In the end, the Truffle Ricotta & Italian Ham pizza was the absolute favourite. This square (typical of Sugo) pizza, specially designed for the Pizza Contest, was topped with truffle, ricotta, Italian ham, walnuts, honey and arugula.

 

According to Deliveroo, Sugo has created a true explosion of flavours that not only looks beautiful but is also extremely tasty. The five Sugo locations (two of which are in Rotterdam) are allowed to bear the title 'Winner Pizza Contest 2019' for one year.

 

Hugo is proud to have won the Deliveroo Pizza Contest 2019: "Especially for this Pizza Contest, we have devised a pizza that optimally expresses different flavours, a real taste bomb. Also, looks matter, it has to look beautiful and tasty. We are proud to win this prize and hope that the Truffle, Ricotta & Italian Ham pizza will appeal to all our customers! ”

 

Sugo Pizza is known for its healthy square (instead of round) pizzas from Rome: the pizza al taglio. These pizzas are difficult to make and take a lot of time. Just making the dough, which consists only of flour (soy, whole grain and spelt), water, a little salt and a little yeast, takes no less than 3 days. Sugo's pizza dough is high in protein and low in carbohydrates, making it a lot healthier than the average pizza. The pizzas are topped with meats and cheeses from family farms in Italy.

 

Sugo wins Deliveroo Pizza contest 2019 02 

 

The contest was organized for the first time this year by Deliveroo. At the beginning of November, the action started and pizza lovers could vote for the first time via Instagram. The participating restaurants also encouraged customers to vote. Last Friday the final took place and the votes were counted.

 

The following restaurants participated in the Pizza Contest 2019:

 

 

"It was quite a challenge to put the puzzle together, but we did it again! The 2020 season offers all Rotterdammers a varied festival offer". With these words, Johan Moerman, director of Rotterdam Festivals, together with alderman Said Kasmi (Education, Culture and Tourism) proudly presented 2020's new events calendar; a balanced calendar that strives for a good balance between tranquillity and liveliness in the city.

 

The Rotterdam event calendar is set annually by the city council. In general, they aim to ensure a good spread of time and space, a balance between tranquillity and liveliness, and the necessary deployment of security and emergency services.

 

Johan Moerman, Rotterdam Festivals: "As a festival city, Rotterdam is highly appreciated by its residents and visitors. We want to keep it that way. Festivals make the city more fun. They create solidarity, are good for Rotterdam's image and strengthen the bond that people feel with their city. The increasing interest in festivals and the limited space in our growing city demand creativity from us and the organisers. Together, we have now made great strides, with festivals developing successfully at new festival locations. A positive development for the future".

 

Alderman Kasmi is also enthusiastic about the new festival agenda. "Rotterdam will continue to live up to its name as an attractive festival city in 2020. A wonderful festival and event season is approaching, which reflects the diversity of our city and its inhabitants. I am proud of the organizers, Rotterdam Festivals and the municipal services that have worked together on this. It's quite a job to create a varied festival offer in a more densely populated city in which we strive for a balance between peace and quiet and excitement. If I look at the calendar of events, I have succeeded. Rotterdam will also be the beautiful festival city in 2020 that we would like to stay in!"

 

The festival calendar for 2020 continues to feature familiar iconic events such as the International Film Festival Rotterdam, NN North Sea Jazz Festival, Rotterdam Unlimited and the NN Marathon. Among the newcomers are I Love Urban, Parkzicht Outdoor and Het Weelde Festival. They have all been given a place at new festival locations such as Oeverpark Nesselande, Park de Twee Heuvels IJsselmonde and in the Merwe Vierhaven area.

 

Due to their great success, the POW! WOW! festivals in the Rotterdam Street Culture Weekend and the Rotterdam Bluegrass Festival are back on the calendar. Both festivals continue to grow and excel in reaching new target groups, at new festival locations such as the Afrikaanderwijk in Rotterdam Zuid and the Pijnackerplein in Oude Noorden (Rotterdam Noord).

