It's official: BXL tops A'dam

[The Wizard]

The state Kingdom of the Netherlands got that name because it originally encompassed all the Low Countries. Hence...

[Peasant Phill]

The state Kingdom of the Netherlands got that name because it originally encompassed all the Low Countries. Hence...

Not meaning to nitpick but it was the United Kingdom of the Netherlands (het Verenigd Koninkrijk der Nederlanden).

[Moros]

The state Kingdom of the Netherlands got that name because it originally encompassed all the Low Countries. Hence...

And It indeed was the unied kingdom of the Netherlands.

[The Wizard]

Indeed, but it's the name Netherlands that interests me. And, before you come along with the argument that the Republic also used the term, the Union of Utrecht's original hope was to get all the Low Countries on its side.

But this is nitpicking. So let's ditch the semantics and get back to explaining why Rotterdam wins and your hamlets don't.

[Vladimir]

You crazy lowlanders and your funny wooden shoes.

[Adrian II]

So let's ditch the semantics and get back to explaining why Rotterdam wins and your hamlets don't.

Let's ditch the city bashing, too. Instead, why don't you explain to us what makes Rotterdam the best city in the world?

[Stig]

imo Belgium has only 2 nice places. Brugge and the Ardennes, but then it's hard to find nice places here in Holland. Cant really think of something, Limburg maybe, and Twente here, but everything else is build up and modern.

Rotterdam is the worst, our German friends destroyed everything which might have been nice and now it's all modern and no atmosphere.

[Adrian II]

Gentlemen, the Frontroom is the realm of Love, Peace and Understanding. Let's stop bashing each other's favourites and promote our own, in the same way others promote their favourite beverage in the beer thread.

[Stig]

I don't promote my own ... I haven't even started about Groningen yet

[Louis VI the Fat]

imo Belgium has only 2 nice places. Brugge and the Ardennes

Only two nice places in Belgium? No way:

Bruges - it's so gorgeous I can't walk it's streets without tears in my eyes.
Ghent - apparantly the most 'Flemish' of all it's cities, I have yet to see it but I'll make sure I will.
Antwerp - nice! More cityesque than than the much smaller other Flemish towns. At it's best a great blend between the charm of those small towns and the grandeur of a proper city.
Ypres - weird but interesting place, the Middle-ages meets a Hollywood movie set. The whole city was destroyed in WWI, then rebuild. It felt the way somebody suffering from extreme paranoia must feel, as if everything around you appears real, but is not, yet everyboy else goes about their daily business pretending nothing is wrong.

Bruxelles - well Adrian covered it. Underrated. It used to be thought of as a failed city: a charming Flemish town that tried too hard to imitate Paris, failed miserably in that and consequently now has neither the grandeur of Paris nor the charming atmosphere of a northern trading town anymore.
But the place has improved a lot. The influence of the EU, OTAN and other international institutions has given the place that necessary cosmopolitan flair. It's a wealthy city again too, the buildings are well kept, there's a market for the more refined things in life, there's an eye for elegance in the streets and cafes. A proper capital.
And, not every second person you meet is a close-minded crypto-facist like in Antwerp or a narrow-minded loser like in Liège or Charleroi. Maybe you are right, Adrian, and the Bruxellois/Brusselaars will save Belgium in the end.

[Adrian II]

And, not every second person you meet is a close-minded crypto-facist like in Antwerp or a narrow-minded loser like in Liège or Charleroi. Maybe you are right, Adrian, and the Bruxellois/Brusselaars will save Belgium in the end.

Very well-informed post, as usual, Louis VI the Fat.

Ironically, the thought that Brussels would preserve the Belgian nation occurred to me over the years as I spoke to many of the (minority) Flemish intellectuals in Brussels like philosopher Dieter Lesage, writer Koen Peeters and choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. These Dutch-speakers don't want anything to do with the Flemish 'identity politics' inspired by Antwerp. They have found new allies in the Wallish elite, and together they will support an 'independent' Brussels as a cosmopolitan centre.

It is these people who are (re)creating the new Brussels together with Maghrebine immigrants and intellectuals from all over the world. They are quite a force in Belgium, and a growing one. In the end (or so one hopes) Brussels will no longer be ruled by the divisive politics of the two linguistic communities (i.e. by Flemish peasants and Wallish Lumpenproletariat) -- it will, in turn, rule Belgium and help it integrate into Europe and expand globally.

[Evil_Maniac From Mars]

Let's ditch the city bashing, too. Instead, why don't you explain to us what makes Rotterdam the best city in the world?

I don't know. I hear the bombing improved it.

[Fragony]

What so great about skylines, only blocks the sun. And a skyline you can build, everywhere. And they are... everywhere. Frankfurt or New York, looks the same to me, the same boring buildings. Oh it's high it's shiny yay. And no Rotterdam has no soul, it has tall buildings but not the energy of New York. It's just about nothing. And what city life, having to take cap when you change plans isn't metropolian, it's just a hassle.

[The Wizard]

What so great about skylines, only blocks the sun. And a skyline you can build, everywhere. And they are... everywhere. Frankfurt or New York, looks the same to me, the same boring buildings. Oh it's high it's shiny yay. And no Rotterdam has no soul, it has tall buildings but not the energy of New York. It's just about nothing. And what city life, having to take cap when you change plans isn't metropolian, it's just a hassle.

Once again: it's a matter of opinion. The mistake you're making is presenting yours as fact.

My opinion is that Amsterdam/Brussels/Antwerp/Utrecht = overestimated villages; your opinion is Rotterdam = soulless pile of glass and steel.

Thread over. Well, as far as I'm concerned

[Adrian II]

I don't know. I hear the bombing improved it.

Rotterdam est une drôle de ville.

[Kralizec]

I don't know. I hear the bombing improved it.

You're German, you're not allowed to joke about that