A daily dose of Rotterdam since august 2019
On my way to work via the Luchtsingel I walked past this place, the door was open and on the board what you can just see is: “Work Café”. You first have to go through the opening of the gate and as you can see people are still busy with work at the building. The “Work Café” is another Work in progress, so to speak!
If you have to go to the other side of Rotterdam Centraal, the train station, you can go either trough the station, using your public transport subscription card or for free and without the gates pass the station trough the tunnel beside the station. I took this picture in 2018, so from the archives, but I like it!
I had dinner with family, homemade and very special! This was the finale, the dessert, beautiful and a great taste! Sorry that you could not taste it but I hope the picture will bring you joy too!
When in Rotterdam you must visit the Zwaanshals. A street with all kinds of small shops and business and a special vibe! I took this picture of a mural, a real knock out picture!
You can find this art object on Westersingel. The Italian artist Giuseppe Penone was inspired by a fallen tree whose roots grew on the ground. Around the art object are five living trees that live in symbiosis with the object. The bronze roots stick with their ends in the five surrounding living trees. Because the living trees continue to grow, the bronze will leave a trace in their bark. Penone uses the passage of time in the work of art: after years the elapsed time will be visible in the tree trunks.
I came across this scene at the foot of the Erasmus Bridge! The latest trend in city transport or just a cozy bachelor party?
These three houses date from around 1700. And they are close to where I live! They are three of the no more than fifteen old merchant houses that the city still knows. All three have a storehouse on the ground floor. One of the three (nr. 407) still has the beautiful ceiling and wall paintings by the Elias brothers and others; a beautifully sculpted chimney made of Brazilian rosewood and a rococo style stairwell in very good condition! They have been national monuments since 1971 and in 1995 came into possession of Stadsherstel Historisch Rotterdam. So also a bit of me as a resident of the city …
P.S. You can find these houses at the Rechter Rottekade.
Is this also Rotterdam? Sure! This container is very important because if you still have clothing, shoes or other textiles that you no longer wear, but it is still good to wear further, put this stuff in this collection container. Everything is then sorted and then passed on to the people who need clothing or shoes! Isn’t that beautiful !?
Rotterdam at night just remains beautiful, take a look at the reflection of all the lights in the water of the Oude Haven…
Oh oh! I was so busy the last weeks I forgotten that it was the first of the month already! Municipal Building is the theme and I had to search my archive because I didn’t make a fresh picture… (this one I did a few months back) I took this one in 2010 with my newest digital camera, just trying, and not the best picture ever made but through this camera I have been able to capture many memories forever! The cityhall is on the left, located at the Coolsingel.
Sometimes you have to got to the barber, so did I. And with the sun on a beautifull morning I caught this image of a mix of old warehouses and newly built flats. In the old days the warehouse contained spices and products from all over the world. Now the people from all over the world! I took this picture at the Kop van Zuid…
I had already shown the outside but this is the ceiling of the Market Hall, Grote Markt. An artwork of 11,000 m² (two football fields) by Arno Coenen and Iris Roskam, entitled Cornucopia (Hoorn des Overvloeds).
Last night I was looking for a interesting subject for a photo and I found it! This is a part of the 14th century old city wall and now a part of the railway station Blaak. I waited until the train passed to show the proportions of old and modern!
Not far from where I live is an old train wagon, a buffet wagon, which has now reached the end of its journey in the so-called ZOHO quarter*. Nowadays its a vega restaurant called Gare du Nord! The restaurant cooks sustainable organic food as much as possible and cooks 100% vegetable. I haven’t tried it yet, but I particularly like the train carriage! You can find the restaurant in the Anthoniestraat. I took the photo a while ago on black and white film and I like the result. Now I have to go, you guessed it, I have to catch the train!
*ZoHo is a new part of town where creative people with different life activities take care of the development of this area.
