Stuff you walk on...

With so many amazing buildings to catch your eye here in Europe you don't think too much about what you are walking on ... but you should!

When we first arrived here in Rotterdam I took note that most of the sidewalks and streets were not paved. They usually look something like this:

Seems durable, and looks nice. I walk to work every day along paths such as this and I started to notice the utility of this surfacing. The blocks are laid down on top of a packed sand surface with a gap left between them and filled with sand.

I've seen an efficient crew completely tear up and stack a section of a sidewalk or road such as this, move the sand to access the pipe or wire, get the work done, repack the sand, relay the blocks, and have it all back together all in the course of an afternoon.

Perhaps there IS a career path for those who want to play with Lego blocks for the rest of their lives?

The only downside is that it isn't quite as uniform a surface as pavement so you DO have to watch were you are walking or you may catch your shoe on a brick that is sticking up just a little.

Now for one of those amazing buildings that are going to cause you to trip because you aren't watching where you are going. This is the Rotterdam City Hall (Stadhuis) that I walk past every day on my way to work.