Ark-itecture

Correspondent Nick Watt blogs about visiting the man who’s building an ark near Amsterdam: You can see Johan’s Ark from way down the canal. It dwarfs everything else in this little Dutch town. Once aboard the most difficult thing to comprehend is that Johan Huiber did almost all of the work himself. His son Roy helps out at weekends, but otherwise this is all Johan. It’s the length of a football field and so high that Johan will have to pump water into the hull so it floats a little lower when navigating under low bridges. The craftsmanship is amazing and there are no blueprints. It’s all in Johan’s head. And his head is full of enthusiasm. He’s worked on this Ark all winter but says he’s never thought about quitting and he’s never lonely. He listens to the radio and chats with curious passers-by. It’s clear he loves the work and also that he’s driven by strong religious beliefs. He hopes a lot of Dutch people – just like the curious passers-by – will be inspired by the Ark to learn more about Christianity. He didn’t try to convert us or ask us about our own beliefs. He just showed us around his Ark. Right now it’s pretty much a shell; it won’t be finished until September. You can see the stalls where the animals will be kept. But the coffee shop and the exhibitions rooms are just bare wood. Johan’s weirdest idea is this: When the Ark opens as an attraction the tour will include an exercise in which kids build model villages in the hull of the Ark. Then Johan will open a sluice and flood their creations. He said that’ll be something they’ll never forget, but in a good way.