{"id":961,"date":"2022-10-24T01:33:35","date_gmt":"2022-10-24T08:33:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/babypengu.in\/blog\/?p=961"},"modified":"2022-10-24T08:48:08","modified_gmt":"2022-10-24T15:48:08","slug":"rotterdam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/babypengu.in\/blog\/travel\/rotterdam\/","title":{"rendered":"Rotterdam"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In a word, this unusual Dutch city is impressive<\/em>. Why unusual? That requires a bit of historical explanation..<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the western border of Germany was a terrible place to be going into WW2. Hitler wanted a swift victory over the Netherlands, but progress westward was slow to non-existent. A German general sent a letter to the Dutch colonel overseeing the defense of Rotterdam to demand a surrender by 1:30 PM or else the city would be bombed to rubble. While taking it seriously enough to warn residents, the Dutch demanded an official document with a signature instead of the questionable note that they’d received. The general sent back something more official and postponed the time by three hours. With that, the Dutch had no choice but to surrender the city, but no one managed to reach the bombers that were already underway. At 1:27, fifteen minutes of firebombing commenced despite their intent to yield. The worst fires burned out of control for two days. Afterward, there was almost nothing left of the city center. The warning was enough for many to evacuate, leaving less than a thousand people dead, but 80,000 were homeless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After such a blow, it took years before major resettlement. As people began to rebuild, the decision was made to build something new, not a historical replica. A tradition of modern, highly-functional design was born. Whereas most European cities bear the signs of modern life being overlaid on top of aging infrastructures that struggle to cope, Rotterdam stands in contrast. The roads are wide enough for vehicles, with sidewalks for pedestrian traffic, separated bike lanes, and all manners of public transit crisscrossing the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having done any research at all before going to Rotterdam, it’s expected that it’ll be modern. Experiencing it is something else entirely. Arriving to the central train station at night and walking fifteen minutes to a hotel was jaw dropping. It’s not that anything was particularly beautiful or awe-inspiring. Rather, it was that everything was so well arranged and perfectly suited to modern life (almost) without any hint of the urban issues that plague a city like Brussels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The intent was to use the city as a base to explore the surrounding areas, but one of the day trips to the historical town of Delft got cancelled just to stay and enjoy Rotterdam. That was a remarkable change from the expectation that each morning would start with the desire to flee an urban hell. One day trip stayed on the agenda to visit seemingly endless windmills in Kinderdijk, but this post will focus on in Rotterdam itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting There<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

It was to take multiple trains and over four hours to head north to Rotterdam, but an accidental detour to Leuven extended that by an hour. One late train led to rushing on to another that was on the right platform at the right time, but there was apparently a last-minute track change. The good news is that the robust rail system offers plenty of alternatives, so it ended up being a minor hiccup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The train that arrived late to Namur had plenty of people waiting. The next track was pretty busy too.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Being hungry at the Leuven train station led to poor decisions. This is a kipwurst broodje (chicken sausage in flaky dough).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The chocotwist was certainly a worse idea than the chicken sausage.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Finally!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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It felt huge, but this was before seeing Antwerp’s station.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Stacked bike racks at the station; a reminder that bikes outnumber people in the Netherlands<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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A tunnel under the station that’s convenient after going out the wrong exit<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The station from the front<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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