I visited Rotterdam for a day in 2018 when I went to the Netherlands for a three-week course at the IHE Delft Institute for Water Education. One Saturday, my colleague and I decided to take a train from Delft to Rotterdam and to do some sightseeing.
Endless walking
From the train station, we decided to walk into town to some of the iconic sights we had read about on the internet. We therefore asked where the Erasmus bridge was. Someone informed us that it was not too far. Thus started our endless walking journey.
Erasmus Bridge (Erasmusbrug)
We finally got to the bridge after a long walk. “Not too far”, was indeed relative! The distance was certainly not for the faint-hearted or the physically unfit! People have nicknamed the bridge “The Swan” because of its elegant 139-metre high asymmetrical steel pylon which resembles a swan’s neck. We took this picture of the bridge from a waterbus.
Euromast
The highest observation tower in the Netherlands, the Euromast, was mercifully, not too far off. From this, you could see breathtaking views of the city. This reminded me of the Montparnasse Tower observatory in Paris.
Water bus
Taking the waterbus was an experience we did not want to miss. We took this picture of the New Meuse River (Nieuwe Maas) from the waterbus. It was amazing to be at the Port of Rotterdam, which is the largest seaport in Europe.
Cube museum houses (Kijk-Kubus)
I had read about the cube museum houses designed by the Dutch architect, Piet Blom and was looking forward to seeing them in person. Hence, we decided to go there. We were not disappointed as they were an architectural wonder!
Taking a picture in front of these iconic buildings was a must!
A walk in the interior required careful steps. The walls and windows were slanted with unusual angles. The steps were quite steep. On the whole, a very interesting and unique experience!
I had visited Amsterdam earlier on and had experienced some culture shocks. Rotterdam, however, inspired my artistic soul.
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