When the klipperaak Luctor was build in 1913, she was a sailing vessel.
Being a new type in the long history of Dutch maritime innovations, she had the stern of an aak,
and the bow of a klipper.
With her flat bottom designed to transport cargo all over the Dutch waterways, and even to sail
in brackish water, in Zeeland. She had a single mast, a little shorter as the length of the ship,
it would have been around 22 metres, and she would have had lee-boards.

Modern times

Somewhere in the fifties she was converted into a motorship. A steering cabbin was added
in such a fashion that one could fold it down easely, because of the bridges.
And she was made 5 metres longer.Her maximum cargo capacity was increased, she could
now take in 192 ton. In the seventies she got a "modern" engine, A DAF 575,
with a a little over a hundred hp. We still take her out with that machine. We lengthened
and heighthened the deckhouse though.
We bougt her in 2001, and refitted her totally. We 've put in 20 tons of extra weight
under the floor to increase her manouverability.
Because she is high on the water she catches a lot of wind. Didn't help much....
We might install a bow propeller.
The Bed and Breakfast started in 2010. The apartement is not large, but build with a great sense
of style and quality.The floor in the appartement for instance is from Black Cabbes,
stone-hard African wood, and the wash basin in the sleeping room (nice brass portholes!) I carved it myself from Belgian Granite.
Lots of mahony and traditional shiping lights in the sleeping room. Personaly I think we have moored the houseboat
on the best location possible, on such a central spot, quiet, safe, but very close to the center of Amsterdam.
The Westerdok has been an important location in the history of Amsterdam.
This is how it looked in 1865. The function of the waterways for logistics, and shiprepair and even
is maintained. And a lot of house-boats, of course, dutch barges of all kinds...
The streetnames are a reminder: Schiemanstraat, Touwslagerstraat (Rope manufacturing), Zeilmakersstraat,
(Sewing of sails).