Rotterdam Architecture

A boat approaches Foster's World Port Center, left, Hotel New York, once the headquarters of the Holland-America Line, center, and the Montevideo apartment block designed by Francine Houben of Mecanoo Architects, at just over 152 meters (500 feet) the Netherlands' tallest residential tower, background, at the Wilhelminapier in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, May, 16, 2007. On May 14, 1940 a Nazi bombardment flattened buildings and sparked an inferno that destroyed most of downtown Rotterdam, creating an architects' playground during post-World War II reconstruction. As part of its City of Architecture year that has just kicked off, Rotterdam has launched a Web site with descriptions and anecdotes about 40 of the city's most interesting buildings.