City Weighhouse

“In the 60s and 70s, the Vleeshuiswijk was a busy nightlife district,” says Bertje on the way to the next stop. “Today, as we hear from the residents, it is again a very nice place to live.”

At the border of the Schipperskwartier and the University District lies the Stadswaag. “The word ‘waag’ refers to a scale. Here, in the Middle Ages, the goods that came in through the harbor were weighed. During World War I, in August 1914, a zeppelin bomb fell on the square. There were several casualties, including two police officers who were patrolling in the vicinity.”

We walk further north and pass the Falconplein. “It is named after Falco de Lampage, an Italian who came here in the 14th century and founded a monastery. The nuns who lived there were called the Falcontinnen.”

Around the remains of the monastery, a residential neighborhood has now been built. You can see it when the gate next to house number 37 is open. “In the past, the sisterhood of love was here, now they are across the square,” jokes Bertje. “From here, we step right into the prostitution district.”

GVA - Gazet van Antwerpen