A few days after 's-Hertogenbosch I travelled again,
this time to Brussels for the European Equality Gala. I took the Benelux
intercity train from Rotterdam Central Station. As it happens there is a PostNL
package point in the Service Point shop in the shopping mall underneath the
tracks.
Rotterdam is a city in the Netherlands, in the
province of South Holland 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, after which people settled around it for safety. In 1340,
Rotterdam was granted city rights by the Count of Holland. A major logistic and
economic centre, Rotterdam is Europe's largest port, and is the second-largest
city in the Netherlands, just behind Amsterdam.
Rotterdam is known for the Erasmus University, its
riverside setting, lively cultural life, and maritime heritage. The near‑complete
destruction of the city centre in the World War II Rotterdam Blitz has resulted
in a varied architectural landscape, including sky-scrapers (an uncommon sight
in other Dutch cities) designed by renowned architects such as Rem Koolhaas,
Piet Blom, and Ben van Berkel.
Rotterdam's logistic success is based on its strategic
location by the North Sea, at the mouth of the Nieuwe Maas channel leading into
the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. The rivers Rhine, Meuse, and Scheldt give
waterway access into the heart of Western Europe, including the highly
industrialized Ruhr. The extensive distribution system including rail, roads,
and waterways have earned Rotterdam the nicknames "Gateway to Europe"
and "Gateway to the World".
The stamp on the envelope is not only a match, but a
perfect combination. It shows the new Central Station, opened on 13 March 2014
by King Willem-Alexander. Rotterdam Centraal, as the station is now officially
called - on the south side, at the explicit request of the citizens of
Rotterdam, the name Centraal Station in the lettering that architect Van
Ravensteyn had put on the old station, has returned - will obtain the status of
world station, as it is on the international high-speed railway towards
Belgium. Some modifications to accommodate security screening of Eurostar
passengers from the UK are being made and are due to finish in March 2018.
In Brussels there was a very small post point in the
supermarket next to my hotel, opposite Brussels South station. Of course I got
a datestamp there as well and I took a photo of the whole post office.
City: Rotterdam
Municipality: Rotterdam
Area: 325,79
km²
Population: 639.587
(April 2017)
Parcel point
Servicepoint
CS Rotterdam
Stationsplein
14A
3013
AJ ROTTERDAM
Date sent: 28 June 2017
Date postmark: 28 June 2017
Date received: 29 June 2017
Number of days: 1
Envelope in collection: 202