 

The new festival locations are important. In 2019, complaints from people living in the residential areas nearby popular festivals hit a boiling point. Therefore, in 2020, some festivals will be spaced about three to six weeks apart while others will be moved to different districts.

 

The Eurovision Song Contest, which takes place in Ahoy on 12, 14 and 16 May, is proud to be a big newcomer to the calendar. In addition, from 8 to 16 May there will be an extensive city programme with dozens of parties, public viewings and performances by artists and Rotterdam's talent in many places in the city. The official afterparties of the song festival take place in the Maassilo during this period. The former grain silo is then transformed into a Euroclub.

 

In addition to celebrating the 65th anniversary of the Eurovision Song Contest, in 2020 the celebration of 75 years of freedom and the commemoration of 80 years of bombardment will be commemorated. Together with the Liberation Festival in The Hague, the Zuid-Holland Liberation Festival will host the National Opening of the Liberation Festivals and will be given a prominent place in the activities surrounding the celebration of 75 years of Freedom in Rotterdam.

 

In 2020, it will also be 400 years since the Pilgrim Fathers left for their promised land via Delfshaven. Under the title Delfshaven400 from 17 July to 9 August, extensive attention will be paid to Rotterdam's share of this world history with music, dance, stories, exhibitions and guided tours, and the arrival of the museum ship De Halve Maen (from May 2020) as one of the major attractions for the public.

 

Together with the municipality of Rotterdam, Rotterdam Festivals strives for a diverse and attractive festival offer for as many different Rotterdammers as possible. Together, the events tell the story of the city and thus contribute to the (inter)national image of the city. Rotterdam is known as one of the best festival cities in the world and was awarded the IFEA World City & Events Award in 2019.

 

 

On 9 November 2019 AAAFRESH123 opened the exhibition 'De Kleur is Terug' (The Colour is Back) in their studio at the Zaagmolenkade in Rotterdam. De Kleur is Terug' (The Colour is Back) tells a positive story that opposes the darkness of war: the realisation that after a war, humankind will eventually be able to bring back the colour of life, anywhere in the world.

 

The artists, Hans Kleinjan (1958), Maikel Kleinjan (1984) and Roderik Faasen (1990) are very involved with Rotterdam and feel part of the strong growth that the city has experienced in recent years. This feeling is reflected in various paintings, a wide range of which was on display at the opening.

 

A future artwork is revealed

 

On this particular Saturday night, the best club in town wasn't a club at all. The best fun to be had was the opening of the exhibition. AAAFEESH123 and the next-door restaurant GaleriAAA by Mangiare are joined together by a hole in the wall. Both rooms had their own bar and entertainment.

 

 

Lauded Cuban pianist “Peruchín” Rodolfo Argudín Justiz, creator of the 'piano on timba' playing style, was also at the event and gave an impromptu live performance, accompanied by percussionists.

 

 

There were plenty of freshly made snacks, courtesy of Mangiare.

Plenty of fresh snacks 

 

To check out the exhibition, you should visit the AAAFRESH123 studio. The best way to experience the art gallery, is by combining it with lunch or dinner at GaleriAAA by Mangiare next door. The artworks are displayed in both areas, and thanks to the hole in the wall, you can hop easily between the restaurant and the studio.

 

 

 

 

EF researched language skills in 100 countries and more than 400 cities and regions. Of all the countries where the mother tongue is not English, the Netherlands has the best command of the language. Rotterdammers, in particular, scored 71.68 on a scale from 1 to 100, leaving people from Amsterdam (71.35) and The Hague (71.27) close behind.

 

Provincially, the Rotterdam region is also the best in the test. Zuid-Holland scored the best with a 71.06, followed by Noord-Holland with a 70.35 and Gelderland with a 70.17. Drenthe has the worst score in the Netherlands, averaging 68.08.

 

The educational institute Education First has published the English Proficiency Index every year since 2011. This index shows the level at which non-native English-speaking countries master the English language. For more details on how your favourite country performed in the test, check out the 2019 EF English Proficiency Index report.