A daily dose of Rotterdam since august 2019
A few years ago I visit the former flagship of the Holland America Line, 228 meters long, 28 meters wide, 51 meters high, the ss Rotterdam. Commissioned in 1958 by Queen Juliana she had her maiden trip in 1959. Here is a Youtube link with some footage of this maiden voyage at 3 september 1959. Worth a visit!
When you walk through the Delftsestraat you will certainly come across this artwork! There are conveniently placed supports so you can sit on the bike and then take a nice photo of a speed bike ride in Rotterdam!
I was on my way to an appointment by bicycle and in the pouring rain when I passed this building located at the Rosestraat. This is the entrance to the former station of the RTM Steam tram services. The starting point at the Rosestraat near the Rotterdam Maas bridges on South Rotterdam, now called Kop van Zuid. The head office of the RTM was also located at Rosestraat. The RTM ran on the following lines: IJsselmonde, Hoeksche Waard, Voorne-Putten, Goeree-Overflakkee, Schouwen-Duiveland and Sint Philipsland… From 1905 the RTM operated the lines to the South Holland Islands and Zeeland. The last tram ran on February 14, 1966.
Not so long ago I took this picture, lights, people and fun. Now this same square is empty. Its spring and the sun is there. Maybe in the near future there will be lights, people and fun again!
A nice walk brought us back to the Oude Haven with its slipway for historic ships.
When you come to visit Rotterdam you will often come across the name Erasmus. He was a Dutch priest, Augustinian canon, theologian, philosopher, writer and humanist. Born in Rotterdam around 1466 and known for books such as “Lof der Zotheid (Praise of Folly)” and the bilingual edition of the New Testament and his edition of the letters of the church father Hiëronymus. Two motives determine Erasmus’s philosophy: freedom of people and peace. In Rotterdam you can find schools, a hospital and streets named after him. The picture you see here is of a monument on the spot of where the birthplace of Erasmus was. Near the Laurenskerk in the centre of Rotterdam.
The tram still runs, but really only for really necessary travel. On the door on the right you will see a sticker saying “keep 1.5 meters away!”. Spring has never been so beautiful and strange.
This thursday a picture from the past! Taken in August 2007, with a Blackberry phone. The city center and the biggest market of Rotterdam. Those were the times…
A nice walk in the morning and I passed the zoo. No one there, the entrances closed, who is actually locked up?
This statue is called “De Verwoeste Stad” (the destroyed city), an statue that Ossip Zadkine made in response to the bombing of Rotterdam. It was unveiled on May 15, 1953 and is located on Plein 1940, on the Leuvehaven, next to the Maritime Museum in Rotterdam. The statue is a national monument. Zadkine got the inspiration for this statue while traveling by train. When the train passed through Rotterdam he saw the destroyed and empty center of the city. The statue is made of bronze and represents a human figure without a heart, symbolizing the heart of Rotterdam that was lost during the bombardment in May 1940.
A stroll in the evening took me past the town hall. I liked the carved stone coat of arms and so you can enjoy it too! You can find this entrance at the Doelwater…
This day just a sunny picture of the stairs connecting the Schiedamsedijk to the Schiedamse Vest. You can just see the cranes at the quays of Leuvehaven.
A silent street, modern buildings, a just post-war office building at the right… And at the end of this narrow canyon like street, the middle ages with the big Laurenskerk. A heavenly view…
Is this also Rotterdam or a small village in Russia? This is the Kerk van de Heilige rechtgelovige grootvorst Alexander Nevski (Church of the Holy Believing Grand Duchess Alexander Nevsky). A Russian Orthodox church building at the Schiedamsesingel in Rotterdam. The church is the first traditional Russian Orthodox church in the Netherlands. The building seems to have been there for years with the authentic appearance but is not that old at all! On September 19, 2002, the first stake was driven into the ground and the church was inaugurated on June 20, 2004…
A sunny morning. A moment to reflect. A bridge between old and new, the Regentessebrug. Location; the Wijnhaven.
P.S. The bridge is also known as the Vierleeuwenbrug (four lions bridge). This is in response to the four seated lions carved from natural stone who “guard” the corners of the bridge.
Not many people on the street but I met this person, Karel Willem Frederik Marie Doorman. He was a Dutch rear admiral in WWII. The English name for his rank is Rear Admiral. Known to the Allies as Admiral Doorman. Doorman died during the Battle of the Java Sea aboard the light cruiser De Ruyter. To commemorate him the Dutch Royal Navy, named a ship after him, four times, in 1946, 1948, 1991 and 2015.
Note: K. Doorman, Utrecht, April 23, 1889 – Javazee, February 28, 1942.
