Minnewater, Lake of Love and Cactus Festival
The Minnewater is known especially for the annual summer festival Cactus Festival. Every year in July during the first weekend Minnewater is transformed into festival area for the three-day Cactus Festival National and international artists give amazing concerts and the festival visitors enjoy every minute.
The oldest proof of the Minnewaterpark dates back to 1580. It was not a park back then, but a bleachin meadow. It stayed that way untill the 19th century. After that it was broken up and given to different owners. One of them, Ludovix Fraeys de Veubeke, had a castle built in neo-Gotich style and had layed out a garden. The castle didn't survive long, in 1969 it was torn down. Only the porters' lodge and a part of the linden in garden remained.
After a few plans for building on the terrain they wandered if it wouldn't be better to lay out a public park. This idea was received very well and in 1974 the city council bought 1.55 ha of the terrain.
There were two aims: finishing the tourist walking axis close tot the Minnewater, and the lay out of a green area with various passive recreative funcions. The activities started in 1977 and the opening followed in 1979. Shortly after the park was extended with another half a hectare with the buy of two adjoining properties. Being the cultural capital of Europe, made it possible to renovate the adjoining canal island, the Bargesquare, and turning it into an attractive welcoming space to the thousands of tourists who visit Bruges by coach. Via the eye-catching bridge the Minnewater is easy to access for the tourists to start their touristic exploration of the city.
Minnewaterpark is translated into many languages as park of love. In French 'Lac d'amour', in English 'Lake of Love' and in Spanish 'Lago del Amor'. This translation is not that far from the truth. 'Minne' is the old Dutch word for loving. The verbe 'beminnen' is derived from it. Yet, as you see now, the park doesn't really have a romantic history. Maybe it was an aim to make the park into a meeting place for lovers. In any case, the surroundings are perfect for it.
