[By Jeroen Janssen in Doel, Belgium] I am going to Doel every week now. By train to Sint Niklaas, then by bus to Kieldrecht, and there I have a rusty bike which brings me to Doel (if it's not stolen, but I bought a lock which was more expensive than the bike, so I trust it will still be there every time I arrive in Kieldrecht)
It's nice to approach Doel, and the port of Antwerp, by bike through the polder. You can see the gantry cranes from kilometers of distance. The last inhabitants of Doel are being expulsed now, to make place for a new dock and new cranes (even if the plans of the Flemish government and the port of Antwerp have been declared invalid by the Belgian court of justice and the European commission).
When I see those new houses on my right, I know: some of my friends from Doel will live there soon. With a view on the cranes, but far away from the river. The streets have all names of trees: Acacia Lane, Willow Lane, Larch Lane. Or Abele Lane (see sketch below). I wonder if they will plant real trees, I wonder if someone in Kieldrecht knows what is an abele? I admit, I don't know it myself ...