This evening I went into town especially for you to take a picture! And my eye fell on this old city gate! Or rather, an arty reproduction of the city gate that once stood here until May 1940, the Delftsche Poort … In short: the Delftsche Poort in Rotterdam was a city gate, it was already the third gate at that place! After the bombing in May 1940, the gate was so damaged that it completely disappeared. Fifty years after the bombing, this reconstruction was built on the Pompenburg, designed by artist Cor Kraat. Orange so that you can see it well!
The last three weeks we have had a severe storm over the Netherlands every weekend! And almost every day a lot of rain and gusts of wind. This picture is how I felt at monday, down (the stairs 🙂
There’s a big storm now over the Netherlands so I stayed indoors and instead of a photo of rain and clouds a cultural fact! After the lamppost that gave a twist to the street, I came across this portrait of a famous Dutch writer, Multatuli, a pseudonym for Eduard Douwes Dekker. Above the portrait a known quote: Van de maan af gezien zijn we allen even groot… (translated: Seen from the moon, we are all the same size). He lived from 1820-1887. He was read internationally, with fame in Indonesia and the Soviet Union. But especially in Germany: much of his work was translated into German around 1900-1910, and this was a source of inspiration for the feminist movement there. Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud appreciated him, and even attempted to read it in Dutch! Again, you can find this portrait on the wall in the Van Oldenbarneveltstraat
Source: Wikipedia.
When walking through the Van Oldenbarneveltstraat in the city center then you will see this lamppost! Yes, this is a story with a real twist! It started with this picture and end here…
This is the info stand on the Blaak metro station. Painted in the colors and look of the 1970s metro to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first metro in Rotterdam! Not the best photo ever I know…
Early morning and again walking to work! While I walk past the shop window I think, that is worth another photo! It is the second time that I photograph this window, but the spring feeling has something! Agree?
I’m a bit exhausted today, and all I want is… to take a break. So a peacefull photo of the Norwegian Sailor’s Church, located on the Westzeedijk next to the entrance of the Park. Sorry… you still get a photo, but no facts and figures caption today…
This tuesday I went on a quick trip to India, Africa, Antartica, Asia and many more places! Just a short walk from my home… the Blijdorp Zoo! And one of the most beautiful animals we saw was this tiger! I was glad that there was a thick glass wall between us! When you’re in Rotterdam then the Blijdorp zoo is more than worth a visit! You can find the zoo at the Blijdorplaan in Rotterdam, more info on their website >>
This monday evening while waiting on the taxi to go home I noticed these signs at the entrance/exit of the tram depot here in Kralingen. Some are very clear “STOP” “STOP” but one is not so simple to understand. The sign “Rangeren, sporen 11 t/m 18” is not a sign you see very often! This sign tells the tram driver to stop there whenever he must drive backwards to park the tram on one of the tracks 11 up to and including 18. When he stops there at the line, the people in charge of the tracks, changed the track to the direction the tram has to go for parking… Thats it, just something you only know when you work there!
I photographed these signs at the start of our street, just two of many. Its about “Opzoomeren”. What is it? According to the Opzoomeren website: “Opzoomeren (Zooming up) is ensuring good contact with your neighbors and together creating a pleasant street to live in. Street activities are a good way to get that done. In addition to decorating or redecorating the street together, a street party, barbecue or game day can also be a way for children to zoom in on the street.” The neighbourhood received these signs as a kind of medal for the activities they did with the help of the Opzoomeren foundation. The foundation started their activities in 1994 and are still going strong!
If you ever played Monopoly there’s a chance you’ve got the card “Go to jail”! And this is one of those places you would be send, but in this case, a real jail! I took this picture at the former court house and prisonbuilding located at the Noordsingel. The court house was build in 1898-1899 and designed by W.C. Metzelaar. Executed in neo-renaissance style. In 1996 the court moved to a new building and nowadays al kind of businesses use the building. Just behind the court house is the former prison. Build in 1872 and used till recently. It was so outdated, some of the cells still had buckets for the toilet! The prison is now being converted into an apartment complex.
Fact: On July 16, 1941, the crew managed to maneuver a crashing British bomber in such a way that it did not end up on the houses, but in the Noordsingel. The Courthouse was badly damaged in the process. A group of residents of the canal have founded a memorial here in 1946.
