Tuši's blog: 16049

Netherlands: Rotterdam, Port of Rotterdam, Kinderdijk and Bergen op Zoom

On our 5th day our true vacation began, as we finished visiting friends on the way. Nada and Bronco started the day with a morning walk on the suburbs of Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht, while I did some work in the morning. The laptop drained René's battery so we had to call the road assistance. Soon we were plugged and the van was operational again. So we moved on. Our first stop was Renault service, where we wanted to buy a new battery, but they didn't have it and also if we ordered it, it would be quite expensive, so we decided, that we will try to survive with bad battery and we won't charge anything if the van will be stopped. We just hoped, that this will be a good decision, nevertheless we will se that soon enough.

Our first sightseeing stop in Netherlands was the Rotterdam city centre. We explored it on foot and it was quite an interesting city. We continued our trip to the Port of Rotterdam, the largest seaport in Europe and to Maasvlakte 2, a dike that made the port 20 percent larger. After some photos on the sandy beach, we visited the Kinderdijk, where a group of 19 monumental windmills in the Alblasserwaard polder stand. For the finish of the nice day we drove to Bergen op Zoom, where we had dinner in the René, due to the strong wind. Cheers and Good Night.

Previous days of our road trip to Bayern - Bavaria, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, Netherlands, Belgium, Hauts-de-France, Normandie - Normandy, Bretagne - Brittany, Pays de la Loire, Centre-Val de Loire, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Grand Est and Rhineland-Palatinate: Day 4 - 16048, Day 3 - 16047, Day 2 - 16046, Day 1 - 16045.

Morning near Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht.

On Sandelingen Ambacht polder.

Good morning Bronco.

Seems strange as there ar no mountains around us.

Morning surprise - dead battery.

Find 30 differences between left and right side of the photo.

Smelling something.

René died for a while. We woke him up again with some electricity.

So many bikes.

In front of the main train station in Rotterdam - Rotterdam Centraal station.

The current station building, located at Station Square, was officially opened in March 2014.

Schouwburgplein - Theatre Square is a plaza situated in the heart of the city of Rotterdam, and is flanked by the municipal theatre, concert hall, restaurants, and cafes.

Following the nose.

The Lijnbaan is the main shopping street of Rotterdam. It was opened in 1953, as the main pedestrian street in the new shopping district, after the old shopping district was completely destroyed during the bombing of Rotterdam by the German Luftwaffe.

Rotterdam City Hall was built between 1914 and 1920 by Henri Evers. It is one of the few buildings in the center of Rotterdam that survived the bombing of May 14, 1940.

Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands. Rotterdam had a population of 655,468 and is home to over 180 different nationalities.

Exploring the area around Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk. The church was built between 1449 and 1525. In 1621 a wooden spire was added to the tower, designed by Hendrick de Keyser.

Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus was a Dutch Christian humanist, Catholic theologian, educationalist, satirist and philosopher. Through his vast number of translations, books, essays, prayers and letters, he is considered one of the most influential thinkers of the Northern Renaissance and one of the major figures of Dutch and Western culture.

Located in the historic Laurenskwartier in the heart of Rotterdam, the Markthal is formed by the construction of privately-developed apartments arranged into a large arch, strategically allowing a private initiative to create a public space. The result is a covered square which features a central market hall during the day and, after closing hours, a lively series of restaurants on its lower levels. It is a hybrid building where visitors are able to shop, eat, enjoy a drink, live, and park their car.

Kids marina.

Boats on Nieuwe Maas.

De verwoeste stad (The destroyed city) monument on the "Plein 1940" reminds us of the Second World War when the heart of Rotterdam was destroyed by the bombings that took place on May 14, 1940 between 1.27 pm and 1.40 pm. So in less than fifteen minutes almost the entire historic city center of Rotterdam was gone. Not only because of the bombings themselves, but also because of the fires that followed. The statue is made of bronze and represents a person without a heart. The missing heart symbolizes the destroyed heart of Rotterdam.

Our Angie's cousin.

Cube houses (Dutch: kubuswoningen) are a set of innovative houses built in Helmond and Rotterdam.

