Trend 2026

“It’s like the exhilaration of the first summer days spent in amazing places. The energy of the hot sun gives me a boost and drives me forward.” May 24, 2026 

 Tracklist:

Flava D, Anaïs, Dread MC — Entertainer

1991 — Kabuki

Harriet Jaxxon, Jolie P — Everything But U

Makoto, Rasmus Faber — Swing Drops

Technimatic — Days That I Once Knew

Indivision — Sweet Surrender

Viridity, Acris — Golden Skies

Bcee, Charlotte Haining (Emba Remix) — Give Me a Break

Beat Merchants, Dan-I (Command Strange Remix) — Hurricane

Alexvnder — What I do I Love

Gabriella Bongo, lina lexa — Chemistry

America 2.0

  I sometimes refer to Rotterdam as a kind of “little New York.” The local community is highly diverse and multicultural. Like New York, Rotterdam is closely connected to water and its port, with a significant portion of the city built on land reclaimed from the sea. For centuries, the Dutch expanded the coastline by draining and protecting coastal areas.

Within the Dutch context, the city is quite unique in how openly it embraces high-rise construction. While cities such as Amsterdam and Utrecht are more constrained by historic architecture and skyline preservation, Rotterdam has had greater freedom for modern development since the middle of the twentieth century.

The Wilhelminapier area (part of Kop van Zuid) is one of the city’s main high-rise districts, and additional projects are still being planned there. Major transformations are also taking place around Feyenoord and throughout large parts of Rotterdam-Zuid.

However, development is not limited to the southern part of the city. High-rise projects are also emerging around Rotterdam Centraal, in the Coolhaven and Maritime District areas, along the River Maas, and within former port and industrial zones that are gradually being transformed into modern urban neighborhoods. The Maashaven area is also undergoing significant redevelopment, with extensive port facilities steadily being converted into new residential districts focused on housing, public space, and better use of the waterfront.

Source: eu-space.europa.eu

As a result, Rotterdam may represent the closest European example of a city attempting to address limited space in a manner similar to some North American and Asian cities—through greater density and vertical development.

In my opinion, Rotterdam also has some similarities to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It’s not because of the skyscrapers or the fact that both are coastal cities, but rather because of things like the changeable weather. Sometimes the weather in Rotterdam can change in an instant, much like it does in Melbourne. And in its own way, Rotterdam’s position relative to Amsterdam is similar to Melbourne’s position relative to Sydney.

Discussion of teenagers on a tram

 They were talking about so-called cannabis-like products, including synthetic ones, which they can buy in stores.

One of them explained that these products sometimes do not suit him, so he buys something else. He described unpleasant feelings even after taking a small dose. Another agreed but said that these effects are not as pronounced for him. He also pointed out that it is possible to save money with them. One gram for a low price lasts longer, for several days. I have heard this argument elsewhere as well.

In a way, the price for one gram is usually quite low. It is often not even eight euros per gram. Someone can have an “experience” lasting several days for very little money. Alcohol is more expensive if the goal is to achieve similar effects. THC products also tend to be weaker, and a gram containing THC is apparently more expensive.

Another example was at a bus stop. A group of high school students were talking about how, when a classmate uses this type of cannabis substitute, he is unable to control himself. They had even given it to him at school so that he would be confused during classes. This was not the first time, more teenager groups on the street talking about similar situations, where a group would mock someone—sometimes quite enthusiastically—when that person experienced problems after using such substances. 

World of flipped seasons

   “Aussie news”

  As an “Aussie” keeping an eye on what’s going on back home, I’ve noticed a rise in reports coming out of Sydney and the wider New South Wales coast about shark incidents.

Across Aussie media, shark-focused pages, and SharkSmart alerts, there’s been a noticeable uptick in reports of shark encounters and beach closures around Sydney.

2026 has been a pretty unusual year for the Sydney region. Back in January, the NSW coastline saw a run of four shark incidents within just 48 hours. Some of them happened right around Sydney, which led to multiple beach closures and kicked off a big public debate about swimming safety. Experts at the time called it an extraordinary situation.

Then in June, there was another serious incident at Coogee Beach in Sydney. A 35-year-old woman was attacked a few dozen metres off the shore and suffered life-threatening injuries. Authorities responded by shutting down beaches from Bondi through to Maroubra and rolling out intensive aerial patrols along the coastline.

In NSW, a typical year usually sees around 4–6 shark incidents. In 2026, the numbers are higher at about 7–8 overall, with 3–4 around the Sydney area.

Why do I like the EU?

  For me, this question has a rather simple answer.

Because I like the Benelux countries and continental Western Europe…

    European Union 

   

     The Benelux countries, as well as France and continental Western Europe as a whole, represent regions that have historically been very closely interconnected. Strong economic ties, intensive trade relations, and the gradual removal of barriers between states created an environment in which the idea of deeper European cooperation found natural support. Today, people primarily associate openness without border controls with the Schengen Area, but the roots of this effort to connect European countries reach much further back into history.

It is therefore not surprising that many of the fundamental pillars of European integration emerged largely within the Benelux environment. In this sense, Benelux became something of a laboratory for European unification and a model for several mechanisms that were later applied on a broader European scale. France also played an important role in shaping the early stages of European integration.

It was precisely the combination of idealism and pragmatic politics that helped bring the European project to life. Without the conviction held in the Benelux countries and much of France that European nations could cooperate more closely than ever before, the process of integration would probably never have begun. At the same time, however, it could not have succeeded without the realistic balancing of national interests and the search for compromises acceptable to all parties involved.

European integration therefore did not emerge solely as a result of lofty ideals, nor merely as an exercise in cold political calculation. It was a product of both. Benelux and France were among the regions and states that significantly shaped this historical process and gave it a form.

Of course, Italy and West Germany were also closely associated with the origins of the European project. The beginning of European integration is generally considered to be the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951. Its founding members were Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, West Germany, and Italy.

The European Union itself, however, was formally established much later through the Maastricht Treaty, which was signed in 1992 and entered into force in 1993. This treaty transformed the existing European Communities into a broader political framework and introduced new areas of cooperation, including common foreign and security policies and closer coordination in matters of justice and home affairs.

For this reason, when I say that I like the European Union, I am referring not only to the institutions created by the Maastricht Treaty, but also to the longer historical process that made them possible. It is the story of neighbouring countries choosing cooperation over rivalry, compromise over confrontation, and the belief that shared interests can provide a foundation for lasting peace and prosperity.