The 2010 European Urban Culture Festival took place at NTU last November and December. Organized by the European Union Centre in Taiwan and NTU Office of International Affairs in coordination with the NTU Library and NTU Office of Student Affairs, the event presented students with a variety of opportunities to delve deeply into the history and culture of five unique European seaside cities, and to learn about the transformations of their cityscapes over time. Lasting over a month, the festival featured a series of events, including a symposium, film festival and book fair, that explored the theme “The Erratic Evolution of Europe's Port Cities.”

The cities highlighted in the festival are all historical port cities that have managed to turn new pages in their development. They include Amsterdam and Rotterdam in the Netherlands, Manchester and Liverpool in England, and Barcelona in Spain.

The festival’s symposium addressed the vibrancy and transformations of these port cities via the three topics “Green Heaven with Bicycles and Bizarre Architecture: Amsterdam and Rotterdam as Livable Cities,” “A Feverish Night of Football and Rock'n Roll: Having Fun 24/7 in Manchester and Liverpool” and “Outlandish and Playful Architecture: Urban Acupuncture in Barcelona.”

During the period of the festival, the NTU Library held a book fair in its new book display area. The fair included books from the library’s collection related to these five European port cities and urban transformation as well as materials provided by the EU Centre in Taiwan, Office of International Affairs and the representative offices of the Netherlands, Great Britain and Spain.

The festival curator, Prof. Michelle Tsung-yi Huang of the Department of Geography, organized the series of festival events to present a representative view of the pulse of urban society and spirit of humanity one experiences while visiting the featured cities. The festival proved to be a great success in inspiring curiosity among the NTU student body and faculty to explore these great metropolises. Future European Urban Culture Festivals will continue to introduce and explore other European cities under the spirit of cultural promotion and education.