Rotterdam Introduction

Rotterdam is located at the mouth of two of Europe’s greatest rivers, the Rhine from Germany and the Meuse from France. It was the largest port in the world up until 2004 but is now the second largest, and is situated on the banks of the Nieuwe Maas river. It is this river that divides Rotterdam into two parts; Rotterdam-north and Rotterdam-south. These two sections are linked through various tunnels and bridges for all modes of transport.


Culture and Architecture

Thanks to the WWII bombings, Rotterdam is a very modern city with much being built since the end of the war. The city centre was almost leveled during German bombing raids at the beginning of the war (May 1940), as a result the city lost most of it's old character buildings and districts. Some pockets still remain but since the 1950's Rotterdam was rebuilt and regenerated into a very modern, architecturally driven city, some would say that this has been to the detriment of the spirit of the city. However, you can still find some historic sections and buildings around that escaped the bombing dotted in and around Rotterdam - Historic Delfshaven (the place where the Pilgrim fathers left for America), Kralingen, Hillegersberg and the odd building within the city centre.

Initially, building commenced without a cohesive plan but from the 1980's on, local councils developed a strategy to change this. Make up your own mind as to whether they succeeded. Rotterdam is an uncompromisingly modern city and the building design is generally quite brutal, it does have a heart, you just have to know where to find it and make it your own. Architectural tours of the city are available (City Safari, Downtown, Museum Park, Water City).

Aside from the architecture, Rotterdam has an impressive selection of public sculptural works, these can been seen all around the city, the discovery is the fun part. The cultural district of the city centers around Witte de Withstraat and the Museum district with numerous galleries, museums and artist ateliers and design shops. You will also find the Dutch Photo Museum and Kuntsthall gallery in this area. For commercial galleries and artist run collectives visit the Nieuwe Binnenweg area.

Throughout the year there are many festivals and events (but more so during the Summer months); Summer Carnival, International Film Festival, Dance Parade, Dunya Festival, Poetry International and the International Architecture Biennale.

The Netherlands is not known for its' culinary skills and much of the food is quite plain and mostly deep fried. You will find patat vans all over the city and near any event, carpark or where ever people are likely to cluster. You can generally tell when they are around for the smell of the vats. It is a national favourite food. Patat (fries) come either met or zonder, meaning with (met) or without (zonder) mayonaise. The remainder of the fastfood dining experience comes from various deepfried items - kaas soufle (small cheese parcels in pastry), kroquetten (crumbed sausage like item), bitter ballen (tasteless meat ball), boterham/broodje (sandwich or roll filled with plain cheese and ham no sauce or other delicacies). This culinary feast will show up at every children's party, restaurants, cafe's, indoor and outdoor playgrounds.

Conversely, they do love their vegetables and the markets are the best places to go for freshness and price. Again, these are served without much fanfare. Something else to try if you are brave enough are herrings - when in season, the nation tends to go a bit crazy. Eet smakelijk!


Statistics and Geography

Official name	Kingdom of the Netherlands, Constitutional Monarchy
Capital	Amsterdam, The Hague is the centre of Government
Area	Total: 41,525 sq km Water: 7,643 sq km Land: 33,883 sq km
Climate	Temperate; Marine; cool summers and mild to cold winters, experience some snow February / March time
Location	Western Europe, bordering North Sea
Geographic coordinates	52 30 N, 5 45 E
Land Boundaries	Bordered by Belgium to the south and Germany to east and north
Coastline	451 km of coastline
Terrain	Mostly coastal lowland and reclaimed land (polders); with some hills in the south east
Elevation extremes	Lowest point: Zuidplaspolder -7m Highest point: Vaalserberg 322m

Climate

The Netherlands has a temperate, marine climate. The climate websites will tell you that the "summers are mild and the winters cool with rain experienced throughout the year". Statisticians will tell you that the average peak summer temperature is 20oC/68oF, average lowest winter temperature is 1oC/34oF.

Residents will tell you however, it rains an awful lot (wettest months are July and August) throughout the year and in summer the temperatures can reach to the late 20's/mid 70's with. Winter can get very cold indeed and you will experience a reasonable amount of snow, although much of the cold comes from hail and sleet.


Useful links

You will find links to various organisations and websites throughout the site but these links are pictorial sites showcasing Rotterdam.

www.photopixels.eu - English language site showcasing Rotterdam by day and night,
www.kerktorens.nl - panoramic images taken from tops of Church towers around the city,
www.ffwd.afterview.nl - images from the 2005 - 2006 Ffwd Heineken Dance Festival,
www.huibnederhof.nl - 'EyeFocus Fotography' - panoramic & 360o images of the city and surrounds. Images also contain hotspots and zoom capacity to see details and streets.

Explanation of the postcode system in the country. You will generally see the postcode (four numbers followed by two letters) and the city. It is never shown with the associated suburb.