Skyline of Rotterdam

The first week of October has been unusually warm and sunny. Temperatures around 20 degrees Celsius (high 60's F) is hardly the the type of weather that we associate with October. So I went out with my in-line skates to cruise the smooth asphalted bicycle lanes along the riverside of Rotterdam and generally enjoying the view.

I've lived near Rotterdam, the worlds largest harbor and the second largest city in The Netherlands, for almost 20 years. During this period, the skyline of Rotterdam has changed quite dramatically. The municipality of Rotterdam started an active architectural and urban development policy during the 1980's. The city is still growing, so it looks like the skyline will change again in the future. Let me show you some pictures of the skyline that makes Rotterdam so different from all other cities in The Netherlands.

Here's a view that one will see when entering the city from the eastern part of the highway system around the city. As you can see Rotterdam is divided by the river Maas. The high rise of Rotterdam has given Rotterdam the nick name 'Manhattan on the Maas'. The right side is the part where the main part of the city lies. The left part, the southern part, has always been the the underdeveloped part of Rotterdam. The main reason was due to the lacking of a good physical connection between the city center and the southern part (Rotterdam Zuid).

Until 1996 the main connection between the two parts of the city was the Willems bridge, an old old train-bridge (later replaced by the New Willems bridge which can be seen as the red bridge on the picture) just outside the city center. The other option was to take the highway and go around the city and enter the southern part, which is beyond the walkable range.

In 1996 the Erasmus bridge (also known as the 'Swan' as the structure has some resemblance of a gracious swan) connected both parts of the city in a way that goes beyond a physical connection. The development that followed in the area called 'Kop van Zuid' gave the southern part of the city a huge economical boost. Office buildings, apartments (the 140 meters makes MonteVideo the highest residential apartment building in The Netherlands) and educational buildings (college) improved the image of this part of the city in a big way. By the way, it's great fun to go down from the bridges with the in-line skates!

This is the vista that is visible on the Maas Boulevard, the avenue entering the city center from the eastern highway. The opinions on this Maas Boulevard varies. Some say it's a nice contrast to the busy roads and lanes in the city center, other say this main road into the city has to be alive with nice cafes and restaurants right next to the riverside accompanied by apartments and other buildings. My opinion is that the profile, that's the width and proportions, of the Maas Boulevard is too broad and the functional interpretation too limited to have an appeal of an avenue like many well known avenues in the world, like the Champs Elysées of Paris. Well, maybe this will change for the better in the future.

Here's a view from the New Willems bridge. This is what we might say the start of the city center. The first big building on the right is the P&O NedLloyd (a container shipping company) building, also known as 'Willemswerf'. This building is the first in a row of high rises on the extension of the Maas Boulevard called the 'Boompjes' (translated: little trees). Recently a new high rise was added to the row of buildings for the consulting firm Ernst & Young.

For more pictures of the architecture of Rotterdam, take a look at this site.