The first time I took the ferry across the water, I was on my way to a festival located in a shipyard with lots of robots and lots of fire. The next time I took the ferry, I was on my way to proudly receive a talent award in a former woodworking workshop: a gigantic space where MTV Networks moved into.
Now, almost 10 years later, I’m on the ferry with my baby son. We’re showing him the country his parents are from and we’re staying on the other side of the water: Amsterdam-North. At this time there are three locations where ferries go back and forth around the clock. It’s become so common, that most people don’t even bother to get off their bikes when they’re crossing the water.

Amsterdam-North still breaths the heavy industry that thrived in the 20th century. These industrial heritage sites are nowadays an urban delight for millennials. Think of restaurants and cafés at either an extraordinary location or with exceptional food concepts, coffee roasters, co working spaces, exquisite furniture shops, flea markets, a concert-garden, and yes, a boulder gym. And while the empty spaces left in the area are a blank canvas for remarkable, new architecture, the tuindorpen continue to exist. The ‘garden cities’, another result of the heavy industry, are single family homes that housed mostly labourers in residential areas, set up in a village style. This is where I’m taking you in this series.