Rotterdam
- Maximus Nostramabus
- Mar 25
- 17 min read
Updated: Apr 10
Port city, windmills, carnival and a live architecture experiment - Mill Network at Kinderdijk-Elshout 818; Van Nellefabriek 1441; Craft of the miller operating windmills and watermills 01265; Rotterdam Summer Carnival 01870
What and Why
The port city of Rotterdam, is in every sense of the word, very un-European. When I landed in Rotterdam from my recent cruise at got into the city, my immediate response was 'Wow, what a sight!'. Unlike most European cities, even the financial centres where there would always be defined by a mediaeval or ancient core, this city distincts herself prominently through its modern skyline: the city is erected with all sorts of modern architectural structures which I would only expect from places of artificiality like Dubai (Arabic: دبي, Dubayy), Singapore (Malay: Singapura) or Shanghai (Chinese: 上海). In fact I could easily claim that the city is one of Europe’s most architecturally distinctive and innovative cities, with modernity intersecting seamlessly with maritime heritage. It turns out that the city was almost wiped out by a massive devastation of the Rotterdam Blitz (Dutch: Bombardement op Rotterdam), similar to the blogged Le Havre, during World War II. This destruction ironically enabled the city to reinvent itself as a laboratory of modern architecture and urban planning, with a full focus on innovation and experimentation.
Within this broader context, the city integrates history and heritage with novelty and innovation by the two WHS she houses: the windmills in Kinderdijk and Van Nelle Factory (Van Nelle Fabriek) along its spectrum. The former represents the icon of Netherlands (Nederland) and its century-old hydraulic technology, while the latter reflects industrial modernism with pioneering architectural audacity.
Toponymy
The name Rotterdam derives from the River Rotte where the city started, and the word 'dam' meaning exactly the same as in English. Rotte was previously called 'Rotta', where 'rotte' means 'muddy', while 'aa' means 'water' in Dutch. Hence technically 'Rotterdam' means 'muddy water dam'. The dam was actually erected during the 13th century, and in time, the city developed itself into one of the world's largest port.
See
Kinderdijk windmills (Kinderdijkse molens)
It is common knowledge that Netherlands is famous for its windmills. Amongst all the windmills in Netherlands, the windmills in Kinderdijk are definitely the most iconic and celebrated.
Technically Kinderdijk, meaning 'children's dyke', is located in Molenlanden, incidentally its name meaning 'land of the mills', which is around 15 km East of Rotterdam. Built primarily in the mid-18th century, the 19 windmills were part of a sophisticated water management system designed to prevent flooding in polder land, a low-lying piece land usually enclosed by dams or embankments. As everyone knows that much of its land is below sea-level, this necessitates continuous innovation in technology in hydraulics and flooding control, in order to ensure the land can continue farming. At Kinderdijk, which is the confluence of the river Lek, windmills were actually designed specifically to pump excess water from polders into higher canals and eventually into rivers, instead of using them to mill grains or wheats.
By late 19th century, with the advent of steam-powered engine and later in the early 20th centuries electrifications, these windmills were gradually being replaced by water pumps, although they were all kept in use even until the World War II. During World War II, there was acute energy shortage, and these mills were able to resume their duty until the end of the war. Since then they were all decommissioned and became tourist sites.
These windmills are also residences of families, in fact a few of still are still inhabited and one can climb into these windmills and see them living inside. The family is not only living there but also maintains the working conditions of the mills. Amongst the 19 of them, two of them are open for visits. However we were not able to enter this time due to closure but from the various displays it seems that windmill homes are pretty spacious!
Turns out that the family living inside the mill are genuine miller and we managed to know a thing or two about the life of a miller. In Netherlands, there are only approximately 40 professional millers left, who knows how to operate and maintain the windmills according to tradition. Naturally Netherlands is trying to keep this heritage and a guild has been form to preserve this craft, knowledge and tradition.
The craft of the miller is technically an old engineering profession, combining knowlege in engineering, meteorology, carpentry and a few more. The study of mills and its operation is known as molinology.
