Rotterdam

Lots of variety to suit any taste. No crazy crowd during weekday lunch. Free tastes from many of the vendors.

We arrived in Rotterdam with the hope of heading to the Kinderdijk, but when we realized that we didn't have enough time to make that happen, we decided that we would check out a few things in town. We headed over to the info desk in the train station, and one of the gentlemen working there gave us directions for a walking tour of the city, along with a map to follow, and highlights along the route. We had a few places to see in mind, but with his guidance, we got to see so much more! We headed off from Rotterdam Centraal and passed St. Lawrence Church, which was almost completely destroyed during WW 2, and has since been restored. We also ventured through the Weena, a pedestrian zone akin to an outdoor mall, past the Markthal, which houses several small shops, and is one of Rotterdam's famous architectural landmarks, and arrived at the infamous Cube Houses. After leisurely exploring the Cube Houses (3 Euros each, and self guided), we walked along the Niewe Maas river until we came to the Erasmusbrug, a bridge that crosses the river and connects the north and south parts of the city. This bridge supports both vehicles and pedestrians, and offers interesting and pretty views. Once across, we were on the Wilhelminapier, and turned down the wrong street (we were off by one block). We were lost, or so we thought, so we just decided to explore the area. That is when we came across the Rotterdam Food Hall. We stopped in, had a delicious lunch and break from the weather, then headed out to the water taxi, about a block away. The water taxi took us onto the Niewe Maas river, which was a fun and bumpy ride, due to the weather. We passed over the Maastunnel, a traffic tunnel running under the river. We were let off near the Euromast, our next stop. The Euromast houses a restaurant and an observation deck, and is the Netherlands' tallest building. We ventured to the observation deck and took loads of pictures, braving the cold, rain, and wind. You can see the entire city from up there, and the views are spectacular. Once back on the ground, we came upon the Park by the Euromast. It looked quaint and cozy, so we ventured in and walked around for a bit (It's just a city park, but feels very separate from the city because of the "walls" of greenery surrounding it.) We were now heading back towards the train station, and again, made a turn down a wrong street. At this point, we could easily see on the map where all the streets joined up, so we knew we weren't lost, and decided to explore the neighborhood a little more. We came upon Bierboutique, a small bar down a tree lined street, and decided to rest and eat before heading back to the train. Rotterdam is a beautiful and energy filled city with so much to see, that one day is definitely not enough. I feel like a lot of people pass it by because of it's modernity, but there is so much interesting stuff to see and do here, that you would be doing yourself a disservice by not visiting. 14/2020