This is a shop window of a former Forever21 shop but now showing the results of a workshop at the Willem de Kooning Academy about using H&M sale items and rest-products to create new designs. They transformed existing garments using different techniques in a unique pieces. I don’t know much about design and fashion but I like the idea and project.
Thursday evening to the former Rotterdam Bergweg train station to eat Italian! We celebrated the fact that my oldest daughter has finished her biology studies! She has achieved her MSc title! And this restaurant has a nice vibe because of the building, you can still see and feel the old station but with a cosy Italian layer over it. Don’t let the sign Rotterdam Centraal foul you, it is the old Bergweg Station 🙂
During a photowalk I liked the the doors and logo/sign from the former Nederlandsche Handelsmaatschappij building. Now a listed building its was designed by architects C. Elffers and A.A. van den Nieuwenhuyzen in the traditionalist architectural style. Together with the adjacent Blaak 28 (1950) and Blaak 40 (1950) bank buildings, the bank building is one of the first buildings to be built after the war. The entrance is marked with a grand portal by artist Nel Klaasen, in which the emblem of the NHM is incorporated (click for detail).
Built on the same spot where the original building from 1917 stood. The vaults had survived the war, but were replaced by new ones. The NHM was founded in 1824 on the initiative of King Willem I to breathe new life into Dutch trade after the French period.
Every time I pass this mural at metro station Stadhuis I want to take a picture of it, and that’s why you see the picture here! On the side of the Town Hall Square, a “graphic wall” has been placed between the staircase parties, designed by artist Bouke Ylstra. In concrete panels polished by the artist with his own hand, smoothly painted lines are filled with a deep black paint. They form two configurations that resemble shapes. The artwork was commissioned in December 1965.
Stadhuis metro station also had a number of shelters, to use during the Cold War, when danger threatened. Many of the shelters have been demolished, only the corridor from the Town Hall to the metro station is still there. This corridor made it easier for the city council to go to the shelters, without having to walk the streets.
I walked along the canal that circled our residential complex and saw this! Large numbers of plastic bags and bags that covered the bottom like plastic fish! Rotterdam has long been trying to make residents aware of the proper separation of waste, but that didn’t really work. Now it is done better than ever in the waste plant. Used plastic packaging, metals such as cans and beverage cartons (PMD) are taken from the residual waste in the factory. PMD can therefore be disposed of with the residual waste, in the normal garbage bag. Waste energy company AVR expects to eventually remove 75 percent of the PMD from the residual waste. That is much more than the 7 percent that residents threw in the PMD containers!
Let’s hope it will work out, so far we have to go in and out by hand (and boat) to catch the plastic fish!
This sunday I could not find the time to take a nice picture so this is one from the archive! Het Heilige Geest huis (the Holy Spirit house). A few facts: The house is a neoclassical style building located in the Gerard Scholtenstraat in the Old North in Rotterdam. Built in 1898 by Rotterdam architect Jan Verheul Dzn. Specially designed as a residential home for old men. It is the fourth home of the Holy Spirit House charity since its creation in the first half of the 15th century.
It was intended for the care of elderly people in need in Rotterdam with room for thirteen men in the asylum. The last residents left the building in 1972 because it no longer met the requirements of the time. Nowadays listed as a municipal monument. The outside is virtually unchanged. The attic would also be in its original state, just like the Delft blue tiled toilet.
No, I am not lost! And now you won’t get lost in Rotterdam anymore either :-), this is the first (road) signpost for the ANWB in the Netherlands! Around 1885 the first ANWB signpost appeared in the Netherlands on the corner with Hoflaan in line with the Kortekade where the Oudedijk becomes the ‘s-Gravenweg. The pole pointed the road to Rotterdam (4 km to the west then), Utrecht, Gouda and Schiedam. This is a replica in the garden of the Dutch Reformed Church on Hoflaan, the former driveway from Oudedijk to Slot Honingen (destroyed in the Eighty Years’ War).