I took this picture a few days ago while on a (photo)walk. This square houses a big cinema (the tall white building), a theatre and a few appartment buildings, its the Schouwburgplein. I liked the lines of the buildings and the red (moving) arm of a spotlight, one of three of these spotlights. For now, the square is empty just as the cinema and theatre…
I photographed this square before and from a different angle. These days its empty but now I could take a picture of this monument; It commemorates all Rotterdam men and women who gave their lives in World War II in the struggle for liberation of the Netherlands. The monument of Mari Andriessen was unveiled on May 4, 1957 by Princess Wilhelmina on the Stadhuisplein. The bronze artwork consists of four persons: a woman looking back, a child and a man looking at each other and a man with a spade looking forward. The figures symbolize the connection between past and future: the suffering from the past and confidence in the future.
May 4, it will be 75 years since the Netherlands was liberated. This year it is celebrated (too) quietly and commemorated due to circumstances. But we should never forget it …
Source details monument: Wikipedia
You can find this signpost on the Coolsingel. And as you can see, all roads lead to Rotterdam …
A springtime picture, taken in the Kralingse Bos. Take care and enjoy as much as you can the Easter days (Paasdagen). Stay safe!
Its was after the war, Rotterdam was bombed, many buildings gone and Rotterdam had to build themselves up from the ashes. This building, the Groothandelsgebouw (building for wholesale) was realised between 1947 – 1953. The building was officially opened on 3 June 1953 by Queen Juliana. At the opening, this was the largest building in Europe and the largest multi-company building in the Netherlands. In 2020, the Groot Handelsgebouw is home to more than 400 companies and 2 innovative office concepts (Retail and Cambridge Innovation Center).
Same day taken as the lighthouse, the Leuvehaven, the Maritime Museum quays. Just a nice picture…
Walking to my work, I noticed this nice mirror picture. Of course I shot the picture, completely with you in mind… Location: Delftsestraat.
This lighthouse used to steer ships safely into the port of Rotterdam, but today it is the striking starting point for a visit to the Maritime Museum Harbor, right in the heart of the port city. The name of the lighthouse is: “Het Lage Licht” (The Low Light). Build as one of the first lighthouses of Hoek van Holland, the “low” light, was placed during the construction of the Nieuwe Waterweg (1866-1886). The Low Light goes out in 1967 and moves to the head of the Leuvehaven in Rotterdam about ten years later. In 1990 the lighthouse is moved to where it now stands, near the Maritime Museum.
A few days back I photographed this nice house. You would not think of this as part of a slaughterhouse! But until early 1981, this house was part of the Rotterdam Public Slaughterhouse on the Crooswijkse Boezemstraat. This slaughterhouse was opened on May 1, 1883. Nowadays there are blocks of houses on the site and the former offices have been converted into houses and a restaurant!
I took advantage of the nice weather to take a short walk around the neighborhood. And of course I kept to the rules, keep 1.5 meter distance! It was quiet on the street and I was able to photograph the public school 2nd class at my leisure. Located at the 3e Pijnackerstraat. The oldest neighbourhood library in the Netherlands was also located in the same building. I can’t find much info and I’am trying to add this in the future. Apparently the building will be converted in the near future into retail space with homes above it. The facade is then preserved.
Maybe you remember this post about this library. I took this picture back in 2007, from another angle, can you understand the Centre Pompidou vibe?
I was unable to take a photo today. Therefore, one from the archive made in April 2010. Why a photo of a wall? This wall on Stieltjesstraat is part of Loods (shed) 24, located during WWII on Entrepotstraat. Loods 24 was used as a gathering place for the deportation of Jews during the Second World War by the German occupying forces and was located on a closed area of the Municipal Port Institutions in South Rotterdam.
Between July 30, 1942 and April 22, 1943, 6,536 people were deported via Loods 24. The vast majority of the Jews, who were transported through Loods 24, were murdered in Sobibór and Auschwitz-Birkenau.
I missed playing tapes in my car while driving through Rotterdam or the country. So I bought a new old stock radio cassette original to my car dating from 1997 and replace the radio CD player. What can I say, maybe I’m stuck in the past, maybe its the memories. But I’m planning to drive a lot when everything returns to normal. These are a few cassette tapes I still got at home, how big is your collection?
Themeday again! This month the theme chosen was “School”! The picture I took is of my old school, the Grafisch Lyceum Rotterdam located at the Heer Bokelweg, in my days De Grafische School. I’ve learned to operate a printing press, graphic design, newspaper layout and assemble and many more things. This was in the late 70s. Today the school is more about visuel design as video and photo productions, web media, software developer (apps) etc. I know, I’m getting old…