Unlike a water mill where the water flow is reasonably consistent, wind flow is multi-directional, random and potentially hazardous. Hence the windmiller operates in a state of persistent vigilance like a traditional sailor, and is constantly looking out for the maximum amount of wind, known as heeking. The windmills at Kinderdijk have a central rotary cap at the top that can turn the mill blade direction. Equally, just like a sailor, the miller has to determine the amount of sail fabric across the blade to harness the wind, either low or high wind; and in case of a storm, applying a brake on the mill.
As one knows now, windmills are not only used for milling grains but also for flood control. In the case of Kinderdjik, these master millers serve as a hydraulic engineer and control the sluice gates to bypass excess water during floods or to concentrate a weak flow into reservoir during droughts.
The grain millers, on the other hand are trained to be skilful millstone craftsmen. The millstones are carved with precise micro-grooves to ensure the wheat grain be sheared and absolutely not crushed. They use a steel hammer called a millbill to grind the millstones every now and then to ensure its sharpness. In time, old millers often had blue pigment stains on their arms or homes. These are permanent 'tattoos' or stains caused by tiny shards of steel flying off the millbill and embedding under the skin or the walls.
The other precise skills of the grain millers involve the design and operation of the grinding stones. The stones have to be close enough to grind the grains, but not too close. The typical size of the grinding is approximately the thickness of a piece of paper only! If the stones are too close, the millstones will spark and either burn the flour or even in situation cause a dust explosion, which is a common major fire hazard in a dust-filled mill. The traditional miller uses his fingers to feel and check the temperature and texture of the grain-size to determine if the millstones are in good working conditions.
Historically however, the millers were figures of both respect and suspicion. While they were clearly the primary technicians and engineers of the area, they often took a toll of the grain as payment, or sometimes were allegedly stealing grains. They were also seen as a bit of a 'tax-collector' role and were often accused of being cunning.
It is also interesting that the Dutch windmillers have developed their own symbolic language using the windmills to communicate. For instance, if the blades are stopped just before the summit, it signified a birth; while if it stopped just past the summit, it means mourning. If the blades are set in a perfect cross like a plus sign '+', it means the miller was taking a break.
The name of the area deserves a bit of mention. On the night of 18th November 1421, a massive storm broke one of the dykes and caused one of the worst floods in Dutch history, the Saint-Elizabeth Flood (Sint-Elisabethsvloed), killing more than 5,000 people. A famous folkflore is associated with this flood that brought the area its name. Apparently after the flood people saw a cradle floating along the dyke with a crying baby inside. The wobbling crib was balanced by a cat, which jumped back and forth to keep the basket from capsizing and thus kept the baby not only alive, but comfortable and dry. The baby was adopted and given the name Beatrix de Rijke, while the story is immortalised by a sculpture in Kinderdijk, as picture below.
Many people asked me why old windmills have four or more blades while modern wind turbines have only three. Windmills use four or more blades to maximise torque for grinding or pumping. They were also designed for axisymmetry and hence old windmills usually have an even number of blades. However the more blades it has, the larger the drag as well, and hence more blades bring inefficiency. Modern wind turbines have three blades of better aerodynamic design and are able to achieve good power output even with fewer blades, thanks to better understanding of fluid mechanics and dynamical systems. Three blades also make the system unstable and thus unbalanced, and thus they are more prone to turning even with very weak wind perturbation.
Van Nelle Factory (Van Nelle Fabriek)
Incidentally while Kinderdijk, the reflection of the old, is located on the eastern end of Rotterdam, Van Nelle Factory, the expression of modern Rotterdam architecture is located on the western end of the city.
The factory was constructed during the period 1925 to 1931, and is recognised as one of the most important examples of early modernist industrial architecture in the world. Designed by architects Johannes Brinkman and Leendert van der Vlugt for the Van Nelle company, it is often associated with the merging of functional principles with international style. In fact when I first went to the site, I did not even recognise it was in front of me as it looks more like a modern commercial building or a hotel, rather than a factory.
The factory was a stark contrast from the dark, cramped industrial spaces typical of Europe. It was designed with human element in mind. For instance, the factory revolutionised factory building when it provides plenty of empty space to allow natural light and air to flood the workspace. During design stage, there was articulation of function over aesthetics, again emphasisng air, light and space is the primary materials, rather than concrete. The facade is purposely painted white and shiny, with lots of large windows to give an open and optimistic design. The architecture of the factory set the bar and defines the Dutch building style known as 'New Building (Nieuwe Bouwen)'.
