A wow, Rotterdam was not what I expected. Some might say it is the complete opposite from Bruges! Immediately driving in it was a lot larger a city than I anticipated. Perhaps I should have researched the places I am visiting little more.... ah but that takes away the element of surprise. I was staying in the architectural wonders that are the cube houses. And in the morning I felt like I was being pap’d by the crowd of Chinese tourist enthusiastically photographing everything.
The tourist guide is the hostel were less helpful and interesting than the ones provided in the Bruges so off I headed to the very stylish tourist information centre to see what Rotterdam prided itself on. The tourist information itself is worth a visit. Very nice displays and exhibits. So, Rotterdam. It has a gritty city feel to it; even thought like the rest on the Netherland is incredibly clean. It is the worn streets and continuous building works which prove it is a city where people live and work unlike the show town of Bruges. Since its devastation after the war, when the city was pretty much flattened, Rotterdam has rebuilt and redirected itself to being a forward thinking adaptable city with focus on its architecture. Each building, public space and bridge is different, fascinating and unique. A patchwork quilt of structures and landscaping. You would imagine it to be ugly, the mismatched buildings, its lack of uniform and smooth steel and glass building that are favoured in many cities, nut it is not. It is beautiful and enthralling. The general design (posters/leaflets/adverts) are more attractive here than at home. Is it just because I can’t understand the cheesy slogans; or does this bike riding and boat enthusiast nation have a thing or two to teach us about design?
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