- published: 13 Dec 2012
- views: 393899
Rotterdam (/ˈrɒtərdæm/ or /ˌrɒtərˈdæm/;Dutch: [ˌrɔtərˈdɑm]) is a city in South Holland, the Netherlands, located geographically within the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt river delta at the North Sea. Its history goes back to 1270 when a dam was constructed in the Rotte river and people settled around it for safety. In 1340 Rotterdam was granted city rights by the Count of Holland and slowly grew into a major logistic and economic centre. Nowadays it is home to Europe's largest port and has a population of 624,799 (2014, city proper), ranking second in the Netherlands. The Greater Rijnmond area is home to approximately 1.4 million people and the Rotterdam The Hague urban area makes for the 168th most populous urban area in the world. Rotterdam is part of the yet larger Randstad conurbation with a total population of 7,100,000.
The city of Rotterdam is known for the Erasmus University, riverside setting, lively cultural life and its maritime heritage. The near-complete destruction of Rotterdam's city centre during World War II (known as the Rotterdam Blitz) has resulted in a varied architectural landscape including sky-scrapers, which are an uncommon sight in other Dutch cities. Rotterdam is home to some world-famous architecture from renowned architects like Rem Koolhaas, Piet Blom, Ben van Berkel and others. Recently Rotterdam was listed 8th in The Rough Guide Top 10 Cities to Visit and was voted 2015 European City of the Year by the Academy of Urbanism.
(Heaton/Rotheray)
And the women tug their hair
Like they're trying to prove it won't fall out
And all the men are gargoyles
Dipped long in Irish stout
The whole place is pickled
The people are pickles for sure
And no-one knows if they've done more here
Than they ever would do in a jar
This could be Rotterdam or anywhere
Liverpool or Rome
'Cause Rotterdam is anywhere
Anywhere alone
Anywhere alone
And everyone is blonde
And everyone is beautiful
and when blondes and beautiful are multiple
they become so dull and dutiful
And when faced with dull and dutiful
They fire red warning flares
Battle-Khaki personality
With red underwear
This could be Rotterdam or anywhere
Liverpool or Rome
'Cause Rotterdam is anywhere
Anywhere alone
Anywhere alone
The whole place is pickled
The people are pickles for sure
And no-one knows if they've done more here
Than they ever would do in a jar
This could be Rotterdam or anywhere
Liverpool or Rome
'Cause Rotterdam is anywhere
Anywhere alone
This could be Rotterdam or anywhere
Liverpool or Rome
'Cause Rotterdam is anywhere
Anywhere alone