Today we moved from Douwe's apartment in the Pijp which is conveniently located near the Museums. His place is fine; a work in progress best describes it. We weren't unhappy there but the stairs are scary. We lugged our hefty suitcases onto the tram like good flash packers do and headed over to the Plantage district. We couldn't access the apartment until later but noted that we're on the first floor and the stairs go straight up. The apartment is located opposite the entry to Artis, the Amsterdam zoo. Trust them to have an interesting name rather than 'Zoo'.
After a reviving coffee we headed to the Van Gogh Museum. Yes, through great planning we are now visiting attractions local to where we used to stay. Still, the tram system here is fab and it took less than 30 minutes - a lot easier without luggage too!
The festival of festivals was well into full swing so we caught the end of a performer in the young pianist program doing a great job of Bach. An attendant informed us that this festival is to launch the cultural season for the coming year. A bit like an extremely highbrow Moomba, except popular.
We lined up at the Van Gogh for the 1pm entry. Children, whatever you do always pre-book Museums and attractions wherever possible. It saves a lot of time.
The current exhibition reflects on Vincent's work from deciding to be an artist in 1880 to his death in 1890. During that time he was certainly prolific - over 900 paintings and 1100 drawings in a decade. What the exhibition showed was that much of his early work was highly derivative. He really found his style once he got to Paris though and his landscapes and still lifes from then on are stunning.
After the exhibition we went separate ways and I headed to the Rijksmuseum to procure a ticket for tomorrow. This museum has recently completed an extensive and expensive renovation. I've no idea what it was like before but the entrance foyer is spacious and a great meeting place or collection point. The scale of this place may mean it's less crowded than Vince's place. We'll see tomorrow.
I headed into Dam Square, so named because it was the original dam for the Amstel River that permitted the creation of Amstel Dam. Took the obligatory photos - the Royal Palace that used to be the Post Office; the shopping centre that used to be the Royal Palace. I caught the tram to Rembrandt square where there's a life-sized replica of The Night Watchmen in bronze, overseen by the master himself. The positioning of the statues allowed tourists and locals alike to show how not to behave. A little further on is the Magere Burg (bridge) which is only one span wide. Legend has it that they ran out of materials.
Back at the apartment we gained entry and it is fabulous. Two bedrooms, a great living space with chandelier - we could have been Liberace and Scott except there's no piano. We sat on the balcony having a drink and sharing our separate experiences while watching all the Mums and Dads with kinder coming out of the zoo. Probably give that a miss.
Dined locally at a delightful and friendly Italian - Sapori del Mondo. The food was lovely and the hostess very friendly and forgiving, especially when Bruce inadvertently poured a sizable carafe of balsamic into his he realized this when he took a big mouthful.
Of course, we had to wander past the ice cream parlor to get home.