15th July, 2010

Maastricht

Today was our last day in the Netherlands. Before we knew it, our adventures in the most liberal country on Earth were coming to an end! We had learnt a lot about the Dutch: their culture, politics, history, art, architecture, and all of these I have come to appreciate tremendously. There was still a lot more I want to learn about this magnificent country! Nevertheless, the trip had to continue to its next leg in Luxembourg. Prior to entering Luxembourg I found it fitting that we had a planned stop in Maastricht, arguably the oldest city in the Netherlands. It was founded by the Romans who built a walled-in settlement in order to protect the Sint Servaas Bridge over the Maas River. They initially named this settlement ‘Mosae Trajectum’ (crossing place for the Maas), which developed into the name ‘Maastricht’ (Sightseeing walk through the old city, 2009). In our tour of Maastricht we visited a few places, and also learnt a great deal about the city. Something that struck me was the unique Maasland renaissance style of architecture. While we were walking, we could recognize the building style by the inimitable ‘tall saddle roofs, the brick walls, the bluestone framing around doors and windows, and the decorative marl elements in the outer walls’ (Sightseeing walk through the old city, 2009). I found this style extremely unique, and after further research I understood that it was a regional architectural style, and it had catered to the different functions that were performed in the city. (Maasland Renaissance, 2010). For instance, the saddle roofs were present because the city was fortified. Moving on, after a brief lunch we got back on our bus and head to Luxembourg.
Works Cited
Sightseeing walk through the old city. (2009, July). Maastricht step by step . Maastricht, Netherlands: VVV Maastricht.