Rotterdam Rambles

It wasn't long into our journey that spirits were dampened (or should I say drenched) by an onslaught of heavy showers, along with roaring thunder & lightning.
Once the storm passed we wandered along a path until we came to the Euromast. This had been one of our intended stops, however I was reluctant due to a crippling fear of heights. Regardless, we went up the steps to information to see the price of voluntary torture. As we neared the queue we were approached by a stereotypical tourist (flowery shirt, board shorts, camera, family in tow) speaking in a rushed foreign language, thrusting pieces of paper at us, only ceasing as we accepted his offering. Once he had left we inspected the papers to discover that they were free admittance tickets to the Euromast!
These allowed us queue jumping privileges, so onwards and upwards we went!
Once at the top, the vista was incredible. To my right was the emerging sun, to my left was a blanket of grey cloud- all enveloping the city skyline. The views were so prodigious, I'll never forget that feeling.
Or the feeling of descending in the lift.
Across the street there was another of our activities- the water bus. We ambled over to where the next group were stood & formed our own clique, discussing our plan of action. Mid-conversation a man sidled over & initiated a conversation in Dutch, which drew nothing but blank faces from our party. After furtive apologies the stranger revealed that he had thought we were locals (apparently we had a Dutch look), & that he was the tour guide for the bus. After an exchange of niceties and background stories to our trip, he parted company for final tour preparations, but not before he had promised us the best seats for the journey.
Once ready, the guide stood atop the bus to introduce himself & what was to come. When it came time to board, the mob surged forwards but were halted, & instead we were beckoned over to embark. Horrifyingly embarrassed, we shimmied past the herd to take our seats at the front of the bus; something that earned a few scowls.
The tour was a terrific insight into the history of the buildings, architecture, & also the culture- things you would never have known had a local not told you. After streets of housing & parks came the moment we had been waiting for: the submersion.
As we neared the water's edge we all fell silent, 'Also Sprach Zarathustra' (commonly known from Space Odyssey) blasted out, & water rushed over the wind shield-yielding many shrieks!