Rotterdam is the largest commercial port in the world, the economic, social and cultural center of the Rijnmond region (the estuary of river Rhine), and the industrial heart of the Netherlands.

Over a million people live in the region, almost 600,000 of which within the city boundaries. On 14 May 1940, German bombing shattered the city centre, challenging the people of Rotterdam with the huge task of rebuilding their city from scratch. And what a fine job they did!

Rotterdam combines a taste for grandeur with the typical modesty of the Dutch. This is reflected in the city's architecture offering the visitor a harmonious blend of the grandiose municipal City Hall with the famous avant-garde landmark of Rotterdam's yellow cube houses. 

Read more...