle. Luc was on the way, judging by the car tire that he rolled three flights of stairs into the street.

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Once in the big no man's land, new houses grew out of the sand here and there. According to my father, this is where New West would come. Maybe we would also move here again! We thought that would be very nice with that free Sloterplas in front of our door!

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Quickly change clothes and put the clothes in the bike bag. Sandals are also included and the bag straps closed. It was important to always keep an eye on the bikes. And to get out of the water quickly in case of an accident to scare off miscreants. But there was not even an accident today. It was lovely! First a bit with the band, then dry up, dig each other under the sand, eat the sandwiches, share the milk honestly, coat it with cloth, rinse off. And again and again and again. We had no idea about the time. We dabbled with the car tire all the way to the center. We weren't really allowed to go that far, but there was no one to call us back... We thought we were on the high seas.

Suddenly, a great fear overtook me! Which side was OUR side again? I no longer had the slightest idea of the direction. Every other side was blurry. So that's how far we were! I couldn't even see our pole anymore! I had had glasses for a few weeks but, according to the explicit instructions, they were safely stored in a real eyeglass case in the bike bag. Luc was not aware of any disaster.” The sign was there, wasn't it? Yes, the bikes are still there too.” I narrowed my eyes, but there was no way I could share his certainty. Luc was already heading in his right direction. With a lot of doubt, I paddled on the tape following him and truly, closer to the coast, I was relieved that there was no problem.

It seemed like it was about the end of the afternoon and we stepped ashore to get dressed again and accept the trip home. That's where disaster struck: the green bathing bag wasn't in the bike bag! Luc was very sure that the bag was still there with the sandwich. And these were really our bikes “Look, this is our empty milk bottle. And our sandals “The latter was lucky in the event of an accident because our socks, deep inside our sandals, contained the bike keys. You had to hide them there so they would never fall into the sand. Because sand in your lock was the beginning of the end...

Suddenly, I thought I saw someone sitting near a stack of concrete slabs in the prohibited area. Walking back, I was lucky to see that it was a lady! She was wearing a waving scarf and was wearing sunglasses. I asked her if she might have found a green bathing bag. The lady rubbed salt into her wounds with the assumption that my mother would certainly not like that at all. Lost all your clothes, of course. “And did you have nice towels with you?” Oh, my goodness. Of course, the towels are gone too! I had no hope left. “Was there money in the bag too?” the madam asked. “No, luckily not!” Imagine that too! “And your glasses?” My glasses, my glasses! I crashed into the sand and burst into tears. Oh, God, oh God, not my glasses too!

“Come here” 'said the lady, “Were it these glasses?” I put on the glasses completely stunned. It almost certainly looked like my own pair of glasses! “And was it this bag too? ” She pulled our green bath bag out from behind her back. Stunned, I looked at our property. The woman took off her sunglasses and started laughing terribly. It was obviously my mom! It slowly dawned on me that she laughed at me for not recognizing her. My very own mother had given me the shock of a lifetime and she loved it too! There was a haze of anger before my eyes. It lingered for weeks...

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This story is by Nel Vos and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'

I recognize being creative with the elements of the city in my own practice at the Hiddenbody movement school. Our goal is to challenge and erase the labels that society gives to objects and actions. Our search has led us to look at our surroundings from a different perspective. One day, when I stood in front of a wall, I realized that it wasn't just a separation or barrier, but that it had endless possibilities. I climbed the wall, walked on it and used my senses. My team and I see the city as a living organism; part of ourselves. We create maps of interaction, with each wall and railing becoming tools for self-discovery.

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Explore here everything about Hiddenbody.

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This story is by Rich Andoh and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

For as long as I can remember, I have been part of the Sloterplas Water Sports Center. The Water Sports Center is located in the Sloterplas, in the middle of nature. It's a place where people of all ages come together to immerse themselves in the elements: the wind, water, and lush greenery. At the water sports center, we believe that if someone falls, it is our duty to pick them up. This ethos has created a unique community, where we support and cheer each other up on our aquatic adventures. My favorite thing about sailing is that you have to work together and play with the wind and water, making sailing almost a game.

