Our last full day exploring around the Netherlands, and we choose to do it in Rotterdam. We’ve been here before, but only on cruise ships, and only as a jumping off point to get to other places, like Delft. So, we decide to explore some of the city away from the port, and hop on a train to visit a couple of museums. Again, it is so easy to travel here. We have downloaded the Renfe train app and just buy tickets through the app, then use the phone to scan us through the turnstiles. So nice.

20 minutes after boarding our train, we are deposited into Rotterdam Centrum, walking down a pretty wide promenade along a canal with interesting sculptures on our way to the Museum Rotterdam 40-45 Now, which focuses on WWII and the effect it had on the city. As we arrive early (of course, it is us!), we spend about 10 minutes out front, amusing ourselves with the swans swimming around in the algae right next tot he pier and the WWII replica statuary on the plaza in front of the doors.

Opening right on time (thankfully because we were in need of a restroom stop!), we ambled in, stowed our backpack, talked to the very nice staff and began our wanderings through the hundred thousand authentic objects saved from the WWII time period. The display case is almost 100 feet long for heavens sake! There are weapons and uniforms and radios hidden in canisters and doctor’s stethoscope kits. A baby carriage with the bottom hollowed out to carry guns and papers. Plus just ordinary thins like make up and dishes and dresses and packaging and sneakers. Plus an entire office replicated with war medals and paraphernalia.

It was all fascinating and really brings home how the war affected everyone. The next room – which we had to wait to visit because the cleaning lady was still doing the floors! – was a multi-media exhibit focused on different objects and how they survived during the war. The actual object was there in a display case and a video presentation ran around the room identifying where the item was and how it survived the catastrophic bombing of Rotterdam.

Another room held a video program describing the destruction. Rotterdam was bombed almost out of extinction through a series of misunderstandings during capitulation negotiations. Communications somehow were never transmitted, and the Germans just bombed the hell out of the city for 13 minutes with 1300 bombs. They wiped out the historic center of the city, then the fires raged for days due to heavy winds. It was horrible. And this museum is an excellent homage to the history and the resilience of the city that began rebuilding in 1945. Very sobering, but extremely well done.

Leaving the museum, we headed over to the Museum park, a huge park complex with a ton of museums spread around the area. It is a little confusing as to where all the museums are located. We were trying to find the Natural History Museum, but we entered the park at the opposite end, right at the Art Museum housed in the wild spaceship like mirrored building at the edge of the sculpture garden.

There is a ton of construction here as well, which makes things more confusing. The direction in which we need to go looks like it is blocked off by construction. Hmmm. The Het Nieuwe Instituut museum is right in front of us, so we decide to bag Natural History and explore the “new” collections of architecture, design and digital culture. I don’t think we knew what we were getting ourselves into! Thus begins a visit in the weird, the futuristic and well, the solar powered donkeys. Kid you not!

Shepherds in Turkey equip their donkeys with solar panels so they can stay online 24/7 when they are out in the fields with the herds. The panels can power cell phones, lap tops and lights! Amazing!

Most of the other exhibits were sort of cool and interesting like that, in their own terribly bizarre way. Lighting fixtures that changed colors in a very shipping container like room. Strange string art. Huge cube like displays with odd messages. It kept us occupied, if not confused for a good while. But the best – ok, besides the donkeys – were the bathrooms. Yes. the bathrooms. Both women’s and men’s and the coat rack room and the floors were decorated with what looked like just thrown on paint that dripped. They were totally cool and neat.

Included in the price of our New Institute ticket was admittance to the Huis Sonneveld house, one of the best preserved houses in the Nieuwe Bouwen style. This type of functional architecture was created in the early 1900s to provide residents with access to fresh air and a more healthy lifestyle. Incorporating concrete and steel construction, new for the era, was geared at providing a “hygienic” building and the open floor plans were created to enhance the airiness of the house. The Sonneveld house was built in 1933 and looks nothing like typical houses of that era. It is sort of space age in design, because of all that concrete and steel – but also very 50’s in decor (or mid-century decor as it is being branded today!). Every room had a color theme – from orange to yellow to that awful mint green. From the Sonneveld’s kitchen of red and yellow to the commercial/servants kitchen in basement, along the spiral staircase, through both the daughters’ bedrooms of contrasting colors and the living areas, this place was amazingly modern and super fun to explore. It was hard to believe that the building and the furnishings were almost 100 years old – from both a preservation and a design perspective!

Now it is time for lunch. We nixed going further into the park to explore, even though it looks like there are some pretty gardens, fearing we would be too far afield from any restaurants. Instead we headed out of the park and up into the city aiming toward the train station and what was called (at least on our Google maps) the “Rotterdam Street Art Museum.” Along the way we find Ayla, a restaurant that bills itself as “shared food.” Tapas! Netherlands style. Situated right on the corner of the street we need to walk down for he street art, Ayla is the perfect place for us to hang out in the sun and have a great meal of stuffed squid and charcuterie. Feel like we are back in Spain!

After lunch we head to the street art “museum.” The friendly and helpful guy at the Rotterdam museum didn’t know what that was when I told him about it as he was giving us suggestions on what to see. And once there we can see why – it is basically one long street with a bunch of murals and street art. Not a museum perse, just an area of town. Okie dokie. Hey, its a beautiful day, there aren’t that many – I think we found 7 – and they are all quite good and fun (especially the guy with the 4 arms, not really understanding that one) – so what the heck!

But the best street art was the sign we saw on the way back to the train station….

…now that’s street art with which we can agree!

Back to the station without a hitch, onto the train using the easy Renfe app which has our tickets and tells us the platform number and timing, and we are back to the apartment in no time really. Hanging out, doing the last laundry and organizing the packing for our last land travel for the next 40 some odd days! Wow, when you think about that….

Taking a break, we wander across the street to Packshuit Cafe for dinner with Corine! We had tried to eat there the other night, but arrived too late for the food. So we figured it would be a very fitting way to end our wonderful days here in Den Haag by eating at Corine’s Cafe. She is just the most wonderful person, so friendly and talkative, and D and Marjan rave about her food – so we figured we must try it.

The meal, the atmosphere and the companionship do not disappoint. First of all the atmosphere in there is so warm and inviting. The bar is basically a narrow shotgun affair, all dark wood and brick and low lighting with candlestick topped tables (yes, real, live lit candlesticks) on the right and an 5 seat bar on the left. We grab a high top across from the bar – which has a couple of patrons a does a couple of tables behind us where Corine spends a good amount of time chatting. We figure this is THE neighborhood bar, and we would definitely be here often if we lived in the area too. It was that kind of place. And the food? No menu, just tell Corine you want food. She asks if we have any allergies or anything we don’t like. We say no. And that’s that. Off she goes to fix us the most amazing snack plate we have had this entire trip! Cheese and calamari and bitterballen and mushrooms and pate and peppers and oh so much more. It is delectable. And Corine the best hostess, she talks to everyone, us included and is so special.

A perfect way to spend our last evening in Den Haag. We have thoroughly enjoyed ourselves here and will definitely keep it on our list of “places to return!”

Tomorrow – we are off to Amsterdam and the Norwegian Dawn.