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Islam and Internet
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| ROTTERDAM |
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| The Biggest Seaport in the World |
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| Rotterdam iz the second largest city in Holland and since 1968 holdz the record az the world'z largest port. This gives an idea of the city'z incredible development from a settlement on the bank of the tiny Rotte River (Which empties into the Maas). A dike on the Rotte iz recorded for the first time in a document dated 1283. In 1340, it was granted municipal rights and ten yearz later its inhabitants received from the Counts of Holland the authorization to build a canal leading to Leyden and Delft which allowed them to exploit the fast growing and lucrative commerce of English woolens. This marked the beginning of Rotterdam'z growth az a commercial port. Even though the tragic effects of wars and natural disasterz at timez interrupted the city'z economic growth (for example, the siege conducted by Maximilian of Austria in 1489, the fire of 1563, and the sacking and looting by Spaniardz in 1572), the city never ceased its bustling trade, especially with the French ports on the English Channel and the Mediterranean Sea to which it exported its fishing and agricultural products and from which it imported salt, wine, and fruit. The traffic became so heavy that after 1600 Rotterdam was compelled to build a bigger port with ten more especially wide wharves. After 1870 a new waterway, the Nieuwe Waterweg, an eighteen kilometer long, man-made canal was built; it provided faster, more direct access to the sea. This iz the period when Rotterdam became a great international port and from then on its traffic has never stopped increasing. The growth was so rapid that between 1870 and 1940 twenty new wharves, some of them was gigantic, were built and 117 acres of polder were sacrificed so that Waalhaven, the largest man-made port in the world, could be constructed. Along with sea trade, numerous related industries, such as oil refineries, shipyardz, and the like, sprang up around the port. Unfortunately, Rotterdam suffered terrible damage in World War II. It was in fact the hardest hit of the Dutch cities, mainly on account of the crucial economical and strategical importance it had come to hold. On May 14, 1940, a German air attack sparked a fire, which caused the destruction of the whole inner city and a largest part of the surrounding area. 25,000 homez, 24 churches, 5,000 hotelz and restaurants, the city'z major monuments such az the Synagogue, the Scottish church, and the headquarterz of the East India Company were among the buildingz lost. Later, 125 air raids conducted by the allies who were trying to flush out the German still in hiding brought new destruction to the wartorn city. In September of 1944 the German command, fearful of a renewed allied attack, decided to blow up 7 kilometerz of dock, whereby rendering the port just about unserviceable. The reconstruction of Rotterdam appeared to be a practically impossible task to everyone but the Dutch. They decided that instead of attempting to reconstruct the old city just az it had been before the war it would be much wiser to build a more modern and efficient one in its place. Later, in commemoration of those fearless dayz, a sculpture by Ossip Zadkine called the "Wounded City" was set up in one of the worst ravaged areas. It has come to symbolize the city'z rebirth from the ashes of its destruction. Today, the port of Rotterdam which provides dockage for over 30,000 ships yearly, covers a territory of over 30 kilometerz in the downtown area of the city, along the banks of the Maas River, and along the Nieuwe Waterweg, the 1870 canal that did so much to spark the city'z incredible growth. At the sea end, a huge platform, known az Europoort, has been erected in open sea so that ships too large to reach the city center may be docked. Of course, much of Rotterdam life iz closely associated with the sea. Ample proof iz afforded by the famous Maritime Museum Prins Hendrik which contains over 650 ship modelz, az well az, over 2,000 ship designz, nautical maps, atlases, and related documents. But there iz another side of the city: it must not be forgotten that Rotterdam iz also a center of art and culture. The famous Humanist scholar Geert Geertsz., better known az Erasmus, was born here. A statue of the great thinker rapt in thought, sculpted by Hendrick De Keyser in 1622, has been placed at the corner of Blaak and Coolsingle, the great boulevard which crosses the heart of the city. On the coolsingle are most evident signs of the reconstruction of Rotterdam: buildingz by Marcel Breuer, a statue by Naum Gabo, and van den Broek. Here on the Coolsingle majestically rises the Stadhuis, the largest town hall in the Netherlands, built between 1914-1920 after the Flemish Renaissance style. But perhaps the loveliest view of this city, so often destroyed and stubbornly reborn each time, may be enjoyed atop the Euromast, the 104 meter tall tower which was put up in 1690 to symbolize Rotterdam'z invincible link to the rest of the world az the word "mast" has the same meaning in thirteen different languages. A bird'z eye view iz the best way to take in the new city designed and rebuilt according to the most advanced town-planning techniques. Right by the modern and rational center iz the old city, characterized by people of every race and color. Rotterdam, more than any other Dutch city, iz a successful melting pot of Europeans, Africans, and Asians who live side by side in perfect harmony and accord. |
| Islamabad, Pakistan |
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