Rotterdam, the Netherlands

Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Population of City Proper: 584,046
Population of Metropolitan Area: 1,200,000
Year Founded: 900 (destroyed 1940)

Rotterdam is probably one of the strangest cities I have ever been to. The city was almost entirely destroyed by bombs during WWII and as such next to none of the old city remains; instead, the city provided a clean slate for modernist architects to test their theories and ideas. Also aside from Singapore, Rotterdam is the only city I have been to so far with significant construction under way. There is a number of building projects as well as an entirely new central train station in the works for the city. Perhaps the city’s economic success is because that despite the cities small population, from 1962-2004 it was the busiest port in the world and is currently second to only Shanghai.

Despite its economic success, the city feels like a city that is less than 100 years old, and is very different from its European neighbors. The city is spread over a great distance and it does not seem to have reached a density to fully fill it, there are plenty of empty spaces. Perhaps it’s the modernist planning ideas, but the city also doesn’t seem to want to reach the density of most other European cities. There does seem to be a decent metro transit system comprised of buses, streetcars, and a subway though which helps make getting around easier, but the city is definitely still very spread out.

Rotterdam has a collection of truly unique and bizarre architecture that helps give the city character, however its lack of cohesiveness makes the city feel jumbled and segregated. Rotterdam is home to some of the most forward thinking architectural design firms, like Rem Koolhaus’s OMA, and it shows. The city feels in many ways like it is from outer space, in fact one subway station is actually a giant flying saucer. As an aspiring architect it is really interesting to see all of these unique types of architecture so close together, but as a city they seem to do little in common to bring it together.

It is hard to imagine what the rebuilding efforts of Rotterdam would have been like in the 1940’s after the city had been wiped clean. It is interesting that unlike some of the French cities in Normandy like St. Lo and Caen, Rotterdam chose to start over fresh as opposed to build things back the way they were. In a sense I think this forward thinking has allowed the city to be relevant in the 21st century and thrive in ways that its European neighbors could not. However I think it greatly sacrificed its European Charm. It is hard to fault the city for this though. What happened during WWII was absolutely crippling, and the fact that any city exists today is testament to the peoples will and character.