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This story is by Floris van de Ruit and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

Growing up in the neighborhood when it was still under construction was fascinating. It was mostly bare at the time, but you could do a lot with it as a child. The dyke, now the Sloterdijk train and metro station, was an important element of my childhood. They are now renovating the dyke in Slotervaart into a park, but then it was my freedom. I walked, picked flowers along the way, or walked across the top of the dike to Slotermeer. Anything was possible on the dike, because I played there out of my parents' field of view!

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This story is by Pita Phoa and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

We lived in a house with a garden, but many children in the neighborhood only had a tiny balcony. That's why we always gathered with all the children on the De-Grote-Geusplein. My brother was then smart enough to ask one mother for a matchbox and the other mother for a match. And then he and his friends went to have a chat in that square. At one point, they even set fire to an oil tank and it exploded!

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This story is by Marijke Duyvendak and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

I bought Troque at a thrift store during COVID, after which I played it a lot with my mother. With her, I was able to discover how the game works and that is one of the happy memories I have of that period, especially with her. When I first saw the game, I was really in love with the design, but about the game itself, I thought: “wow playing this? That is far too difficult! ' But then you play it once and it's really just as easy as hell. I do find that funny, in my head it feels like something insurmountable, but when you try it, it's actually not that bad. I also played it many times with my brother and his fiancé. When we are home with the family, all languages come together. Because I was raised in a Polish family, so I speak Polish with my mother and brother, but his fiancé is Italian. If my friend then participates, Dutch will also be added. The great thing about the game is that it doesn't really require words. You need to think more strategically. Nevertheless, the game brings everyone together.

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This story is by Dorota Dabrowska and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

I grew up in Geuzenveld as a child. I often walked with my brother, sisters, nephews and nieces to the Ruige Riet children's farm opposite the Sloterpark where I could enjoy myself for hours. That was ideal, because it didn't cost money. The children's farm as child-friendly and taught you how to treat animals with respect and love. In the Sloterpark, I really learned to appreciate nature, I think it's a beautiful park!

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This story is by Roy Carter and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

I came to live in Geuzenveld in 1958, when I was two years old. In the beginning, there was nothing at all, but that's what made it really fun. There was no grass, but lots of sand, mud and stone. On the stone, we went with rubber bands. And if there were no other children, we simply tied the rubber bands around two garbage cans. The dike, where tram 13 later came, was also paved at some point and then we were able to roller skate on it. Apparently, that dike was important for a lot of children playing.

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This story is by Marijke Duyvendak and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

In 1989, I came to live with my parents and brother in the MAP (the Middelveldsche Akerpolder), a brand-new residential area in Osdorp. As a child, I have fond memories of growing up in the MAP. It didn't feel like we were living in a busy city. The residential area was surrounded by meadows, greenhouses and garden sheds. That was called 'the other side' by us. We had boats and rafts that allowed us to bridge the ditches that separated our residential area from the other side. And there were plenty of kids about my age. We were able to play for hours on the lands. Playing in the mud, romping, doing mischief. In the winter, fall through the ice on the mud locks. At some point, it became clear that 'the other side' would not exist for long, due to the arrival of a new residential area. The greenhouses, farms and garden sheds were gradually being abandoned. Very scary to walk through an abandoned greenhouse as a child, your imagination ran wild. Did we just hear a baby crying there? Entering the dilapidated garden sheds was also very exciting: some of them were still full of old junk, you were amazed. We had a blast and had the time of our lives. A little later, the evacuation of the entire area began and miles of sand were dumped. Even then, new adventures: jumping down big sand hills, digging holes and building corridors. We always came home full of sand and stories.

This story is by Nikki Pootjes and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

“July 1968” is written on the back of this photo. So I had this wheel a year before Easy Rider went to theaters! The scooter - scooter we used to say - was used for laps around the house and, in an adventurous mood, for trips' all the way 'to Jan Voermanstraat, with its dangerous-looking dark tunnels. After the scooter came the bike and we sat on the luggage carrier for the Easy Rider feeling. By attaching playing cards between the spokes with clips, you were also able to imitate the sound of such a chopper!

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This story is by Michiel Blijboom and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

Of course, we also played a lot in the snow. Then we sat on the sleigh in the Sloterpark with the dogs in front of it. Well then, of course, we always fell off! But there were also children who tied sledges to cars. We were not allowed to do that, because, of course, that was extremely dangerous. Sometimes there were really whole strings of up to six or seven sledges chasing a car.