Its february but no winter yet! Again a beautifull day with a nice sunny but fresh morning! The sun was peeking between the buildings near Rotterdam Centraal Station and I enjoyed the view so much I took a picture for you! A nice image to start the weekend!
Browsing through my photo archive I came across this photo, in black and white, the modern skyscrapers and the old warehouses on the Wilhelminakade. Taken in February 2018…
Walking the dog I passed the Noorderbrug, I liked the view, the old trees and in contrast with all, the blue sky! I’ve to work late but I don’t mind, it was a great, fresh start of today, so I’m ready!
A few stats:
The Noorderbrug in Rotterdam is a bridge over the Rotte at the height of Noordplein. The bridge forms the connection between the Oude Noorden and Crooswijk. It is 40 meters long and 20 meters wide. Built in 1910-1911 on the foundation of its predecessor.
I’m happy! After my visit at the dentist I’m free of visits for half a year! And how do I feel? Look at this mural wich can be found at the Van der Sluysstraat, very beautiful right? A wall painting with a giant drone. “It is an ode to nature and the insects that are threatened,” says artist Nina Valkhoff. Worth a visit!
I had to go to the dentist again and on the way I found the facade and entrance of this building on the Schiekade beautiful enough to photograph! This is the Emmahuis (The Emma House) building which can be found at the Schiekade. It has an interesting story. A time capsule from the 1930s has been found in the old building. Demolition workers found the capsule embedded in a wall of the senior complex. A parchment was found in the capsule that refers to the construction of the building. There were also silver coins in it. Once this building on the Schiekade housed elderly people in need of help, but nowadays its a apartment complex.
A little bit of history:
Designed in 1932 by architectural firm P. Hooykaas and M. Lockhorst from Rotterdam. Provided for the high-quality housing of needy old people in the large western part of the complex for that time and of old people from the well-to-do state in the iconic building on the Schiekade.
Photographed at the same day as the streetscape, the Hofbogen Park, build on the platforms of a former railway station, the Hofplein Line. Designed as a public park: the Hofbogen Park. It is open to everyone daily from 10 a.m. to sunset. A unique place to picnic or walk with a magnificent urban view. In collaboration with the DakAkker, an orchard with 150 fruit and nut trees is also managed which is called “the Dakgaard“. The fruit trees are framed by heme vegetation. Part of the Hofbogen Park consists of an event area. Worth a visit!
P.S. Some more picts of the Hofbogen Park, entrance/exit, the former platform.
Yeah! today is February 1st and it’s a theme day! Today’s theme is… Streetscapes! I’ve chosen the Waterplein (or Water squere). The second water square in the world has been realized on the Benthemplein in Rotterdam. It took almost seven years to develop the water square idea into the final design. The Rotterdam water square is located between the three buildings of the Technikon complex which houses, among other things, the Zadkine College, the Grafisch Lyceum and the Hofpleintheater.
How it works: The design consists of three basins that collect rainwater: two shallow basins get the water when it rains from the immediate area, a deeper basin only gets water if it keeps raining consistently. The water runs through large shiny gutters across the square to two shallow basins where it collects. The areas that can overflow are painted in the blue colors. In the event of drought, the basins can be used as a sports field or theater and due to the differences in height, they offer plenty of room to sit. Benthemplein has green areas with grasses, flowers and trees. Here another view >>
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This photo was posted by me but was not made by me! This beautiful photo was sent to me by my daughter, Sarah. It nicely reflects the Friday atmosphere, a nice calm day, the prelude to the weekend! Picture taken in the Kralingse Bos. The Kralingse Bos was designed in 1921 by the architect Marinus Jan Granpré Molière. The planting of oaks, specially grown in North Brabant, started in 1928. A large proportion of these trees are burned in the stove during the very cold winter of 1944/1945. The many debris from the center of the bombed city is dumped in the southern corner of the Plas. This creates a group of small islands, which are connected to a series of small bridges for walkers. The Kralingse Bos was finally officially opened in 1953.