Jan Hof was born in Zaandam, but spent most of his working life in the north of the country. In the sixties he moved to Drenthe.
Former journalist Fred Lubbers regularly met Hof in the field. Their first meeting took place in the 1980s. Lubbers was then active as a journalist at Boom Uitgevers and wrote for various regional newspapers. He was also affiliated with Het Nieuwsblad van het Noorden.
“In the field, our paths often crossed, for example at press conferences. Jan was an engaging, striking man. Always neatly in a suit and cared for to perfection,” Lubbers recalls.
According to Lubbers, Jan Hof was always full of plans and ideas. “I didn’t know the plan about Aladdin’s Wonderland, but I didn’t surprise anything. He saw opportunities everywhere. Jan always thought big. It typifies him: he wanted to put Drenthe more on the map.”
For example, he was a strong supporter of the airport in Eelde, but rather under the name Asser Airport, instead of Groningen Airport. “He had little faith in politics and preferred to realize things on his own.” That sometimes ensured that plans got stuck, Lubbers thinks.
Daughter Jessica Hof vaguely remembers something of these plans. She was still very young at the time, but the Eastern approach vaguely ringing. “He admired Anton Pieck (the spiritual father of Efteling). I remember somewhat that when he visited the park, he was impressed by certain attractions. The Fakir or the Indian Water Lelies? That could be very good. Perhaps those influences worked on this plan.”
That the fairy tale did not end up in the end, her father will probably not have been thinking for long. “By nature he was always an optimistic and cheerful person. And he always overflowed with ideas and plans, until the end of his life.”