Behind The Scenes
The TrueTalker was on show in Amsterdam until 26 June 2016. After this date, the TrueTalker was moved to a new location: the site of nature playground Bûûtenplaets on the island of Goeree Overflakkee in the province of South Holland in The Netherlands.
THE JOURNEY
On Tuesday, December 12th, the TrueTalker was carefully placed onto the vessel “Manna” of owner Bart Verkade in the harbour of Amsterdam.
StoneCycling’s Jasper Brommet and Wim Noordzij of Bûûtenplaets coordinated the move and skipper Carolus Poldervaart (with his son Sander) left Amsterdam on Wednesday December 13th to Sluishaven in the Southernmost part of the province South Holland in the Netherlands, where it arrived on Thursday December 15th in the afternoon.
The journey took the TrueTalker along the Amsterdam-Rijnkanaal (-canal) to Utrecht via de Waal river to the Boven Merwede river, where they docked in the municipality of Gorinchem.
The journey continued on the Friday via the Nieuwe Merwede river to Hollands Diep river, under the Moerdijkbrug (-bridge) and onwards to the Volkerak Sluizen (-locks), onto the Volkerak Waters to the Galathese Haven (-harbour) to arrive at Goeree Overflakkee.
THE PLACEMENT
During the move, part of the TrueTalker collapsed because of the movement of the ship, but repairs were able to be made to salvage it. For everyone, it was a great adventure and we hope a lot of people will enjoy the structure, now dubbed ‘Bûûtenpraet’ (‘outdoor conversations’ in local dialect), in the future!
The Bûûtenpraet will get a prominent place at the nature playground, which is an initiative of locals to give visitors the chance to enjoy the peace and quiet of the natural environment at Goeree Overflakkee. Nature, environment, education, sustainability and -most of all- having fun are at the forefront of the foundation’s mission.
You can see the whole moving process below: