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Education

Viva Rotterdam

“If you’re not Dutch, living in Delft can sometimes seem like the short end of the stick. You arrive in a new country, jetlagged and bewildered, only to be led to a very small box and told that this is your new home.

‘Alright,’ you say to yourself, ‘so it isn’t the Ritz. People just do things differently here.’ You unquestioningly accept your little room, and go about the business of being a foreign student.

You buy a bike (or steal one), you have interesting food epiphanies in places like Albert Heijn and C1000, you even change your style and start wearing leggings like everyone else. Granted, the weather makes this almost a prerequisite for venturing outdoors, but still, this is assimilation. Soon, you’re going to parties, meeting people, having dinner at friends’ houses…and it slowly dawns on you: there’s really no need to live in a shoebox. (Or, if you’re really unlucky, you’re one of the newbies who have actually been exiled to Haarlem of all places). But in this case, as in all others, ignorance was bliss and now you find yourself deeply unsatisfied with your living conditions. What to do?

Move to Rotterdam. That’s right, pack those bags and wriggle your way out of that rent contract. What’s not to love about saving yourself some cash and getting a sweet flat with some friends in a big city? Some very cool people live in Rotterdam: Rem Koolhaas lives there (he even has a mistress there, gossips say), and with any luck you can have breakfast with him at the Wester Paviljoen. Erasmus was born there, Pim Fortuyn was born there, even footballer Robin van Persie is from Rotterdam. Famous inhabitants aside, there’s döner kebab on every corner, there’s cheap Chinese groceries in Chinatown, there’s Museumplein (with its healthy mix of vagrants, tourists and students), there’s even a restaurant on a stick (better known as the Euromast).

If cultural gems aren’t your thing, there’s always shopping. Although it seems to be the only pastime of about half the city’s population, if you’re willing to brave massive crowds and ridiculous dressing-room queues, this is the place for you. The Lijnbaan is packed with shops whose display windows are deviously designed to suck in every passerby with a few euros to spare. When you’re tired of that, catch a movie at the Schouwburgplein Pathé. The square is one of the best known urban projects in the Netherlands. Plus, you can operate the very cool crane-like lights yourself (although if there are kids waiting, you should probably let them go first).

If you’re not yet convinced, it must be said: Delft falls a bit short in terms of nightlife. Oh sure there’s de Ruif on Wednesdays, and there’s de Tango, and perhaps, if one is too inebriated to take aesthetics into consideration, there’s even Speakers. But let’s be serious. If you haven’t yet joined a student fraternity, your chances of finding a proper party in Delft are slim to none. House parties, sure, but what about a night out on the town? Rotterdam is home to famous artists and architects, musicians and world-class dancers — even the occasional film star. Delft just can’t compete with this bubbling mix of culture and ‘true grit’.

The Nieuwe Binnenweg has coffeeshops galore, although you’re probably only interested in that if you’re foreign. And yet, foreign or not, Rotterdam hosts an appealing mix of style and swagger that’s truly unique in this small country. If you still feel like going to class, it’s only a ten-minute train ride away; or an hour biking. Ok, so Delft is cute. It’s true: Rotterdam is definitely the ogre, and Delft the fairy princess in this tale. But that just means that Rotterdam’s charms are less obvious. They’re deeper, and in the end, there’s more to love. Delft may seem more appealing on the outside, but low rent and cheap groceries are pretty seductive attributes to a starving student. Just imagine: in Rotterdam, those shipping containers are actually used to ship things. No one lives in a Spacebox in this town.”

Dorothy Parker, MSc Architecture, is from the United States. Her next column will be published in Delta 01. She can be emailed at: onbezorgd@gmail.com

“If you’re not Dutch, living in Delft can sometimes seem like the short end of the stick. You arrive in a new country, jetlagged and bewildered, only to be led to a very small box and told that this is your new home. ‘Alright,’ you say to yourself, ‘so it isn’t the Ritz. People just do things differently here.’ You unquestioningly accept your little room, and go about the business of being a foreign student.

You buy a bike (or steal one), you have interesting food epiphanies in places like Albert Heijn and C1000, you even change your style and start wearing leggings like everyone else. Granted, the weather makes this almost a prerequisite for venturing outdoors, but still, this is assimilation. Soon, you’re going to parties, meeting people, having dinner at friends’ houses…and it slowly dawns on you: there’s really no need to live in a shoebox. (Or, if you’re really unlucky, you’re one of the newbies who have actually been exiled to Haarlem of all places). But in this case, as in all others, ignorance was bliss and now you find yourself deeply unsatisfied with your living conditions. What to do?

Move to Rotterdam. That’s right, pack those bags and wriggle your way out of that rent contract. What’s not to love about saving yourself some cash and getting a sweet flat with some friends in a big city? Some very cool people live in Rotterdam: Rem Koolhaas lives there (he even has a mistress there, gossips say), and with any luck you can have breakfast with him at the Wester Paviljoen. Erasmus was born there, Pim Fortuyn was born there, even footballer Robin van Persie is from Rotterdam. Famous inhabitants aside, there’s döner kebab on every corner, there’s cheap Chinese groceries in Chinatown, there’s Museumplein (with its healthy mix of vagrants, tourists and students), there’s even a restaurant on a stick (better known as the Euromast).

If cultural gems aren’t your thing, there’s always shopping. Although it seems to be the only pastime of about half the city’s population, if you’re willing to brave massive crowds and ridiculous dressing-room queues, this is the place for you. The Lijnbaan is packed with shops whose display windows are deviously designed to suck in every passerby with a few euros to spare. When you’re tired of that, catch a movie at the Schouwburgplein Pathé. The square is one of the best known urban projects in the Netherlands. Plus, you can operate the very cool crane-like lights yourself (although if there are kids waiting, you should probably let them go first).

If you’re not yet convinced, it must be said: Delft falls a bit short in terms of nightlife. Oh sure there’s de Ruif on Wednesdays, and there’s de Tango, and perhaps, if one is too inebriated to take aesthetics into consideration, there’s even Speakers. But let’s be serious. If you haven’t yet joined a student fraternity, your chances of finding a proper party in Delft are slim to none. House parties, sure, but what about a night out on the town? Rotterdam is home to famous artists and architects, musicians and world-class dancers — even the occasional film star. Delft just can’t compete with this bubbling mix of culture and ‘true grit’.

The Nieuwe Binnenweg has coffeeshops galore, although you’re probably only interested in that if you’re foreign. And yet, foreign or not, Rotterdam hosts an appealing mix of style and swagger that’s truly unique in this small country. If you still feel like going to class, it’s only a ten-minute train ride away; or an hour biking. Ok, so Delft is cute. It’s true: Rotterdam is definitely the ogre, and Delft the fairy princess in this tale. But that just means that Rotterdam’s charms are less obvious. They’re deeper, and in the end, there’s more to love. Delft may seem more appealing on the outside, but low rent and cheap groceries are pretty seductive attributes to a starving student. Just imagine: in Rotterdam, those shipping containers are actually used to ship things. No one lives in a Spacebox in this town.”

Dorothy Parker, MSc Architecture, is from the United States. Her next column will be published in Delta 01. She can be emailed at: onbezorgd@gmail.com

Editor Redactie

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