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1. Zagreb
2. Crossing the Alps
3. Salzburg
4. München
5. Stuttgart and Heidelberg
6. The Rhine Valley
7. Luxembourg
8. Düsseldorf
9. Amsterdam
10. Rotterdam
11. Berlin
12. Frankfurt
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An architects' playground

After almost a week in Holland I gradually became accustomed to the language. Dutch resembles a madly mixed cocktail of German and English, and it seems they stirred a greater deal of German words into it. Therefore, if you know somewhat of these two languages you should feel fairly comfortable here.

In Rotterdam our guide was the sympathetic girl Titi who studies business at Erasmus University. As with most students, Titi really knows how to live on a tight budget, so she treated us with some free pork rips and free rides on the trams.

The city has a history in merchant shipping. In Rotterdam is located the biggest seaport in Europe, so it was naturally to visit first the marine museum and the old steamboat "Buffel".

After that Titi took us around the various architectural curiosities of Rotterdam, such as the "Kubuswoning", a group of small cube dwellings, attached to pillars and rotated 45 degrees. In the cube we visited I found out that all outer walls, windows and roofs are tilted 45 deg. Those willing to live in a cube should prepare 3000 Euros monthly rent.

Our time in Rotterdam finished with a visit to the 186m tall Euromast tower, where we had several rides in the rotating panoramic lift which had a cool musical ambiance and a nice view over the city and the port.
With our Rotterdam guide Titi in front of the townhall

The steamboat "De Buffel" which we visited
De Buffel's stern

While the captain was away Titi and Tsveti played with the wheel; we nearly got slapped for that later
Under the deck we were treated with soup; too thick, almost solid - to avoid sloshing when the boat is rocking

De Buffel's barber must have a steady hand because the ship is never still
Yes, you can see we were quite a nosey folk :-)

A funny monument
The famous cube houses

Tsveti and Titi in front of the cubes's entrance
The metal roofs of the cubes

The top floor of cube
With those cactuses it looks like a starship

Canals are common here too
The same Rotterdam canal

With Titi and Tsveti on the bridge before we went to the rips which wouldn't open until five
The 186m tall Euromast where we had a few rides in the rotating panoramic lift

The Erasmus bridge
Tsveti and Titi on the tower deck, below is the port

Panoramic view of the Maas river
A lift bridge in action