SKYSCRAPER (6 june 2006)
I grew up in a neighbourhood in Amsterdam that was designed by renowned architect Berlage . One of the most intriguing buildings in our neighbourhood was the Wolkenkrabber , which - literally translated means "cloud scratcher".
'Wolkenkrabber'
You'll understand this is the equivalent of the English word skyscraper. The French use the same notion as the English: gratte-ciel . In Germany it's called Wolkenkratzer, which -- as you will have guessed -- means exactly the same as the Dutch wolkenkrabber.
Since neither sky nor clouds can be scratched or scraped, all these words seem to suggest people tend to be intrigued by skyscrapers.
As children we had a special reason to be intrigued by the wolkenkrabber in our neighbourhood. At the back of the building, there was the entrance to a dark cellar. As far as we could see, the cellar was not locked, but we never dared to descend the stairs.
Since we never entered the dark and mysterious vaults, there was ample room to be filled in by our imagination. Although the cellar probably housed something prosaic like a central heating installation, we imagined it was the hiding place of a lion, an ogur, or a terrible dragon lurking in the dark.
But this was in the fifties, in times long past.
Recently, I was walking with my sweetheart through the neighbourhood where we both grew up, when we passed the wolkenkrabber. I was curious to see if the place would still intrigue me as much.
But alas, the spell of childhood had been broken. No dragons to be seen ...
And for you, the readers of this weblog, I took this picture:
