21. End of walk

Walk straight along the shopping area and the parking lot and the Crystal Court apartment building (photo 20). This will bring you back to Meeting island in Gijsbrecht van Aemstelpark where you started. Here is the end of this walk.

End of walk

Photo 20: Parking Gelderlandplein and Crystal Court

The walls of the Crystal Court apartment building are made of Western Red Cedar wood. This is done to try to make a connection with the trees in the Gijsbrecht van Aemstelpark. In 2010 the building won two prices: The Amsterdam price for new buildings and the price for wooden buildings.

Do you want to make more walks like this? On this website are two walks in Buitenveldert now. Maybe more will follow.

You are invited to send your reaction about this walk to the address on this website, see ‘contact’. Thanks in advance.

Joop van der Schee

Possible answers to the questions:

1. What are the protruding beams with a hook at the top of the flats on Bouvigne for? People who want to move their large furniture use beams fitted with hook and tow when the pieces they want to move are too big to be transported via the stairs or the elevator.

2. What made many people eat more internationally? A more multicultural population and more international travels.

3. On the right hand, the area is much lower than on your left. How is that possible? There are two polders with a different level. The polder on your right hand is located in Amstelveen and is lower than the polder Buitenveldert which has been raised with sand to create a solid foundation to build houses. Both polders have their own water management system. Both polders discharge their water into river Amstel but at different locations.

4. An attempt has been made to make the building of the school gardens environmentally proof. Where do you see that? The sedum and solar panels on the roof, and the insect boxes.

5. Amstel River is higher than the area next to it. How is that possible? Soil subsidence in Buitenveldert due to drainage and heavy land use.

6. Is it dangerous that the river is higher than the surrounding area? It is not dangerous as long as the dikes are strong and high enough, the discharge of water from the polder by the pumping station is working good and there is no extreme rainfall in Buitenveldert nor extreme water discharge by the river.

7. In which direction does the Amstel water flow? To the north in the direction of the IJ in Amsterdam.

8. In which direction does the water flow in Buitenveldert? To the northeast in the direction of the pumping station at river Amstel near Zorgvliet.

9. Why should a cell tower in this environment be so high? Since the buildings nearby are higher than before, the cell tower had to be very high to function well.

Instructions 'Buitenveldert '