Café Owner Returns from Honeymoon to Find 2.5 Tons of Sand in His Business

A café owner from Puivelde, a small hamlet in the Belgian municipality of Sint-Niklaas, returned from his honeymoon to discover 2.5 tons of sand piled up inside his establishment — the work of friends who pulled off an elaborate prank while he was in the air. The couple, who took the surprise in good humor, are now planning a beach party to help clear the sand.

The Surprise Homecoming

Lorenzo Jacobs (36) and his new wife Cherilyn Daelman (26) had just returned from their honeymoon in Tenerife, Spain, when they walked into their café, De Oude Beenhouwerij, and found the interior transformed into what looked like a beach. According to VRT NWS, the couple had tied the knot on July 18 and spent their first weeks of marriage soaking up the sun in the Canary Islands before heading home to East Flanders.

But their friends had other plans while they were away. Gunther, Jurgen, and Peter — close friends of the couple — had unloaded a truckload of sand into the café in just an hour and a half, carefully timing their stunt for when Lorenzo was on the plane and unreachable.

“They had prepared well, because they struck exactly when I was on the plane,” Lorenzo told VRT NWS. “I didn’t get any notifications on my phone from the security cameras that movement was being registered, because my phone was on airplane mode.”

A Cascade of Pranks

The sand was just the grand finale of a series of pranks the couple discovered upon their return. “Friends of my wife had decorated our house with toilet paper,” Lorenzo recounted. “In our living room, a paddling pool had been set up. Only it was leaking, so the water had run out. After hours of cleaning everything up, we went to our bedroom. There we came face to face with two chickens.”

The friends left a message with the sand, Lorenzo explained: “We quite like having our feet in the sand, was their message.”

For Lorenzo, the prank wasn’t entirely unexpected. “Oh, I knew it would be my turn someday,” he said, “because in our friend group we find every reason good enough to pull a prank.”

A Beach Party Solution

Rather than being upset, the couple decided to turn the situation into a celebration. They’re organizing a beach party at the café, giving the community a chance to help clear the 2,500 kilograms of sand — with a reward for their efforts.

“We’re organizing a beach party,” Lorenzo said. “That way we celebrate our wedding once more, and everyone who fills a bag of sand gets a free beer. Then at least we get some help to clean it up.”

The café, located at Kruisstraat 48 in Puivelde-Belsele, describes itself as a “gezellig bruin café” — a cozy brown café where everyone can feel at home, according to its FoodYas listing. It’s also home to the PVC De Oude Beenhouwerij cycling club, and serves as a community hub for local events, including the annual Puivelde Koerse cycling race and village celebrations.

A Village With Character

Puivelde, with roughly 1,300 inhabitants, is a close-knit hamlet of the former municipality of Belsele, now part of Sint-Niklaas in East Flanders, as detailed on Wikipedia. The village has its own parish church, a local football club, and a strong tradition of community gatherings — which makes the sand prank and the couple’s response all the more fitting.

The café, part of the Jacobs-De Roover family business, had announced its temporary closure for the wedding in mid-July, noting it would reopen on July 22. Little did the couple know what awaited them.

What’s Next

As the couple prepares for their beach-themed cleanup party, the story has captured the imagination of locals and beyond. The sand will eventually be cleared, but the memory of this unforgettable homecoming — complete with toilet paper, a leaking paddling pool, two chickens, and 2.5 tons of sand — is sure to be retold in Puivelde for years to come.

For now, the couple is taking it all in stride, embracing the chaos with humor and a free beer for anyone willing to lend a hand.