A daily dose of Rotterdam since august 2019
Build in 1927 as a monastery and used as till 1977. In WWII many monks were killed by German soldiers during the attack on Rotterdam, in may 1940. Photographed in 2017. You can find this monastery at the Putselaan.
The Germans bomded Rotterdam on May 14th 1940. These big lights did light up the sky to mark the border of where the firestorm did stop. Photographed in 2007, location Heliport.
While waiting for my turn to enter a store (a long waiting line these days) my eyes wandered over the nearby buildings, and I noticed this entrance to the old library, from 1923 according to the gable stone, the interbellum, an interesting time for me in terms of art, architecture, music, etc. What is your year or period in history?
Back in 2011 I visited the S.S. Rotterdam, see this picture also. On the bridge these phones took care of the important communication to the rest of the ship! Only local, not long distance…
Down the stairs from direction Oude Haven and you see this view, some sort of ‘warp core’ as on the TV show Star Trek! The two stairs left and right go towards the train platforms. Behind the ‘warp core’ you can just see the entrance to the metro.
The last few weeks have been quite chaotic and I was not always able or in the mood to take pictures. Therefore occasionally some photos from the archive … Made in 2010.
This is the end of the line or the beginning? Depends on where you want to go 🙂 This is the tramstop De Esch, tramlines 21 or 24, the start or the final stop, you may decide!
P.S. Yes another tram photo, you have to follow my tracks…
Do you remember when I showed this picture? November 2019, autumn, towards winter. Now the spring version of this place! Do you agree with both seasons, in terms of light and color?
When you walk towards the train station Rotterdam Central via the Delftsestraat you pass a side street, the Delftsehof, where I saw this small sculpture. A little color between all that gray, white and beige!
Now it is normal to turn on a lamp when it gets dark, simply with the push of a button. But not so long ago, not everyone had electricity. This house of the Gemeente Electriciteits Bedrijf (Municipality of Electricity Company) built around the turn of the century made sure that the neighborhood could draw its power! It is still working and neatly maintained at the Noordsingel.
Again, one from the archives. Taken in 2010 at Blijdorp Zoo. An impression of the ship the Beagle with which from 1831 Darwin studied local animals, plants, fossils and geology in, among others, South America, Australia, the south of Africa and various island groups in the Pacific and Indian Ocean. In the cabinet you can open the drawers and see examples of specimens he studied. Recommended when you visit Rotterdam!
Quiet roads and streets so briefly stopped when passing the Erasmus University to take a picture! Built in (typical concrete style, brutalism) 1973 but established in 1913. Location; Burgemeester Oudlaan…
Yes, I know, almost every bank welcomes you! But this one welcomes you as a person not for your money! You want to try this bank? Go to the Kerkhoflaan (Graveyard avenue, whats in a name…) and take a seat…
P.S. Is a bank: a. bench b. bank c. sofa?
I liked these windows on a old building located at Noordplein. So here’s a picture of them!
Every time I pass this facade I forget to take a picture, now finally done. You can find this old facade advertisement on the Noordplein. The company no longer exists of course …
P.S. Drogerijen en verfwaren translate to dryers and paints
Uw peuk hier, klein gemak, groot plezier! Translated: Your (cigarette) butt here, little convenience, great fun! Outside the doors of a school at the Heer Bokelweg, there are several with separate text for each location.
During our daily evening walk I came across this signpost. And on top was a little man who, like us, had his chest forward to face the future with confidence! Do you want to meet him too? Then walk from the Hofplein to the Schiekade and you will meet 🙂 Have a nice weekend!
A few days ago I took another small photo walk and I passed the Crooswijk cemetery located at the Kerkhoflaan. It is an old and very beautiful cemetery with an old chapel, lots of nature and certainly with the beautiful spring weather a nice place to come to contemplate.
A short history; In 1829 it was decided that burial in the church was no longer allowed. The Municipality of Rotterdam built the first municipal cemetery: Crooswijk cemetery. The Rotterdam city architect Pieter Adams designed the cemetery. The cemetery was inaugurated in July 1832. The cemetery is not yet ready, but due to a cholera epidemic, Rotterdam has a large number of people to bury. There is also a military plot dedicated on May 30, 1940. Here 115 Dutch soldiers are buried. In addition, a separate section has been set up for Islamic funerals. Here, dead can be buried within 36 hours.
I took this picture at metrostop Wilhelminaplein. Through this entrance you have to use the treadmill just like at airports! No crowds, it will take a while before everything returns to normal use in public transport …
I received these flowers by mail. A thank you from work for keeping the public transport available as much as we can.
I took this photo not far from where he was born, reading his book, executed in bronze, Erasmus. The oldest statue in the Netherlands was on the Grotemarkt before 1940. Unscathed from the bombing and hidden until May 1945, its then was placed on the Coolsingel. When the metro was built in 1963, it was relocated to the Grotekerkplein. The Erasmus statue is in a straight line to his birth house.
Notes:
I admit it, I completely forgot that it was a theme day … So here is a “shopping photo” from the archive … A closed barber shop. Appropriately I think “Who’s next”!
P.S. I shot this picture in 2007, location Hillesluis.
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