Amsterdam, The Netherlands

These views of Amsterdam look very similar to modern views, with tilting canal houses settling unevenly over the years.

One of the things that differentiates today's view from yesterday's is the forms of transportation. These cards only show people on foot along with one lone horse-drawn cart. Today, you would see some cars, motorcycles and mopeds, but you would also see thousands of bicycles. The bicyclists do not wear any fancy bike gear though, no spandex racing outfits like we might see here in the United States. On our recent trip, we didn't see any helmets either, just typical street clothes, although sometimes the bicyclist might be holding an umbrella or a cup of coffee. All very casual. Here's a night view from the living room of the place where we were staying.

And here is a view of the bicycle parking garage near the train station. I'm afraid I would never find my bike.

Unfortunately, there are no messages on the backs of these cards, but there are interesting instructions in the stamp box. If you wanted to send the card at the less expensive printed-material rate, you were instructed to cross out Briefkaart and Carte Postale. At this less expensive rate, you were only permitted to include the name and date, no message was allowed. This was not unique to the Netherlands. I have seen it on cards from a number of different countries, but I've never seen the rules spelled out like this. The backs of both cards look the same, so I'm only including one.

Tram Tuesday - Rotterdam, Netherlands

Like many cities throughout the world, Rotterdam started out with horse-drawn streetcars in 1879. Rotterdam also had steam-powered trams, which was more of a rarity; the majority of cities went from horse-drawn streetcars to electric-powered ones. In the case of Rotterdam, the electric-powered streetcars started replacing both steam-powered and horse-drawn streetcars in 1905. Line One, shown below, was the first electric-powered car and replaced a horse-drawn service.

On both of these cards, you see the pantographs above the streetcars; that's the electric rod device that collects electric current from the overhead lines. You don't see the overhead lines themselves though. They would have been visible on the photograph, but were often erased when the photo was colorized. Sometimes the pantographs weer also erased. It made for a cleaner picture.

Line 4 below, also replaced a horse-drawn service, and was added in 1906.

There are a lot of interesting details in this picture, including the advertisement on the left, the carts, the way people are dressed, and the over-sized chair on top of the building in the middle. Here's a close-up.

You can see the letters MEUB underneath. The entire word, blocked by a chimney, is probably meubilair, which is the word for furniture in Dutch.
Here are the backs of the cards in the same order.

The message, sent in 1908, reads

Dear Madame!

Our sincere greetings from the second house on the left. Your devoted E.M. Pool

For a complete history of trams in Rotterdam, visit The Tram of Rotterdam website.

The American Dream

Here's a photo of my Dad in Rotterdam in 1953 at the age of 18, setting off for a new life in the United States.  With little money and no family in the US, he made his way with the help of a sponsoring family, the Karminskys. The Karminskys had escaped Nazi persecution by first fleeing Germany for Czechoslovakia and then eventually ending up in the United States. I have some Karminsky postcards I will also post some time.

My father settled in Chicago, joined the U.S. Army and was sent to Korea. After returning from the Korean War, he enrolled at the University of Chicago, where he earned an MBA and met my mother.

So, what is my father doing today - this very day, in fact? At the age of 75, he is competing in his 5th Ironman Triathlon in Kona, Hawaii. The triathlon consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112-mile bike, and a 26.2 mile run (full marathon.) This will be a tough one, especially because of training interruptions in the last few months for two hernia surgeries and Achilles tendinitis. Oh, and one week before the race he took a header over the handlebars of his bike when a mail truck stopped suddenly in front of him. The crash broke his helmet and sent him on an ambulance ride to the emergency room, but still he persists. I'm not always sure why - but we will certainly do our part to support him with athletic champagne toasts. Go Dad!

Here is a more recent photo:

Today is Sepia Saturday and a great opportunity to get a glimpse of some fascinating family histories.

Streetcar Sunday - The Hague, Netherlands

A horse-drawn trams system started transporting passengers in The Hague in 1864.  After that, there were also electric trams and a steam-powered tramway between The Hague and Scheveningen, a beach resort.  This card from about 1910 shows a tram passing by the famous Ridderzaal.

The Hague is the seat of government in the Netherlands, but it is not the capital (that would be Amsterdam.) This always strikes me as very odd, and I can't think of another country where the two roles are split between different cities, can you? The Hague is also the judicial capital of the United Nations.

Today, The Hague has as extensive network of electric trams, although there is no longer one operating on this side of the Ridderzaal. There is also a  Public Transport Museum in The Hague, housed in a beautiful old tram depot.

Here's a postcard I received recently from Fred, who lives in The Hague. The Ridderzaal is shown in the upper left-hand corner.

Streetcar Sunday - Amsterdam, The Netherlands

This postcard dates from about 1915. It shows trams crossing a canal in Amsterdam at Plantage Middenlaan. Amsterdam's tram or streetcar system was operated by several private companies until the City took them over and consolidated them into one system in 1900. In that same year, they introduced the first electric trams. They also took over the Amsterdam Omnibus Company, creating  a new corporation called the Gemeentetram (Municipal Tram Corporation.) Decades later, the corporation  merged with the ferry services, creating  a new organization called the Gemeentevervoerbedrijf (GVB) or Municipal Transport Corporation. Today it is simply known as GVB.

Here's a Google Maps view of the same area today. Allow me to add that I have never had so much fun looking for a place on Google maps as I did with this one. I wanted to just keep going down the streets. If you can't afford a vacation this year, you may want to consider visiting Amsterdam via Google maps. The only catch is that it will make you want to hop on a plane for a real visit.

View Amsterdam in a larger map
Here's another view of a streetcar in Amsterdam. Truus, who lives in Amsterdam sent me this card through Postcrossing. Truus also has a postcard blog, called Truus Postcrossing, with all of the cards she has received through Postcrossing. There's another opportunity to travel around the world without leaving your desk. This card is a reproduction of an old one in the Amsterdam City Archives.

 This horse-drawn streetcar is on the Rembrandtplein, viewed from near the Reguliersbreestraat. That's in case you want to see if you can find it on Google maps and see what it looks like today!

Swimming at the Hague

Morris sent this card from the 'S Gravenhage (the Hague), the Netherlands in 1910.

Here is the message:

The Hague August 9

All are well and having a delightful trip. Weather is perfect. Wish you were with us.

Morris

On the front of the card are horse-drawn bathing machines and frolicking bathers. Bathing machines were carts with roofs and walls of wood or canvas, designed to preserve the modesty of bathers of the opposite sex, who were not supposed to see each other in their bathing garments. Although the carts were also used by men, their use was more strictly enforced for women. The carts were usually either pulled by horses or attached to pulleys. Whatever the case, the bathing machine was supposed to block the view from the beach of the bather getting into the water.
Instead of wading into the water in her bathing suit, the swimmer ascended the stairs to the bathing machine fully clothed. She would then change into her bathing costume and be pulled out into the water where she could discreetly descend the stairs into the water on the other side. I can't imagine that the women were able to do much swimming though, because the bathing garments of the day were fairly bulky and must have been very cumbersome when wet.
By the early 1920's the bathing machine had become obsolete. Even at the time this picture was taken, it's hard to imagine that modesty was as carefully observed as in earlier years. After all, the woman in the middle of the postcard stands in knee-deep water, wearing a wet bathing suit that clings to her body.