Our big plan for the day was a visit to the famous Rijksmuseum. We found our way there by tram - very easy. We needed a bit of a pick-me-up so started in the museum cafe with a coffee served in a rather beautiful space by smartly and formally dressed waiters. The museum was excellent. Not as large and overwhelming as I felt it might be. There were a few works I had tagged not to miss, but I think we saw most of the museum's works anyway. The building is rather awkward to navigate, being on 4 levels, with a messy floor plan, and stairs not always available in the obvious places.
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| Rijksmuseum cafe |
Highlights for us were some Brueghel-like scenes recording daily life, some of the Rembrandts and Vermeers, and the small display of De Stijl (Dutch Art Nouveau) on the top floor. We walked out thinking we had spent about 2 hours, consulted our watches and found we had spent a full 3 hours inside!
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| By Peeter Baltens (similar to a Breugel) 16th century. |
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| In 1820 the Netherlands was the first country to introduce the metric system (though devised in France in the 1790s). Displayed are the standard metre, kilogram and volume measures. |
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| Diorama of a scene in the Dutch East Indies |
We all thoroughly enjoyed the Rijksmuseum. There weren't many people there so it wasn't a problem elbowing for a view of the famous Van Gogh and other paintings. In fact, there don't seem to be that many tourists in the city at all. Many of the bars and restaurants are nearly empty. May has been unseasonably cold and wet in France and maybe it has been in the Netherlands too, deterring tourists.
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| Van Gogh's self portrait |
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| 'Wheatfield' by Van Gogh |
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| Upstairs interior of the museum |
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| The chairs John particularly wanted to see. The first is the forerunner of the famous Red Blue chair |
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| More Rietveld chairs |
After leaving the museum 1.30pm it was time for an injection of food. We wandered back through the main shopping area and found a nice small cafe for a sandwich/quiche. It was threatening to rain again but we were all keen to keep strolling, and Alastair was particularly keen to view more of the residential neighbourhoods. Both he and Sophie have been very taken with the comfortable feel of the city and love the fact that most people cycle everywhere. There are also substantial greenery along many of the streets and plenty of reserves.
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| Playing on the footpath |
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| Two of the 4000 tropical parrots that live in Amsterdam |
By the time we arrived back at the apartment we had walked another 15km for the day. We were a little weary but had very much enjoyed the day. After a bit of a breather and cup of tea we popped around the corner and tried out a well-reviewed frites place. The Netherlands is known for it frites (fries), as well as its waffles. The fries were very tasty but it was necessary to retire to a nearby bar for a pint of beer. It was a leisurely way to end the day.
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| Shopfront display of cannabis products in a 'Coffeeshop' |
