A Neighborhood Built for Nerds
The layout is almost lovingly nerdy. The elves live with the elves. The dwarves stick to their side. Gondor has its own section. The hobbits are happy in the center. It’s basically urban planning by someone who absolutely had opinions about the extended editions.
You can do your weekly groceries while walking down Elrond street. You can drop the kids off at “De Hobbit,” which is the actual name of the preschool. You can visit friends on Samwise Gamgee street and politely refuse second breakfast because you’re trying to be healthy.
And yes, if you’re unlucky enough to walk through Saruman street at night, you will absolutely speed up a little, just in case.
How Did This Even Happen
The funniest part is that this wasn’t a long, thought out tribute to Tolkien. The people designing the neighborhood had fourteen days to come up with 90 street names. At first they wanted to name everything after notable council members, but there weren’t enough notable council members. The backup plan was literally “open an encyclopedia and pick 90 birds.”
Instead, one brave hero stood up and said, “What if… Lord of the Rings.”
And boom, the council agreed, some people grumbled, and Geldrop won the award for Coolest Suburban Naming Convention Ever.
A Local Legacy
Today, the neighborhood has become a quiet legend. Locals actually name their pets after Tolkien characters. There are at least sixteen Frodos walking around. And honestly, who wouldn’t want to shout “Gimli, come back here!” across a sunny Dutch park.
So if you ever find yourself in the Netherlands, skip the touristy stuff for a minute and go visit the one place on Earth where the Shire meets suburbia. Stand on Gandalf street, breathe in that clean Dutch air, and imagine living in a world where your Amazon package is addressed to:
Your Name
21 Galadriel Street
Geldrop, Middle Earth-ish, Netherlands
