Barbara J. Hamby

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Travel - Rotterdam August 22, 2005

On the Monday morning bus tour of Rotterdam, a group of us from the Golden Princess cruise ship saw spectacular types of architecture. High-rise glass office buildings in the downtown area contrasted with ornate stone structures.

Off the bus, we walked up a long, steep ramp to get a good look at a unique residential development. A long row of cube shaped condos, painted yellow, and strung together randomly at various angles in mid-air was mind-boggling. We were told the interiors of these dwellings were level and, even though expensive, at the equivalent of three hundred thousand American dollars, they were very popular. They all appeared to be inhabited. Later we heard a rumor that occupants were unable to get anyone to wash their windows.

As our tour group walked around an older area of Rotterdam, Al and I lagged behind and stopped to rest my feet across the street from a small stained glass shop. The proprietor came out to ask us if we were from a cruise ship and we answered, “Yes.” Except for his accent, he looked like any American small shopkeeper.

“I’m happy to see cruise ship passengers in my neighborhood. It’s been awhile,” he remarked. He told us he was a one-man operation and had been in that location for many years. He complained that business was poor all over town because of changes in use of the port and the slow economy.

We noticed the building that housed his shop leaned toward the street at what looked to me to be a perilous angle. He claimed it had been that way for a very long time, probably since the collapse of underground excavation due to bombing in World War II. Rotterdam was virtually destroyed by the Luftwaffe in less than a week in May 1940.

As we walked and rode through the streets, I was surprised that they were not as spotless as I had expected, having heard for years about Dutch cleanliness. Papers and food containers littered a few areas.

Our bus trip terminated near a dock on the Maas River where we boarded a pleasure craft to cruise up and down and view the town from the massive harbor. The modern music coming from amplifiers on the boat contrasted with the relative silence on the waterway. We noticed very little commercial activity. The boat took us back to the ship.

I found the library and chose a couple of books. On the way back to our cabin, I stopped in the theater and tried to watch the movie Ocean’s 12, however, I decided the script was a waste of a good cast and gave up on it after about half an hour. I went back to the stateroom and read until dinnertime.

At 4:27 p.m. the Golden Princess came astern off her Rotterdam berth. She continued astern almost two miles before entering the Maas River turning basin. The turning basin is necessary for swinging about large vessels such as the Golden Princess. After completing our 180-degree turn, we got under way for Le Havre, France.

After dinner, Al went to a comedy show and I went to a lounge show by a male piano/vocalist. He was good, but I was too tired to stay until the end. Instead, I went back to the cabin to bed and propped a book in front of my drooping eyelids.