The Piushaven in Tilburg exists exactly one hundred years on Tuesday. But it would have been close or there would have been no port. In the 1990s there were plans to fill in the harbor to build a road. John La Haye and his girlfriend Caroline Docters van Leeuwen then resisted tooth and nail against that unfortunate plan and with success.
Of course, with a little sun everything looks better. But the Piushaven from the water is a picture. With their hundred-year-old historic boat De Waterlander, John and Caroline take us for a trip, from the swing bridge on the Hoevense Kanaaldijk towards the Piushaven. An electric, so silent boat.
Along the way you will see ducks and swans and the nests in which they breed. Beautiful historic inland vessels. Couples making love along the waterfront. “People don’t realize how beautiful Tilburg is from the water,” says Caroline.
“The Piushaven is of zero value.”
More than 25 years ago that was completely difficult. She can still hear the then alderman say: “The Piushaven is of no value whatsoever.” Caroline is still smiling combatively: “’We’ll see about that!’, I said then.”
Still, she understands that people found it difficult to see anything in that run-down port at the time: “From the 1960s to the 1990s, it became increasingly empty and boring here. There was nothing.”
She takes out an old photo, from the early days. Two people pulling a boat together, two children still: “It seems very heavy, but that is actually not too bad.” Still, it was an unusual picture in Tilburg: “With the sandy soil here, the farmers were not used to water. How surprising it was that a sailing ship like that suddenly slid through your fields.”
When the Piushaven existed for 75 years, John and Caroline organized an event. 120 historic ships and 45,000 visitors came to the port. Then the eyes opened. The harbor remained and became ‘the boulevard of Tilburg’. With cafes, restaurants and shops it has become a bustling hotspot.
“Within a week it was a big hit.”
For John and Caroline, the love for ships and water has always been self-evident. The Piushaven brought them together 31 years ago. “I wanted to graduate on a ship,” Caroline recalls. “I saw John’s ship and went to ask him what life is like on board. And within a week it was a big hit.” John: “It is a joy to walk through life with Caroline.”
The Waterlander enters the Piushaven. John looks around from his boat “I had surgery last week. My father only turned 63 and I was afraid I wouldn’t get much further. But I am now 71 and I am so very grateful to be able to experience this: a hundred years of Piushaven. Which city in Brabant has such a beautiful harbor?”
“No loud music, but nice encounters.”
The centenary of the Piushaven is celebrated in August. Organizer Boy Jonkergouw calls it a ‘freshwater sail’, inspired by Sail in Amsterdam.
On August 5, dozens of historic ships will sail into Piushaven: “And it’s not just looking from the side, you can also enter. And there you see an act: a violinist, poet, dancer or storyteller. So no festival with loud music, but great encounters.”