The factory was used for processing coffee, tea, tobacco and later chewing gum, but its significance extends far beyond its industrial function. These elements aligned with progressive ideas about combining modern approach, workers' well-being and happiness while maintaining industrial productivity and efficiency. Upon visit, the famous architecture Le Corbusier (né Charles Jeanneret-Gris (French)) described the factory as 'the most beautiful spectacle of the modern epoch (French: le plus beau spectacle de l'époque moderne)'. The factory is often described as the most beautiful factory in the world. It actually reminded me of the Villa Savoye in the blogged Poissy, designed by Le Corbusier himself.
Currently, the building has been repurposed as a creative and business hub and houses various companies under a co-working space. The factory is also available for use for meetings, conventions, and events. Since it is an office space, one cannot simply wander the halls, although there are still enough space to walk around for free. To explore the factory in full, one must book a guided tour.
City Hall (Stadhuis)
The City Hall (Stadhuis) of Rotterdam is a classical building built in the early 20th century. Honestly it is a bit unassuming as it is in the smack of the city centre surrounded by other larger buildings, particularly because it does not have a piazza in front of it. The building is one of the rare buildings that survived the bombing during World War II.
Erasmusbrug
Nicknamed 'The Swan (De Zwaan)' as the single base-frame resembles a swan with its head and neck raised, Erasmusbrug has literally become the occasional icon of the city, reflecting the city's innovation in architecture. The bridge was a relatively recent addition to the city skyline when it was completed in 1996 to reduce the traffic load crossing the Nieuwe Maas. The bridge is obviously named after the most influential Dutch scholar, philosopher, educationalist, humanist and theologist Desiderius Erasmus.
Museumpark
The Museumpark is the cultural heart of Rotterdam, a beautifully designed urban space that connects several of the city’s most prestigious museums, reminding me of the Museum Island (German: Museumsinsel) of Berlin. Originally the private estate of the Van Hoboken family, it has been transformed into a museum area where art, architecture, and nature overlap. The park contains a number of world-class collection of institutions:
Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen: The centrepiece of the park which looks like a giant metal bowl, the museum is an art museum famous for its collection of more than 150,000 mediaeval and contemporary art. The bowl is actually only its storage facility with the real modest-looking museum sitting behind the bowl (as in the photograph) but honestly no one would notice. Even without entering, one has to admire the building itself, as the its bowl-shaped mirrored exterior reflects a stunning surrounding skyline and greenery. Apparently the building design was inspired by an IKEA aluminium bowl. The actual museum itself had been closed since 2019 for an ambitious renovation.
Natural History Museum Rotterdam (Natuurhistorisch Museum Rotterdam): Located in a historic villa, this museum is famous for its quirky exhibitions and its focus on urban wildlife.
New Institute (Nieuwe Instituut): The national museum for architecture, design, and digital culture: a must-visit for anyone interested in how was Rotterdam shaped.
Sonneveld House (Sonneveld Huis): A perfectly preserved modernist house from the early 20th century. The family museum showcases the Sonneveld family as a wealthy, forward-thinking family.
Kunsthal: An art space which does not own any permanent collection; instead it hosts otating exhibitions ranging rom photography and haute couture to contemporary art.
Chabot Museum: a museum in a modernist villa building dedicated to the Dutch painter and sculptor Hendrik Chabot.
We were only able to visit the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen due to our short time in the city.
Maritime Museum, The City Destroyed (Maritiem Museum, De Verwoeste Stad)
The Maritime Museum (Maritiem Museum) is a museum dedicated to the naval history and heritage of Netherlands. It also includes an open-air area with various historic vessels and machineries on display.
The focus of the museum is actually not the artefacts or exhibits but the public sculpture outside. The sculpture by the French-Russian sculptor Ossip Zadkine (né Осип Цадкин (Russian), Osip Tsadkin) entitled 'The City Destroyed (De Verwoeste Stad)' is classified as a national monument. It commemorates the Rotterdam Blitz by expressing the human pain and grief towards war brutality. The prominent empty body symbolises the annihilation of the city centre.