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This story is by Monique Sakkers and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

In the summer, we played outside every night after dinner. Then we rang everyone's doorbell and asked: “can you play?” The streets of Nieuw-West were my playground. Our football flew through the air, often accompanied by our own screams. Sometimes we even organized tournaments. My favorite place to play was Koningsplein. There was a while when we would go roller-skating there every day, but that's how I had more phases. For example, for a while I came up with all kinds of dances to famous songs with the girls in the neighborhood. Then we went to practice for half an hour, and then we performed for each other, giving each other points. Playing on the street will probably stop around the age of fourteen, the children will slowly move out of the house and the neighborhood will make way for a new generation.

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This story is by Marieke Kruijssen and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

Early on, we noticed a creeping resentment from society about our being outside. Our noise and fun seemed to alarm some. An expectation of safety and control overshadowed our fun and created a constant dilemma. Do they want us outside or inside? This attitude frustrated us. Our fun was often mistaken for problematic behavior, sometimes even criminal. Nevertheless, we managed to keep our moments. I even wrote a song, “OSD West blue,” that captures the nostalgia and the good and bad of growing up in Osdorp. That was the reality, raw and unfiltered.

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This story is by Hessel Du Mark and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

In Noorderhof, we organize a big lustrum every five years, celebrating for three days. We then play a lot of street games involving all ages, but the highlight of the party is “full throttle in the Sloterplas!” That game is a version of the TV show “Ter Land ter Zee en in de Lucht”. Each residential block then creates an amphibious vehicle with wheels that must be able to drive and sail. On the beach at the Sloterplas, we then create a kind of runway from which you glide into the Sloterplas and then you have to sail on to the floating bell as quickly as possible. People go wild every time, amazing things have been created! Whoever wins has the best combination of speed and presentation, but you can also bribe the jury, for example. There are always a few men very excited to make the best cart, but that doesn't mean you win. Once upon a time, there was a couple who had dressed up as elderly people with a walker. Of course, when they had to go into the water, that didn't work. And yet, they won! Kids are always upset about it, but the adults always laugh really hard about it!

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This story is by Jorine van Hooijdonk and Jantine Swagerman and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

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Photographer: Hugo Hoes, 2014

I grew up in Geuzenveld in a house with a garden where we played a lot. At one point, a sandbox was built in the square behind our house. My brother and I then cut a hole in the hedge in our garden so that we could go to the sandbox from the back. Once it got so cold that water was poured over the square to make an ice rink. We were able to skate there then! And that hole in that hedge? It stayed for a very long time.

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This story is by Marijke Duyvendak and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

In the 70s, we played at the Wentelbaan playground. A lot of things were organized in that playground under the direction of Aunt Rietje, a super sweet woman. For example, we had football tournaments, disco afternoons, the drama club and pentathlon. Even if you couldn't play football, you could still participate in the tournaments, because every child counted. Aunt Rietje did take care of that! My mother, also known as Aunt Ans, and my father Uncle Bert also often helped with the many activities that were organized. I used to be allowed to play outside until the lampposts came on, then I had to go home. We played soccer with the boys on the field or played soldiers on the dyke and at the bunkers. Everyone knew each other in the neighborhood and that's what made it so much fun!

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This story is by Jose Telling and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

As a child, my friends and I played endless games on the street. Tag, hide and seek, hopscotch, we did it all! At one point, we were obsessed with horses and everything related to them. We pretended to have horses and used sticks as obstacles to jump over. One of my favorite friends to play with was also obsessed with horses. The cool thing is that he is now a professional paratrooper! As I got older, digital games also became part of our lives, and so Game controllers slowly replaced our hobbyhorses. Although the nature of our games changed, the fun it brought us remained the same. Digital or traditional, games brought us together and created lifelong friendships.

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This story is by Marieke Kruijssen and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

We lived close to a ditch where the bridge was a little further away. As children, we naturally thought that was far too far and we wanted to be able to get to the other side directly. Near our house, there was a metal pipe over the water that was actually used as a building material. That's where we saw our opportunity! Every day, we clasped our legs around the pipe and dragged ourselves to the other side. Until, at one point, my sister fell sideways into the water. Of course, when we got home soaking wet, we had to explain that to our mother...

