In Holland there is this law; if a house has been empty for a year and a half it can/could be legally squatted. To prevent this from happening there are organisations that take care of buildings. I lived anti-squat for more than 12 years. You never know when to move out and there is only a 2 weeks notice, but if you are lucky you get to live in amazing places. I was very lucky. I lived in an old hospital, close to the sea in Scheveningen for 5 years for example, but my last house was also very special.

It was situated on the edge of the city of The Hague. The last part where there were still greenhouses. The whole area with farmers had to make place for rich people’s houses and project development. When I arrived a part of the area was already constructed with big villa’s, but because of the crisis the demolition of standing houses came to a stop.

My street was a long street of old freestanding farmhouses that had to be taken down in the future and they were almost all occupied by anti-squat people. At the very end of our street there were the new big villa’s and the contrast couldn’t have been bigger. Our street had fields of grass and wild flowers and greenhouses and was very organic and wild, while the new villa area was so clean, only grass and tiles in the gardens, no flower to be seen.
Also no humans because they had to work all day. In my street there was always someone at home, usually they were self-employed people, to have a coffee or chat.

I lived there for 8 years. What a gift it was. Close to the city but so in contact with nature. There were many birds; falcons, owls and exotic geese who enjoyed the wetlands. There were foxes and porky pines. I became friends with 2 wild cats and everyday horses with or without carriages came riding through the street.
I enjoyed the silence so much. And the big big trees. I hope they leave them standing, as they are tearing the place down while I am writing this.

During my time there I started taking up photography again. The abandoned greenhouses, the everchanging light through the glass of the greenhouses, my neighbours, the area. Coming home from the city into our street was like driving on a movie set. If I was in politics I would make it a special area; eco-houses or keep the greenhouse to provide the whole area with local organic food. But that is nog going to happen.

I thought is was for 1 year but after 8 years I moved to Ibiza. One year later, 2018 ‘my’ street will dissapear forever. Goodbye old, goodbye nature and animals, goodbye neighbours. Nothing lasts, maybe that is why I enjoyed it even more.