No major operators and expensive attractions, but a small whirligig in the village, self -crafted games and cake for the first visitors. After the disappearance of the regular fairground operator ten years ago, the villagers of Ulicoten did not leave it at that. That is why they organize the fair all by themselves. “We just make it here ourselves. And we will do that well too!”
Ten years ago the village received bad news: the regular fairground operator no longer came. Too little profit in a too small village. But Ulicoten didn’t pick that. Angela Boomarts, one of the initiators, still remembers well: “The call from the village was clear: the fair must stay. So we started doing it ourselves.”
What started as a small initiative has grown into an annual village festival with around seventy volunteers. From a homemade stall for fishing with a washing machine engine to a handmade shooting stall and even a rocking ship.
And yes, the whirligig is also there from the first year, although it took some effort. “The whirligig had to come and would come. I hung for hours on the phone,” laughs Angela. “Nobody wanted to come for such a small village. But it should and would succeed. And now see what’s there!”
Volunteer Jeanny shines with duckfish: “Everything is homemade. It remains affordable. It’s about those happy faces, that’s the best thing.”
To celebrate the tenth anniversary, the first visitors received a tip of cake on Sunday. “This remains wonderful to do,” says Volunteer Rianne, who keeps the rocking ship rocking. “As long as they need me, I am there.”
Monique also visits the fair every year with pleasure: “If there is something to do in Ulicoten, everyone is present. That makes it so cozy here! Here we just organize things ourselves. There is no more bus, no funeral; we are a bit excluded as a village. So then we just make it ourselves, and I think that is very good!”
The fair is small -scale, but it seems that the power seems to be in it. “You can see that parents can sit here quietly on the terrace while their children have fun,” says Monique. “There is a look at each other’s children, just like before.”
Els Jacobs, better known as Miss Els in the village, is enjoying plenty: “The people here have a lot for each other, they have everything to keep the village alive and you can see that here.”
The 12-year-old Noud also likes to visit the fair: “They make everything themselves here, I really like to see that. A large fair is also fun, but here are also attractions that they don’t have at the large fair.”
While the little ones happily hop over the fair, parents order a drink in the sun on the adjacent terrace. They don’t need a large fair in Ulicoten. No fuss, just a fair as you don’t find anywhere else: through the village, in front of the village.