Watersnood Museum, Netherlands Four gray cement blocks, half-sunk in the ground at uneven angles, are the modest home of the Watersnood Museum: the remarkable and beautiful memorial of one of the Netherlands’ greatest disasters. At 2 am, Sunday, February 1st, 1953, a churning storm in the North Sea forced a wall of water into the narrow channel between the United Kingdom and mainland Europe. ... Read Full Article
Devouring European Cities and Cuisine Viking-Style
Onboard Viking Odin, I left the Port of Amsterdam and cruised north to the fishing village of Volendam. I was lucky enough to have the experience thanks to Viking River Cruise, who had invited EuropeUpClose.com on a three-day mini cruise after the christening of their new longships. My cruise companions and I would visit Volendam, Kinderdijk (Holland’s famous windmill area), and Rotterdam. Each ... Read Full Article
Not So Racey Rotterdam
It’s fair to say that sibling rivalry is usually the dynamic found in any county’s two most populous cities. One hogs the limelight with its trinkets and bells, while the other sits in the shadow and gets on with its day. If Amsterdam is the flashy older brother, Rotterdam remains Holland’s ‘can do’ city, a gentle, aesthetically edgy younger sibling that too often flies under the radar, ... Read Full Article