Oude Haven - Old Harbour with Witte Huis - White House, which was the first hoogbouw (literally: high-rise building) in Europe. The building is 43 m tall, with 10 floors.

The houses in Rotterdam are located on Overblaak Street, right above the Blaak metro station. The 1977 original plan showed 55 houses, but not all of them were built. There are 38 small cubes and two so called 'super-cubes', all attached to each other.

The houses contain three floors: ground floor entrance, first floor with living room and open kitchen, second floor with two bedrooms and bathroom, top floor which is sometimes used as a small garden.

The walls and windows are angled at 54.7 degrees. The total area of the apartment is around 100 square metres, but around a quarter of the space is unusable because of the walls that are under the angled ceilings.

Witte Huis was one of the few buildings in central Rotterdam to survive the German bombing campaigns of World War II.

Nada in her moment.

Rotterdam's history goes back to 1270, when a dam was constructed in the Rotte. In 1340, Rotterdam was granted city rights by William IV, Count of Holland.

The Rhine (Ren), Meuse and Scheldt (Šelda) give waterway access into the heart of Western Europe, including the highly industrialized Ruhr. The extensive distribution system including rail, roads, and waterways have earned Rotterdam the nicknames "Gateway to Europe" and "Gateway to the World".

View to Noordereiland, an island on Nieuwe Maas.

Willemsbrug was completed in 1981, designed by C. Veerling and named after King Willem III of the Netherlands.

Along the Nieuwe Maas.

iStuff from various times.

During World War I, the city was the world's largest spy centre because of Dutch neutrality and its strategic location between Britain, Germany and German-occupied Belgium. Many spies who were arrested and executed in Britain were led by German secret agents operating from Rotterdam. MI6 had its main European office on de Boompjes. From there the British coordinated espionage in Germany and occupied Belgium.

Rotterdam is one of the most diverse cities in the Netherlands, with a large population of immigrants from over than 170 nationalities around the world. This diversity is reflected in the city's vibrant cultural scene, food, and festivals.

Back in the van, destination Port of Rotterdam.

Skillful Tuši.

The Port of Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe and one of the busiest in the world in terms of total cargo throughput. It serves as a major gateway for goods entering and leaving Europe.

Heavy tools.

On the land, taken from the Sea.

Simple architecture.

Nada.

View to the photographer Tuši and Atlantic Ocean.

Chicken pose.

Our next stop was Kinderdijk, meaning Children dike.

Kinderdijk is situated in the Alblasserwaard polder at the confluence of the Lek and Noord rivers. To drain the polder, a system of 19 windmills was built around 1740.

Kinderdijk first originated in its name in 1421 from a legend where a wave was said to have washed ashore a cradle that contained a sleeping baby.

In the Alblasserwaard, problems with water became more and more apparent in the 13th century. Large canals, called weteringen in Dutch, were dug to get rid of the excess water in the polders. However, the drained soil continued to subside, while the level of the river rose due to the river's sand deposits. After a few centuries, an additional way to keep the polders dry was required.

This group of mills is the largest concentration of old windmills in the Netherlands.

It was decided to build a series of windmills, with a limited capacity to bridge water level differences, but just able to pump water into a reservoir at an intermediate level between the soil in the polder and the river.

Tourist visiting the windmills.

Posing for the purpose of geocaching.

Kinderdijk is a symbol of Dutch ingenuity in water management and has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997.

Meeting the locals.

The site offers walking and cycling routes that allow visitors to explore the picturesque landscape, windmills, and surrounding countryside.

Despite their age, several of Kinderdijk's windmills are still operational and serve as both tourist attractions and functioning water management structures.

Miller Nada.

The windmills of Kinderdijk feature distinctive wooden structures with thatched roofs and large sails. Each windmill has its own unique design and function.

Kinderdijk is not only known for its cultural heritage but also for its rich biodiversity. The surrounding wetlands and marshes are home to various plant and animal species.

While most of the windmills at Kinderdijk have practical names reflecting their function or location, there are a few with whimsical names that might bring a smile, such as "The Cat," "The Swan," or "The Pig."

During peak tourist seasons, especially on sunny weekends, you might encounter what locals humorously refer to as "windmill traffic jams" as visitors flock to the area to see the iconic windmills.