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This story is by Tineke Stricker and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

True to the motto “Light, Air and Space”, there were also green lawns in our neighborhood, surrounded by gardens between the residential blocks. In our case, between Steelvlietstraat and Schoonboomstraat. Complete with the famous children's playgrounds, designed by architect Aldo van Eyck. We, the child-rich families, lived upstairs, and downstairs were the retirement homes, which, with their garden, thus bordered the lawn. From our four-storey balcony, we had a nice view of the spectacle: all the boys in the neighborhood (the girls weren't playing football at the time) ran fanatically chasing the ball on the lawn. The ball did not let anything stop it and regularly flew into a garden, disappeared among the bushes, bounced against a window and destroyed a flower bed. As you can see, that didn't really make our elderly neighbours happy. There were frequent altercations, the ball was “confiscated” by an angry neighbor or threatened with the police. I can still remember one special angry neighbor. According to my brothers, he was waiting for it and would shoot out like a devil out of a box as long as the ball came close to him. We thought he was a big chunk of chagrin. And of course, he was the one who got the ball in his yard the most, and that may not have always been a coincidence...

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This story is by Fienie Gerekink and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

A few years ago, my college Jori and I set up the 'Hiddenbody' exercise school. In this school, we use the city to play in. The school's philosophy is inspired by various disciplines. From Tai Chi to climbing, we use a variety of techniques to rediscover how we interact with the environment. Our environment is full of components that encourage play and this became the starting point for our approach. We build complexity by using the everyday elements of the environment. I want to inspire people to conceptualize the city as an extension of ourselves, where we can use play as a platform for discovery. In this way, the Sloterplas has become part of my nervous system!

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Explore here everything about Hiddenbody.

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This story is by Rich Andoh and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

Kids like to get dirty. For example, there was a playground where the water could not drain properly, so it was really a mud hole. That was great! When it rained, the kids came with their rubber boots, buckets and shovels and that was fun! But at some point, the government came and it drained it very well. Then suddenly there was nothing to do with it. Good thing we now have the Natural Hour!

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This story is by Jorine van Hooijdonk and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

Nieuw-West was full of architect Aldo van Eyck's playground equipment. The playground behind Dijkgraafplein, for example, contained the characteristic metal climbing igloo, and the adjacent Buurthuis de Aker still has a paddling pool, a play pond with round stepping stones. A popular place to play in the summer. But what I remember most are the big basketball giants. These were located on the Akersingel, at the end of bus line 23, on the edge of the residential area. We played a lot on that stairway.

This story is by Nikki Pootjes and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

When I was a child, there were a few playgrounds by architect Aldo van Eyck, which simply had a stone surface. There we were completely dizzy. I can still remember that I fell a lot and that my mother constantly had to sew leather pieces on my leotards. Perhaps there have also been severe concussions. At one point, you saw those really ugly plastic tiles under those playgrounds everywhere. Afterwards, I think: were those playgrounds really fun? Rather, it's a bit static, more like a hangout.

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This is a story by Marijke Duyvendak and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

Kaan plays a spontaneous football match with his brother Doruk and his friends on A. Nouri Square. According to his mother Özlem, A. Nouri Square is more than just a playground; it is a lively meeting place where neighborhood children play matches and thereby strengthen their friendships.

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This story was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

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Photographer: Karijn Kakebeeke, 2023

In 2002, Jan van der Meij, together with Jan Paul van Spaendonck, made the album “New West 50 Years”. This album contains the song De Dijk 2, singing wonderful childhood memories about playing and playing gym on the dike.

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This story was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

Jakoba Mulder was an urban planner who included the child playing in her designs. After all, play is very important for children and their development. In her eyes, children were 100% citizens with the same human rights as adults. They must have their own space where it is safe and where adults do not interfere with them. This is where, for example, the courtyards came out. Playgrounds were created there so that fathers and mothers can look out at what their children are doing and just shout when they need to come home. The flats and the spaces between them are built in such a way that everyone feels like it's theirs too. It is not an anonymous place, which makes it safe for children to play. Jakoba Mulder designed 'playing' for an entire post-war generation in the Netherlands, absolutely!

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This story is by Jorine van Hooijdonk and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.

Because many houses were being built, there were planks at the construction sites. We took them to the dyke and used them to build huts. Others then dug holes and made a roof on them with the planks until it was a hut. Then we made a small campfire to roast potatoes. That gave us a real camping feeling!

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This story is by Louis Firet and was part of the exhibition 'Playing in Nieuw-West'.