Henk Krol is in love with Zeewolde
A year-round holiday feeling. That's what Henk Krol has. The former politician and former editor-in-chief of the Gay Krant instantly fell in love with Zeewolde in the summer of 2022. I didn't know Zeewolde at all. But what a space, what greenery and above all: what friendly people. Everything falls into place here.
Terrible central
'Zeewolde is terribly central; I didn't realise that at all. You can go in all directions from here. I can just cycle to the radio and television studios in Hilversum. Yes really, it's only 24 kilometres. On Saturdays, my partner Aldo and I regularly cycle to Harderwijk.'
Kingfisher in the garden
Henk sits at the garden table. Enjoying the shade of his spacious garden full of trees, shrubs and white hydrangeas. 'Ah look, the sparrows are here again. Did you know that I also regularly spot a kingfisher in my garden?' Dobermann Rembrandt - 'with dt, though of course he doesn't hear that t' - lays his head on his lap. Little Loekie (a dwarf pincher) also comes to have a look. 'When we just lived here, Rembrandt slipped out of the garden and he went round all the neighbours. Yes, then of course you feel ashamed. But everyone reacted so kindly. Nobody minded.'
Discovering Zeewolde
Henk and his partner ended up in Zeewolde 'entirely by chance'. On the way back from a viewing in Drenthe, we phoned the estate agent to see if we could visit Zeewolde that day. We practically passed it anyway. We immediately loved the house. To the estate agent we said: give us a few days to find out where we are going. The following weekend, we enjoyed the Beach Festival, went into the shopping centre and discovered the forest with our dogs. Crossing the street diagonally, we are already in the forest, where the dogs are allowed off-leash.
Rural living
'Why didn't we actually know Flevoland, and specifically Zeewolde, we wondered.We became more enthusiastic by the day.' Friends and acquaintances, too, are now "om". "What are you going to do in that polder?", they shouted upon hearing about the relocation plans. They too now know: that polder is not boring and barren. Anything but that, in fact. If you want to live a bit more rural - a stone's throw from big cities - this is the place to be.'
Ancient seabed
Henk likes to get out and about in his new hometown. Nice walks in the Horsterwold, for instance. 'We have the largest deciduous forest in Europe!' He regularly settles down for the day's snack at restaurant De Parel, with its private beach. Or at Lisette 't Hof, the Utrecht-based Terra Wolde restaurant near Zeewolde, in the middle of the forest and on the waterfront. Where they cook with products from their own forest garden. 'By the way, did you know that they also have a vineyard here, soon to be approved by the European wine label AOC? Apellation d'Origine Contrôlée Flevopolder. That sounds good right? That sea floor creates something very special that other winemakers can't manage.'
That Zeewolde is still fairly unknown in the rest of the country, Henk doesn't even mind too much. 'From me it doesn't have to become too popular, let's keep this pearl a little hidden,' he laughs.
