We couldn’t complain about a little rain when we had been so lucky with the weather! So when the forecast was possible storms, we saved our last full day in Amsterdam to go to the Van Gogh Museum. It was just starting to rain and was a 30 minute walk, so we cheated and took an Uber. For 10 euros, we wove through the bikes and up and around the canals. There were so few cars, just bikes that squeezed along so close to the car and no one ever bats an eye.
When we arrived, however, the sign said there were no tickets for sale at the window–you had to buy them online. What?! We stood under a large awning avoiding the rain with everyone else. The city has good wifi and we were able to buy tickets for 1:15 p.m., just 45 minutes later. They were limiting the number of people they let inside, which was great and avoided another overcrowded scene like at the aquarium with Todd and Priscila.
I did not realize that Van Gogh was from Amsterdam and this museum is the largest collection in the world. If you are a Van Gogh fan it is a must-see! It was laid out perfectly and had some personal items and even photos of him with time lines of his life. Everything was labeled in Dutch and English. Katie was thrilled because an exhibit about his work that was inspired by Japanese art had been in Japan but she missed it–and now it was here!
(As an aside, if you are a Van Gogh fan and a Doctor Who fan, then you know the episode that came to mind for us yesterday. If you are a Van Gogh fan and haven’t watched Doctor Who, you should watch Season 5, Episode 10, Vincent and the Doctor.)
If the people in Japan were on the small side, the people here are very tall. I checked online and it’s true: the Netherlands has the tallest people in the world and they are not entirely sure why. Even the women are very tall. Katie said many of the super models come from here.
We were at the museum for 3 hours and it was well appreciated by all. Amsterdam grouped several of their outstanding museums together, so there is an entire area of huge beautiful buildings that are all museums. We had time to see the “I Amsterdam” sign in the vast courtyard area between buildings. No photos in the museum, but they had screens of photos you could marvel at (and take selfies!).
We had lunch at a Mexican place we had seen before. We walked and walked all around the area, every street near a canal. We found another huge cathedral that had been transformed into an exhibit hall. What a brilliant way to use such an amazing building! Near there they had also taken the old post office and turned it into one of the most beautiful shopping plazas. Every wall, floor, and pillar was covered in marble 4 stories high. It’s worth a look if you google image pictures of the Magna Plaza.
We located a pharmacy on the way home to find eye drops to keep Katie from gouging out her itchy eyes. The very helpful employee said the pollen is so early she hardly had anything in stock yet and lots of people needing it!
I went out to find bottled water a while later. I had made the classic Europe mistake of accidentally buying sparkling water earlier. They always sell them together and ask you which you want in a restaurant. Then me and this pigeon watched the boats from the side of the canal. Even the large tour boats could stop, swing the boat around, back up a little, and make this sharp left turn. The smaller boats would pull over and everyone just worked it out, sometimes really close to each other.
In the evening we went out to find waffles and sat at a window of an alley restaurant watching the people go by. We walked to another area and sat with other people on one of the foot bridges while boat after boat cruised quietly right under us, sometimes waving or taking pictures. Some were the full tour boats, others just couples out for the evening. Some were boats with private parties and there were people of all ages. One was an oar boat with 10 men on each side and a guy calling out the strokes. A party boat went by and each person had on head phones and was singing karaoke style!
The city just felt alive! During the day, there were workers and construction and people moving about calmly but deliberately. Katie pointed out that all of the paint looks fresh, and I had seen a guy cleaning the side of a building with a 2-story long pole. We noticed there are pillars sticking out at the top of every single building and each one has a hook. We realized it is for hoisting stuff up to your apartment through the windows! I had seen guys doing it that morning. One guy would load up a net full of boxes and then pull a long rope. His buddy upstairs would wait for the stuff and pull it through the window.
The lights came on around 10 p.m., still only dusk. I had not noticed that there were street lamps and lanterns throughout the entire city. Wow, Amsterdam, nice work!
Photo: Famous I Amsterdam sign, Katie Magellan by the M
I think I love this place!