[Laughs] I don't know if I'm embarrassed or excited
It could be the fact that I'm in a speedo.
It could also be the fact that I'm in a hot tub boat
in the middle of a harbor.
Welcome back to Vagabrothers.
This is Rotterdam.
Good morning, guys.
Welcome back to Vagabrothers.
Right now we are in Rotterdam,
in the Netherlands, and we're going to have
a fun little day. What are we up to?
Rotterdam is the second biggest city in the Netherlands
It's the largest port in Europe, and until recently
was the largest port in the world.
It was totally bombed during WW2
and then rebuilt in a really interesting way.
So we're going to be exploring the history of Rotterdam
starting off back in the old port.
What was this? That was my little motion.
Let's roll.
One of the really cool things about this city
is the water taxi.
It's a taxi, but it's a boat.
We're going across the harbor
to Delfs?? Delfssaven???
Delfshaven
Delfshaven.
The reason why Rotterdam
is such a big port is that it's on the New Mass River,
which essentially connects the
North Atlantic with the Rhine River,
which this river connects to.
During the Second World War the city was
heavily bombed for being a port.
We're going to go to one of the older parts now
that still exists how it did a couple centuries ago.
Students of American history might remember
that some of the first settlers were the Pilgrims.
They left England because they were religious Puritans
They came to the Netherlands, which was a very
tolerant country religiously.
They felt that Dutch, although tolerant, were
living a little bit too crazy.
They were dancing; they were drinking....
all these crazy sins here in this exact port,
right in front of this church.
They hopped on a ship and sailed for the Americas.
To celebrate their legacy, we're going to
go to a brewery called The Pilgrim.
The Pilgrim.
Our family can trace its roots back to the Mayflower
and the first ship full of pilgrims to come across
to America so technically we are pilgrims.
Actually, I completely forgot about this.
This is true. Our ancestor was a carpenter
on the Mayflower.
Dear ancestor, don't roll over in your grave
while I have a pint right now. It's in your honor.
Pilgrim Church
Pilgrim Brewery
Alex and Marko. Right, guys.
We are in the Pilgrim Brewery,
right next door to the Pilgrim Church,
and it's beer time.
This brewery has been around for twenty years right now
Building has been around since 1580.
Are your beers more traditional,
or are you guys doing stuff that is more
in the craft beer world?
I try to make a lot of beers that are
kind of out of the box.
Which one is your favorite right now, Eric?
Right now, the Vagabonds.
The Vagabond has to be done. Vagabrothers,
Vagabond Brothers. We have to have a Vagabond.
And i think the Mayflower, too...just for
reconnecting with our roots.
But for the purposes of our research,
I think we should try all of them.
That's the Vagabond stuff.
There you go.
Very delicious. Thank you, Eric.
You're welcome.
How do I say "cheers" again? Prost.
And "thank you" is "danke viel."
It's like thank you well Danke viel.
Dutch... Very similar to English.
English... very similar to Dutch.
Finger. Finger. Thumb. Thumb. Hand.. Starboard.
Ship. Schooner
We already did these ones.
Beer. Beer's good.
Dutch version of croquettes.
Wow.
Ok, guys. We're back in the center of town.
We're on the south side of the river.
And back in the day, this was the main hub of the port.
And they've converted this whole area into
a more residential/ commercial zone.
Now Hester's going to show us some of these new
buildings which make up the modern skyline of Rotterdam.
This is the largest building
of the Nederlands and it's designed by
Rem Koolhaas
It's a vertical city.
It has everything in there. There're restaurants.
There's a big hotel in there.
There's housing. And the penthouse on top
was sold to Madonna.
Hey, Madonna. Next time invite the Vagabrothers up.
We're on the street, for Christ's sake.
Guys, we have made it to the cube houses.
These are the most iconic buildings in Rotterdam.
Built in the '80s and modeled after the
Ponte Vecchio in Venice [Florence]
although really abstract....
the idea of a bridge over a busy street
but with houses over the bridge.
These buildings are awesome.
Could you imagine living in a room that's
slanted at an angle?
I think if you've ever lived in an old house in Europe,
you have lived in a building that's slanted.
But I don't think they were designed to be slanted.
These ones were designed to be slanted.
They're actually designed to look like tree houses.
They're kind of like Dutch tree houses.
Louis. Funforlouis.
Tree house inspiration
This is the Markthal
It was built in October 2014,
and in the three first weeks after the opening,
there were 3 million visitors.
People live up in those things up there? Yes.
A lot of the apartments look down at the market hall.
This place is really cool.
The architecture is incredible.
The curvature of the building.
It feels really open. It feels like you're outside.
Hi. What are you doing? I'm vlogging.
Really? Yeah
Do you have many followers? I don't know.
Me neither. What do you think about the Markthal?
Are you really going to interview me now?
Yeah, now you're in it.
Oh, I'm in it? You wanted to be in it. Now you're in.
Like I was saying before I was so politely
interrupted, I love places like this.
I love big, central buildings where you can come,
and you can eat from places all over the world.
And one that is as beautifully decorated as this
is definitely hard to come by.
So if you come to Rotterdam, make sure
you visit the market hall.
They built this market hall with the same idea that
Bilbao built the Guggenheim, which was to put
a really nice building that would attract visitors
and spread some prosperity around the area.
And this mural on the wall is actually the
largest in Europe.
We've explored the port's past,
the reconstruction of Rotterdam,
and now the natural transition
is to hop into a hot tub,
that is actually a boat.
That is the hot tug.
That's our ride.
I don't know if I'm the only one,
but a hot tug sounds really sexual.
We have no bathing suits.
We have them for you. Really?
We do. Used ones?
Ah, they're clean.
That's good.
Well, we forgot our swimsuits, but luckily
they hooked us up with some fine, local-style
swimwear. Check it out.
First impressions were "WTF?"
and why? But now, I'm feeling it.
I'm heating up.
The hot tug... when I first heard it,
I thought it was a hand-job in a sauna.
Somebody growing weed
on a floating barge right here. Look.
Oh, that's totally weed.
Hello. We haven't convinced anyone to join us...
female or otherwise.
People are looking at it and pointing and laughing,
which I remember feeling in middle school.
Fun first day in Rotterdam. What did you think?
Amazing. Really, really beautiful city.
I like it because it's a city where you are
constantly looking up.
And I think that is generally a good
outlook to have in life.
Tomorrow we are exploring more of the city.
We're going to come to some of the more
up and coming neighborhoods.
And we're also going to the North Sea Jazz Festival
which is pretty awesome.
Not tomorrow, though.
The day after tomorrow. The day after tomorrow.
So stay tuned for that.
And you guys know if you liked the video,
give it a thumbs-up, share it with friends,
and subscribe!!!
In the meantime, remember to stay curious,
keep exploring, and we'll see you guys on the road.
Or maybe in a hot tub time machine.....