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Singels: (Canals)

When you walk along the middle of the green strip, you are in the right place to feast your eyes on the beautiful buildings and artworks. You are walking along two of the four stately canals on the south side of the city. Did you know that a canal is a moat around the city center? Often, it is a remnant of the medieval defensive moat of a fortified city. Unlike canals, a canal usually does not have masonry quay walls but sloping banks. The road next to such a sloping bank is often called a Singel as well.

Artworks Singels:

There are several artworks to be found along the Singels. Would you like to know more about them? click here 

Dronkemanstoren (Drunkenman’s tower):

Did you know that the Dronkemanstoren got its name because you can see two clocks from all viewing directions, and often even three? Some people jokingly related the sight of two or three clocks on a tower to the effects of "having one glass of gin too many."

Sint Anthony Gasthuis (Sint Anthony Guest house):

At a short distance (Click here) from the Dronkemanstoren you will find one of the most famous guesthouses in Groningen. This is the Sint Anthony Gasthuis, which was founded in 1517. While other cities refer to these places as "hofjes" (courtyards), Stadjers (Groningers) designate them as guesthouses. This immediately clarifies the original function of the guesthouses. In the Middle Ages, poor and sick people were taken care of here. Pilgrims also found shelter here. In the city, you can also find the Pelstergasthuis, which was established as a pilgrim site. From the 17th century onwards, the guesthouses were used as homes for the elderly. Currently, the guesthouses are privately inhabited, and some of them are national monuments.

You are now standing at the Sint Anthony Gasthuis. This guesthouse is known as the oldest guesthouse in Groningen. This guesthouse also served as a "dolhuis" (madhouse). In the past, citizens would come here and pay to watch the crazies or "dollen." Hence the name dolhuis.

• At the corner of the Rademarkt and the Radebinnensingel (opposite the entrance to the Gasthuis), you can spot a 13.5-meter-high smooth, shiny, stainless-steel column if you look carefully through the trees. This artwork by André Volten, created in 1971, was the result of a policy introduced after the Second World War to promote visual art in public spaces. This policy was known as the percent for art regulation, which stipulated that 1.5 to 2 percent of the basic construction budget had to be spent on visual art.

  
  

Groninger Museum: 

In 1987, the Dutch Gasunie donated 25 million guilders (roughly 11.344.000 Euros) to the Municipality of Groningen. This made it possible to create a completely new museum building. The old museum building no longer met the requirements of the time. In 1990, this location was chosen for the museum. The architect Alessandro Mendini designed this architecturally colorful postmodern building. The design of the museum looks like an elongated island and consists of three large volumes in the water connected by corridors and two squares. The design for the new building had the important principle of fitting the atmosphere of the museum's collections. These collections include archaeology, the history of Groningen, applied arts, and old and contemporary visual art. The striking architectural building with postmodern influences was opened in 1994.

Groningen Central Station:

The architect of the station building, Isaac Gosschalk (1838-1907), was a fan of both the neo-Gothic and neo-Renaissance architectural styles and chose to design the Groningen station building in a combination of both styles. Due to the significant growth of the city of Groningen, the current station was built between 1891 and 1893. One notable attraction of the station is the station hall. You can find it in the main building, and its special ceiling decorations made of paper collé make it worth a visit.

Statue station square:

On the Station Square, you will find the statue 't Peerd van Ome Loeks. This statue can be seen as one of the most famous symbols of the city. The existence of the statue is derived from a Groningen folk song with the same title. Over the years, several men have been designated as the possible Ome Loeks. The most well-known candidate is Lukas 'Loeks' van Hemmen. He was a horse trainer and the owner of the café and stables called de Slingerij in Groningen. In late July 1910, his famous racehorse Appelon was restless and kicked the stable boy. Van Hemmen drove the horse back with a pitchfork, causing the horse to sustain an injury and fall ill. The horse died a few days later from colic. When the horse butcher came to collect the carcass, a few boys sang: "t Peerd van Ome Loeks is dead." And that's how the song is said to have originated.

You must be curious about this Groningen folk song by now. You can find the lyrics in the video below. We challenge you to sing along a bit. Do you recognize the melody in this song?