Rotterdam and Gouda, Netherlands

We're noticing that people are more respectful and courteous as we go north. Now that we're in the Netherlands, it's glaringly obvious just how nice Dutch people are.

Rotterdam is a fascinating place. It was bombed and destroyed by the Nazis almost 85 years ago because it's a large port city. Today, it's the largest port in Europe, the second largest city in the country, and one of the few European cities with skyscrapers in the center. It's one of the reasons I wanted to come here. It has wide streets and boulevards and such an open, airy feeling. The buildings are so innovative, like in Scandinavia. We especially loved the cube houses, an experimental apartment complex in the center.

We finally have some really warm sunny weather, and that helps our mood. The central train station is a modern marvel and literally points toward the center of town to help foreigners like us get our bearings. In the west of the Netherlands, the cities are fairly close together and trains between them are literally every 10- 30 minutes.

Rotterdam is on the Maas river as it empties into to the North sea. In a week or so, we will visit Maastricht in the far southeast of the country. Maastricht means "the crossing over the Maas" so the river spans the whole country.

We took a day trip to Gouda (pronounced HOWda) and went to the Gouda Cheese Experience, an interactive Museum. That was fun and delicious. The town is small and scenic, with canals just like Rotterdam and most other Dutch cities in the west.

What's also refreshing is that everyone speaks English and we can just have random conversations with people. We've already had several with total strangers and it just makes traveling that much more fun. Two nights here was enough to see the major sites and take that day trip. Now we're going to spend four nights in The Hague.

More photos and videos are here.
Rotterdam
https://photos.app.goo.gl/sYo1ZqVt7V6GuWDTA

Gouda
https://photos.app.goo.gl/QJnN9gY7dbBfjavt6Read more