Cube houses (Kubuswoningen)
As mentioned Rotterdam is a living architectural atelier and there are plenty of quirky or unusual buildings around the city. Amongst them the prime example is the Cube houses (Kubuswoningen) which was designed with a tilted cube standing on its corner and resting upon a hexagon-shaped pylon. While looking awkward outside, the interior is actually surprisingly regular.
Markthal
Opened in 2014, the Markthal, another example of spectacular architecture, is a horseshoe-shaped residential and commercial complex featuring a massive indoor food market where I had our lunch. Located at Blaak, it features over a hundred fresh food stalls, restaurants, and shops, along with a stunning, large-scale ceiling artwork of farm food called the 'Horn of Plenty (Hoorn des Overvloeds)'. The building is now regarded as the main meeting point of Rotterdamers.
Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel
Slightly afield Northeast of Rotterdam lies the town Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel ('IJ' is a ligature letter in Dutch). The town itself is uninteresting, but geographically it is rather significant. As we all know, much of Netherlands is low-lying and below sea-level. The small polder town, now roped under Zuidplas, is technically the lowest point of the country at -6.76 m. There is a huge ruler there in the city park to mark this particular location.
However compared to the world's deepest site, the shore of the Dead Sea (Arabic: اَلْبَحْر الْمَيْت, Al-Baḥr Al-Mayt) at -439.78 m, this is perhaps still considered relatively shallow. Just fun trivia for geeks like me.
Experience, Buy and Do
Summer Carnival (Zomercarnaval)
During our walk around the City Hall, we were shown the exhibition display of its Summer Carnival (Zomercarnaval). I have to admit I had absolutely no knowledge of this carnival. The only international one that I know is the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro (Portuguese: Carnaval do Rio de Janeiro). The Summer Carnival of Rotterdam is the largest of its scale in the Northern Hemisphere and is an ICH and to feel the core of it, the City Hall area is the ideal location as it is located in the main artery of the carnival proceedings.
Traditionally, the carnival in Netherlands fell at the end of winter, but the cold climate made the event unsuitable and unpopular to the many Caribbean and Latin American immigrants. In 1982, the first edition of the Summer Carnival was organised in Utrecht, primarily for the immigrants. It had then moved to Rotterdam because of its wide boulevard that favours street parade and it had gather so much momentum since that it is now attracted more than 1 million participants annually.
Amongst the many events like parades and markets during the week-long event, the highlight of it takes place a week before official start when the 'Queen' is elected. The Queen is the ambassador the Carnival for the year. The other major event is the Battle of Drums, which several brass bands compete to be named the official Zomercarnaval brass band and earn a leading spot in the street parade procession.
Although the carnival comes with an Afro-American and Caribbean backdrop, this is now a genuinely international festival with participants from every ethnic group in the country. This is also proudly viewed as a symbol and celebration of multi-ethnicity, diversity, inclusivity and harmony of Netherlands. Planning to come during summer to witness it first hand.
Eat and Drink
Gouda Cheese (Goudse kaas)
Gouda (pronounced /ˈɣʌudaː/) is one of the many traditional cheese of Southern Netherlands, as a matter of fact the namesake town Gouda is just 30 minute drive Northeast of Rotterdam. Interestingly, the cheese is not named after where it is made, but where it was historically traded only. In the Middle Ages, Gouda was one of the few Dutch cities granted with the staple right to trade cheese and that was how the cheese was standardised and named after.
What makes Gouda different from mainstream cheese is its washing process. During Gouda production, after the milk has curdled, some of the whey is drained and replaced with warm water. This washes away some of the lactose, and hence less lactic acid is available during ageing. This makes Gouda milder and sweeter than other aged cheeses.
One hallmark for good aged Gouda is the fine white specks found inside the cheese. These are not moulds or salts, they are tyrosine crystals, bits of crystallised protein developed during prolonged ageing.
I was told that locals eat their Gouda with mustard and a sprinkle of salt, I never tried it that way though. Most pair it with beer or port wine (Portuguese: vinho do Porto). Markthal is a convenient place to get cheeses. Enjoy!
Stay
We came from the cruise ship MSC Poesia, with the cruise port terminal right in front of the Erasmusbrug. The cruise terminal is roughly 1 km walk from the city centre. The terminal can be very busy at times, after all the port of Rotterdam (haven van Rotterdam) was the world's busiest port until 2004, but is now the 11th in the world in the latest ranking list.
