World Cruise Stop: Rotterdam, Netherlands

By popular demand...
     This is the beginning of an off-and-on look at the ports we visited during our world cruise. You've visited Funchal, the second stop, some time ago. And you got to experience our fun time at sea during a storm, as well as everyday life in general.

      But our first was Rotterdam in the Netherlands.



I have a sweet spot for the Dutch -- my dad prided himself on being a 100%-er. After all, his name was Peter Otto DeVries! Hollander all the way. So it was particularly nice to be stopping at Rotterdam in South Holland. The city is Europe's largest for seafaring -- after all, it lies at the mouth of the Nieuwe Maas channel, leading into the North Sea. In 1270, a dam was constructed, clearing land; in 1340, Rotterdam became an official city by the Count of Holland. The city's kept up with progress; it's the largest in Holland.
     But it doesn't look like a typical Dutch city. 

Here it was, in the old days: dignified, classical. Ironically, we saw many more buildings like this later on, in some of Holland's colony ports, like Willemstadt. (More on this city later.)

In the old days...

     Bombing in WWII nearly destroyed the city centre, decimating its gracious old buildings. See what I mean?

Rotterdam, 1940s

What happened from then on is interesting -- Rotterdam's architecture had a virtual blank sheet for experimenting. The result: a curious, sometimes strange, sometimes fascinating mix of styles.






We got off the ship in early January 2020, to cold temps and overcast skies -- typical for winter weather in the Netherlands, particularly for so close to the sea. (In fact, that's why the ship could even get into port in the first place.) Unfortunately, our clothes were purchased primarily for the cruise's warmer climes; we layered up like crazy, but were still cold.
     What a shivery place. 

We visited a local mall, stuffed with stores, snack places (including coffee shops), and a surprising amount of greenery, including potted tulips. These were the ONLY tulips I saw, in this formerly tulip-obsessed country. (Then again, it was January.)

Some old streets are still in existence --
 these were by some of the several canals that intersect into the city.

Fortunately it was a Wednesday, so the local market was in full roar. Rows of tents lined the thoroughfare, selling everything from clothes (secondhand and Asian imports) to a variety of cheap goodies. But the real variety was food -- fresh vegetables, fruit and even fish, all bright, sweet and sprinkled with water drops. The doughnuts, bread and bagels smelled freshly-baked.

     They looked delicious. 




We saw all sorts of people from different cultures, discussing, arguing and enjoying in a number of different languages. Although hot snacks, especially french fries, were doing a roaring business, the weather didn't seem to bother them much.

After gawking at the skyscrapers, and wondering about the exuberant, almost childlike buildings, we hopped back on the boat. Time for a hot shower and a snack.

        Goodbye, dear old -- and new -- Rotterdam.

Photo credits: Wikipedia