Rotterdam (Netherlands)

Rotterdam was smashed during the World War II and unlike other big cities in Europe (Warsaw would be a good example), Dutch people decided not to restore city to the initial outlook. Instead, in typical Dutch manner, they decided to transform Rotterdam in playground of modern architecture. Frankly speaking, not always experimenting is good but after all, someone has to try, isn’t it? Briefly about places where architects actually succeeded, - Cubic Houses is a good example, - start you journey from Cooolsingel and go to the direction of the Cubics, - you will see that actually they look like a ... more

I have been visiting Rotterdam for both short and extended periods for at least 15 years. It's an underrated city in my view, but you will either love or hate it. It's a vibrant, proud, and above all, a working city. Since it was virtually flattened in 1940 it has never stopped renewing itself - there is always building going on. There is sensational modern architecture all along Weena, near the Centraal Station, and all through the city. Look at the Beurs building, the Potlood (pencil) the library, the cube houses (you can go inside these), and the Euromast. It's the world's biggest port, and ... more

I visited Rotterdam on a P and O minibreak last week. The P and O mini cruises are fantastic value for money because at this time of year (February) two people travel for the price of one. Having previously visited Amsterdam and Bruges with P and O we decided to try Rotterdam. We purposefully avoided travelling on a Sunday because we thought everything would be closed, how we wished we had researched in it properly before booking! In Rotterdam Sunday is not a day of rest, unfortunately for us Monday is. We found that the only things open were The Euromast (quite an experience with a great ... more

Rotterdam is the second city of Holland, with near to a million inhabitants it is a small town for american standards. Here in Holland however, it is known as a big city.Historical buildings, such as the merchants buildings at the canals in Amsterdam, are hard to find, due to large bombings from both side in the second world war. but, in effect, there is a lot of modern architecture and the view buildings that weren't bombed are carefully conserved. This gives the town a very own face, with the contrast between ancient and modern styles. For everyone who likes, or is interested in architecture ... more