Travel Suggestions and Logistics
To reach Kinderdijk, the best way is the take the Waterbus from Erasmusbrug and this will lead you directly to the entrance of the site, whilst enjoying the river sceneries during the journey. When we visited Rotterdam, the Kinderdijk museum was closed (it closes between November to February), but the site is an open-air museum so one can still visit the place without barrier. During the time of museum closure, the Waterbus will not be serving Kinderdijk, and hence we took a Uber, which is just a 30-minute ride.
All the other sites in this blog is within the urban precinct which is easily accessible by trams or metro, or maybe as local by bicycle. I would have hoped that we could have spend at least three days in the city.
UNESCO Inscriptions
The outstanding contribution made by the people of the Netherlands to the technology of handling water is admirably demonstrated by the installations in the Kinderdijk-Elshout area. Construction of hydraulic works for the drainage of land for agriculture and settlement began in the Middle Ages and have continued uninterruptedly to the present day. The site illustrates all the typical features associated with this technology – dykes, reservoirs, pumping stations, administrative buildings and a series of beautifully preserved windmills.
Van Nellefabriek was designed and built in the 1920s on the banks of a canal in the Spaanse Polder industrial zone north-west of Rotterdam. The site is one of the icons of 20th-century industrial architecture, comprising a complex of factories, with façades consisting essentially of steel and glass, making large-scale use of the curtain wall principle. It was conceived as an ‘ideal factory’, open to the outside world, whose interior working spaces evolved according to need, and in which daylight was used to provide pleasant working conditions. It embodies the new kind of factory that became a symbol of the modernist and functionalist culture of the inter-war period and bears witness to the long commercial and industrial history of the Netherlands in the field of importation and processing of food products from tropical countries, and their industrial processing for marketing in Europe.
The craft of the miller operating windmills and watermills involves the knowledge and skills necessary to operate a mill and maintain it in a good state of repair. With a declining number of people earning their livelihood from the craft, millers today also play a key role in transmitting the cultural history of the practice. There are currently approximately forty professional millers; together with volunteers, they keep the miller’s craft alive. The Guild of Volunteer Millers has around 105 instructors in the field, and 11 Master Millers are now active in the Netherlands. Mills, and therefore the miller’s craft, play a significant social and cultural role in Dutch society and have an iconic value, contributing to a sense of identity and continuity. Various safeguarding activities are undertaken, including training, support and capacity building, educational activities in schools and traineeships. Traditionally, the miller’s craft was transmitted from master to apprentice but since the establishment of the Guild of Volunteer Millers in 1972, almost 2000 volunteers have obtained a miller’s qualification; anyone interested in the craft can apply for training. The Guild offers millers support in keeping their knowledge up-to-date, for example through excursions to mills, evening theory classes, conferences and meetings.
The Rotterdam Summer Carnival is a multicultural celebration that unites participants from the Caribbean and European Netherlands, as well as ethnic minority groups from Central and South America and Africa living in the Netherlands. The event includes a street parade, a brass band competition and a festival market featuring Caribbean food. The practice is transmitted informally through participation in the carnival and preparations. Carnival groups come together to prepare floats, music and decorations based on a specific theme. The preparations take place at the home of a group leader or in a community centre, and the music and dance styles chosen are closely connected to the countries of origin of the participants. The floats and costumes are constructed in a large, shared space, allowing the groups to exchange and transmit knowledge and skills related to welding, carpentry, design, and recycling materials. Several workshops, such as on how to become a carnival queen, organize a carnival group and raise funds for the event, also exist. The Rotterdam Summer Carnival is tied to people’s cultural roots and their emancipation, bolstering individuality, expression and self-worth. By uniting groups of different backgrounds, it also fosters acceptance of and respect for diverse cultural traditions, promoting dialogue and social cohesion.
References
Comments
Please share your thoughts and comments about the blog. If you need suggestions to build a travel itinerary, please let me know. More than willing to help. I would also like to build a bespoke-in-depth travel community around UNESCO WHS and ICH.
The way Rotterdam was described in the post made it feel modern yet full of history, which I found really interesting. I once had to study a similar city topic and I remember getting help with assignment to understand it better at the time. It helped me connect more with the details. Reading this made me appreciate how cities can grow while still keeping their unique identity.