A Tale of Two Cities
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the Netherlands second city. It has one of the largest ports in the world and was once a major trading town. The Germans threatened to completely destroy Rotterdam during World War II in order to make the Dutch surrender. The Dutch surrendered, but the Germans razed Rotterdam to the ground anyway. There are very few buildings from the pre-war period.
As a result Rotterdam is quite a unique European city. It boasts of very modern architecture that ranges from being downright ugly to being completely breath taking. Anything seems to go in Rotterdam and the eclectic architectural styles give the city a unique feel. Anywhere you look, you will see some building which is worth looking at for a few moments. That cannot be said for any other city I have ever been in.
I stayed in a youth hostel for one night. I had an interesting encounter there. I was having dinner with a Canadian guy called Bryan who has done quite a bit of travelling in his life. Then some Germans came down and we started talking to them. The Germans were telling us that they had been told by their countrymen not to visit Rotterdam as they might be in danger. It seems that German cars are known to be vandalized and German people are treated with hostility in Rotterdam. I was quite surprised to hear about this -- it seems most unlike the Dutch. Then I just mentioned that it is probably because of what the Germans did during the War. Our German company got very uneasy at the mention of the War. Bryan changed the subject quickly and saved an awkward moment. Later he told me that I should never mention World War II in the presence of Germans. They seem to be instilled with guilt about what happened and get very uneasy when anybody talks about it. I think that this is pretty ludicrous. I wonder how many future generations of Germans will have to live with this un-earned guilt. It is quite sad.
So much for Rotterdam. I did not go out to witness the famed nightlife because on the night I was there everything was closed. It was the second day of their two day Christmas holiday. That was sad. If I had known, I would have re-scheduled my trip to accommodate this information. Here is one more sample of the Rotterdam architecture.
Amsterdam
I find it difficult to describe Amsterdam. It does not have the grand palaces and boulevards of Paris. It does not have the magnificent sky-scrapers of Rotterdam. It does not have the energy and chaos of Mumbai. But its vitality, nonchalance and quaint looks have made me fall in love with it. Just walking around the city for a few hours in the beautiful sunshine got me very excited about life. It was an invigorating experience.
I met some really nice people in the hostel as well. There were two Brazillians in my room, Flavio and Frank. They really had a fun attitude and were always keen on partying Brazillian style. We went to a bar which was playing Spanish music and they really showed me how to dance! The night life in Amsterdam is top-notch, with plenty of options to suite everybodys preference. The next night I met some nice people from Austin, Texas. I think I might join them for the New Years celebration since they have rented an apartment in Amsterdam for that night. That should be fun!
Meeting the many interesting people was one the highlights of my stay in Amsterdam. The other was to see the red-light district. That is really something that must be seen to believed. There was nothing clandestine about it. The girls stand or sit in full length windows and wink and smile as pedestrians go by. It is a large district in the center of the town, so many people just walk through it out of normal course, with their children and all! This openness about what is usually a touchy subject is refreshing. I think the people of India would do well to learn from it. Awkwardness about sexuality can be crippling to the enjoyment of an adolescent life, and people should learn to talk and understand it, because it is perfectly natural and potentially enriching.
I think everybody owes themselves a visit to Amsterdam. It is simply a fantastic city and I will certainly be visiting it more often while I am here. In the meantime, enjoy these pictures.
A few random buildings in Amsterdam.
Rotterdam is the Netherlands second city. It has one of the largest ports in the world and was once a major trading town. The Germans threatened to completely destroy Rotterdam during World War II in order to make the Dutch surrender. The Dutch surrendered, but the Germans razed Rotterdam to the ground anyway. There are very few buildings from the pre-war period.
As a result Rotterdam is quite a unique European city. It boasts of very modern architecture that ranges from being downright ugly to being completely breath taking. Anything seems to go in Rotterdam and the eclectic architectural styles give the city a unique feel. Anywhere you look, you will see some building which is worth looking at for a few moments. That cannot be said for any other city I have ever been in.
I stayed in a youth hostel for one night. I had an interesting encounter there. I was having dinner with a Canadian guy called Bryan who has done quite a bit of travelling in his life. Then some Germans came down and we started talking to them. The Germans were telling us that they had been told by their countrymen not to visit Rotterdam as they might be in danger. It seems that German cars are known to be vandalized and German people are treated with hostility in Rotterdam. I was quite surprised to hear about this -- it seems most unlike the Dutch. Then I just mentioned that it is probably because of what the Germans did during the War. Our German company got very uneasy at the mention of the War. Bryan changed the subject quickly and saved an awkward moment. Later he told me that I should never mention World War II in the presence of Germans. They seem to be instilled with guilt about what happened and get very uneasy when anybody talks about it. I think that this is pretty ludicrous. I wonder how many future generations of Germans will have to live with this un-earned guilt. It is quite sad.
So much for Rotterdam. I did not go out to witness the famed nightlife because on the night I was there everything was closed. It was the second day of their two day Christmas holiday. That was sad. If I had known, I would have re-scheduled my trip to accommodate this information. Here is one more sample of the Rotterdam architecture.
Amsterdam
I find it difficult to describe Amsterdam. It does not have the grand palaces and boulevards of Paris. It does not have the magnificent sky-scrapers of Rotterdam. It does not have the energy and chaos of Mumbai. But its vitality, nonchalance and quaint looks have made me fall in love with it. Just walking around the city for a few hours in the beautiful sunshine got me very excited about life. It was an invigorating experience.
I met some really nice people in the hostel as well. There were two Brazillians in my room, Flavio and Frank. They really had a fun attitude and were always keen on partying Brazillian style. We went to a bar which was playing Spanish music and they really showed me how to dance! The night life in Amsterdam is top-notch, with plenty of options to suite everybodys preference. The next night I met some nice people from Austin, Texas. I think I might join them for the New Years celebration since they have rented an apartment in Amsterdam for that night. That should be fun!
Meeting the many interesting people was one the highlights of my stay in Amsterdam. The other was to see the red-light district. That is really something that must be seen to believed. There was nothing clandestine about it. The girls stand or sit in full length windows and wink and smile as pedestrians go by. It is a large district in the center of the town, so many people just walk through it out of normal course, with their children and all! This openness about what is usually a touchy subject is refreshing. I think the people of India would do well to learn from it. Awkwardness about sexuality can be crippling to the enjoyment of an adolescent life, and people should learn to talk and understand it, because it is perfectly natural and potentially enriching.
I think everybody owes themselves a visit to Amsterdam. It is simply a fantastic city and I will certainly be visiting it more often while I am here. In the meantime, enjoy these pictures.
A few random buildings in Amsterdam.
posted by Apurva at
5:00 PM
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