The Unknown Groningen

The Unknown Groningen

By: Leda Spiranec

When walking around Groningen, one is always bound to encounter various lively groups of students on their way to someone’s house (especially now). A few extremely fashionable and aesthetically oriented individuals that always catch the eyes of the passers-by’s. Perhaps, if you are lucky, during the hectic traffic hours when it seems that all the inhabitants of Groningen decided to simultaneously get out of the house and start a bike race, you might see one, two, or even three children in those charming wooden cargo boxes with an accompanying pet! Ah, the beauty when one catches sight of a Labrador pup or a Corgi. As if that is not enough sights and experiences from a small city like Groningen, if one dares to look and search there are numerous inconspicuous little quirks that one can stumble upon and be even further surprised and astonished. All over Groningen there are locations of smaller secret worlds. So here are some clues if you wish to find them…

When walking around Groningen, one is always bound to encounter various lively groups of students on their way to someone’s house (especially now). A few extremely fashionable and aesthetically oriented individuals that always catch the eyes of the passers-by’s. Perhaps, if you are lucky, during the hectic traffic hours when it seems that all the inhabitants of Groningen decided to simultaneously get out of the house and start a bike race, you might see one, two, or even three children in those charming wooden cargo boxes with an accompanying pet! Ah, the beauty when one catches sight of a Labrador pup or a Corgi. As if that is not enough sights and experiences from a small city like Groningen, if one dares to look and search there are numerous inconspicuous little quirks that one can stumble upon and be even further surprised and astonished. All over Groningen there are locations of smaller secret worlds. So here are some clues if you wish to find them…

  1. If you manage to find this street on the outskirts of the city, you will be glad to discover that some of the houses look more like the set design of the Nutcracker ballet than the facades of real houses.
  2. While looking more like a Lego-inspired house, its name might just actually remind you of that infamous song from Pink Floyd; all in all it’s just bricks in the wall.
  3. The secret unknown ‘hippie’ and a very environmentally friendly village – where you can hear ‘These boots are made for walking’ across the plain fields where all kinds of farm animals stroll when they decide to have an open-air party.
  4. If you find half of a horse’s body on this particular street wall, I promise you, in-between so many different and amazing restaurants and food places, that you will also eat like a horse.
  5. The Japanese secret – This is a special one, between one of the main canals in Groningen, Hoge der A and the Visserstraat you just might find the most peculiar craftsman with beautifully made Japanese ceramics.
  6. Pay attention to the hanging shoes on the wires – they might be much more common around the city and suggest something much more dangerous and mysterious happening.
  7. If you wish to hang upside down from a hula hoop or to master walking on a tight rope anywhere in Groningen fields, just peak here first.
  8. I have even witnessed the enticing opera recitations from this hidden place in the woods, in a park that is suspiciously close to a psychiatric facility… makes you wonder where the voices are really coming from.
  9. The best-looking mailbox in town – Where the mail feels most at home…
  10. If you manage to find this place, in the meandering and abruptly short streets in the centre of Groningen, perhaps you’ll hear the sounds of a lapwing bird slopping around the swamp, or would that be a deceit? It’s on you to find out.
  11. The monkey mural – Where the monkey business happens… ‘Hidden in all the greenery I discovered a gazebo, equipped with gas and light and to my utter surprise, this house was the home of a monkey. An old monkey – in my memory a baboon – who had difficulty walking, could no longer climb and scrambled through the jungle like an old male.’ If you want to know more of how the monkey looked like and what really happened here, you can both discover it while walking on your own or by reading this: Muurschilderingen A-Kwartier (Murals A-Kwartier) – Kunstpunt Groningen
  1. If you manage to find this street on the outskirts of the city, you will be glad to discover that some of the houses look more like the set design of the Nutcracker ballet than the facades of real houses.
  2. While looking more like a Lego-inspired house, its name might just actually remind you of that infamous song from Pink Floyd; all in all it’s just bricks in the wall.
  3. The secret unknown ‘hippie’ and a very environmentally friendly village – where you can hear ‘These boots are made for walking’ across the plain fields where all kinds of farm animals stroll when they decide to have an open-air party.
  4. If you find half of a horse’s body on this particular street wall, I promise you, in-between so many different and amazing restaurants and food places, that you will also eat like a horse.
  5. The Japanese secret – This is a special one, between one of the main canals in Groningen, Hoge der A and the Visserstraat you just might find the most peculiar craftsman with beautifully made Japanese ceramics.
  6. Pay attention to the hanging shoes on the wires – they might be much more common around the city and suggest something much more dangerous and mysterious happening.
  7. If you wish to hang upside down from a hula hoop or to master walking on a tight rope anywhere in Groningen fields, just peak here first.
  8. I have even witnessed the enticing opera recitations from this hidden place in the woods, in a park that is suspiciously close to a psychiatric facility… makes you wonder where the voices are really coming from.
  9. The best-looking mailbox in town – Where the mail feels most at home…
  10. If you manage to find this place, in the meandering and abruptly short streets in the centre of Groningen, perhaps you’ll hear the sounds of a lapwing bird slopping around the swamp, or would that be a deceit? It’s on you to find out.
  11. The monkey mural – Where the monkey business happens… ‘Hidden in all the greenery I discovered a gazebo, equipped with gas and light and to my utter surprise, this house was the home of a monkey. An old monkey – in my memory a baboon – who had difficulty walking, could no longer climb and scrambled through the jungle like an old male.’ If you want to know more of how the monkey looked like and what really happened here, you can both discover it while walking on your own or by reading this: Muurschilderingen A-Kwartier (Murals A-Kwartier) – Kunstpunt Groningen