Photos

Dordrecht (population 119,649 in 2004), or in English (and locally colloquially): Dordt, is a city and municipality in the Dutch province of South Holland, the third largest city of the province. The municipality covers the entire Dordrecht Island, bordered by the rivers Oude Maas, Beneden Merwede, Nieuwe Merwede, Hollands Diep, and Dordtsche Kil.

The name Dordrecht comes from Thyre, the name of a river, and Middle Dutch drecht "channel", meaning "Thure river crossing". Some documentation speaks of the river actually being called Thuredrith. Inhabitants of Dordrecht are Dordtenaren (singular: Dordtenaar).

The photograph was taken on the steps off Voorstraat leading down to the canal which flows around the Grote Kerk cathedral from the south. My friends who were travelling with me from Poland to Aberdeen, stepped down and became real actors in this unique theatre of shadow and light.