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Antwerp, Belgium
Welcome to the new, and improved version of Heaven in Belgium. I am Jientje. "Jientje", like the boys name Gene, followed by "chu"? "Gene-chu", that's how you pronounce my name. Yes!!!!That's it!! So now you know huh? I am an addicted blogger. I was born and raised and am still living in Belgium. Yeah, the "this-is- Tuesday-so-this-must-be-Brussels" kind of Belgium .. There, you see? Maybe you couldn't find it on the map, but at least I'm trying to change that a little by sharing lots of pictures. I really love to cook and create new things, like this blog for instance. I am a mother,a grandmothe and a wife too! They say I'm a traveler, and a photographer. Well that's just what they say, I love to make pictures, but I am far from professional ... If my English is not perfect, that would be because it's my second language. I do hope you'll forgive me any possible misspellings or strange vocabulary ... Now, as a result of all of the above, I get way too little sleep and my days are always much too short!

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Heaven is in Belgium

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Doel Part Four, a Village Past its Prime ...

This is part four of my series on Doel. Click this link to get all the posts of this series. Go look at those pictures first, it's important that you get the whole story.


Doel has become a ghost town. Most people have felt forced to move away and leave their properties because of the future enlargement of the harbor of Antwerp.


The cooling towers of the nuclear power plant are a well known landmark of this village in decay.



The streets are empty ...



Most of the houses have been abandoned.



Nature is taking over the gardens ...



... while graffiti painters are leaving their mark on what's left of a once prospering village ...





It's so sad ...



Project 366 #68

Soon this will all be history ...

I'm linking these posts to Written Inc. This week's Thematic Photography is "past it's prime".
Your turn: Take a photo of something decrepit - or well on its way - and share it on your blog. Alternatively, find something you may have already posted online. Leave a comment here letting folks know where to find it. Then visit other participants as we collectively explore the theme throughout the week. Repeat as often as you wish, and have fun with it. There are no rights or wrongs - just interpretations.

I think this series of photos qualify for this theme!

6 comments:

s.c said...

I saw a photo project once . I thought it was on the photo biennale in Breda where a group of belgian photographers had started a project called Doel. They wanted to document this village because it was disappearing but there where still some inhabitants then. You are doing the same on your own so it seems. But it are great shots I must admit. Keep going and don't lose the pictures.

Loree said...

It is amazing to think that people once lived there and that it was a thriving town.

maggie said...

I went back through the first three posts to get caught up, and, wow. So sad. Such amazing pictures, though! You really captured the sadness and emptiness and abandon. Really. Wow.

Unknown said...

Progress. Progress?

I'm not sure.

fotorantje said...

boeiend en fotogeniek
wel erg dat de meeste mensen bijna verplicht weg moesten

21 Wits said...

Your photos are a marvel, a tribute to a lost city. It's really sad to see the entire town just vacate, and leave behind such "history, and memories." The clean street with the closed up buildings, and yet there are black like flower pots waiting for what? A few have a tree or stump of sorts. Odd that they are there still. I really favor the house with the porch, in it's day I can imagine it was quite beautiful. It's really too bad, that everyone just up and left. It brings the question how can they afford to do that, or maybe they can't afford not to. I enjoyed your collection.

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