Rotterdam, like many a city in Western Europe, still carries scars from the bombs of World War Two. As the Nazis piled on pressure for The Netherlands to surrender, it was Rotterdam as the world’s largest port that felt the threat.

In the end, surrender came but so did the bombs – apparently the right message didn’t reach the right people at the right time.

The more I travel across this continent, the more I see identities formed from the ashes of this particular conflict. Some cities, like Nuremberg, rebuild their medieval architecture and forge another identity through blending the present with the further away past.

Rotterdam decided to forget the past and to build only towards the future.

The end result, for both visitors and locals, is a spirit of innovation and ever changing provocative art, design and architecture that extends well beyond repairing the damage and moving in to the 21st century.

Architecture in Rotterdam

One thing I can’t help but notice is that whether the choice was to rebuild or start from fresh, each city feels passionate that they made the right choice. Perhaps it’s a sign of cognitive dissonance or perhaps each city really did make the right choice.

What do you think? Rebuild and preserve historic buildings or “wipe the slate clean” and start again?

I keep thinking about it but I’m afraid I can’t decide…

Disclosure – I had some assistance on this assignment from Rotterdam Partners. All snaps, snippets and wonderings my own. As ever, as always…