#2990 pdin 9 - vacation memories day 14 Amsterdam (Thursday 18 Sept)

A quick follow up to yesterday's post: I am feeling a lot better today. The amount of sleep I got was a lot. I was in bed by 8 pm and woke up around 5:30 am. I'm happy to say that I have been up and moving around all day. My body feels better, not as achy. I've been a little dizzy, but mostly okay. Whew. That was rough.

Now on to the good stuff!

ussie with Sunflowers

This was our last full day of vacation. The plan for the day was to visit the Van Gogh Museum, stop in bookstores, go on a dark history tour, and pack.

After breakfast in the hotel, Lizzie guided us to the Van Gogh Museum which was about a 30 minute walk from the hotel. Of course it was raining, so most of my view was from under my quickly deteriorating black umbrella. It was a nice walk, though, as I was getting used to walking in the rain, looking our for bikes, and enjoying the ambience of Amsterdam.

We purchased our tickets well in advance and had a timed entry, so we were able to skip the long line and go right in. The museum is modern with lots of natural light in the common areas - not where the art is, of course. The first thing you see is a three story screen with changing photos of Van Gogh's paintings, and on another wall, a few of his quotes. I loved this one:

inside the Van Gogh Museum

The museum is beautifully laid out on three levels. The first level is his early work when he was developing his style. The most famous painting on this level is probably The Potato Eaters...

The Potato Eaters

...but I like his self-portraits better. Since he didn't have much money, he painted self-portraits as a way to develop his skill and style. 

Self-Portrait with Straw Hat

On the second floor of the museum, the star of the show is undoubtedly Sunflowers.

Sunflowers

Seeing this painting in real life brought me to tears. I could have slithered to the floor and cried ugly tears. Why? I guess when I see something like a painting like this, something that I've seen a hundred times in books or on the interwebs, something that is just a fact, a given, something that is so common you might overlook it and take it for granted, to see it in person is a little overwhelming, I guess. I felt the same way looking at the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, especially the first time. I got teary-eyed seeing the dome of St. Peter's Basilica and Angkor Wat. Maybe it's that young Sandy would have never imagined that she would have the chance to see these things in real life. I believe that part of the emotion from Sunflowers is the story of Vincent Van Gogh himself: the remarkable self-taught talent, the mental illness, the tragic end. Through all of that, he painted this simple, glorious work. The colors are so vibrant and the imperfections make it perfect, and I loved it a lot.

Also, did you know that Van Gogh actually painted seven versions of Sunflowers? Five of them are in museums around the world. One was lost in World War II, and another is owned by a private collector. 

On the third floor, you can see Irises.

Irises

This one is so beautiful, too. I love the dark flowers and the simple vase. The background color is so wonderful. I like his use of yellows. Here, the yellow background emphasizes the dark blue flowers. I was reading that the flowers were originally purple, but time has faded them to this dark blue.

The final painting on the third floor is Almond Blossom.

Almond Blossom

What I loved the most about this one is the story behind it. Vincent had a brother, Theo, who was his best friend. When Theo and his wife, Jo, had a baby, Vincent gave them this painting as a gift. Isn't that blue background breathtaking? The child was named Vincent Willem, and it was Vincent Willem who founded this remarkable museum. 

There were so many other paintings that made me stop in my tracks and sigh with pleasure. I was going to post some, but I got to six and decided that could be a post for another day. I do have 21 more posts to write in November!

After we explored all three floors of the museum, we went back for another look at Sunflowers. I scooched my way right up to the front to get a full on pic of the painting. I didn't cry on the second look. I was too busy smiling. 

We ended our hours in the museum - I don't even know how long we were in there! - by doing some serious power shopping in the gift shops. No regrets. I love everything I bought. Thinking back, if there was one thing I wish I had purchased, it was a book called Life According the Vincent: 150 Inspiring Quotes. (BTW it is available on the museum website, and Christmas is coming!)

Dazzled and stunned,  we stood outside the museum for a few minutes deciding our course of action. We decided to wander back to the hotel, taking a different route. It was our hope we would find a cafe where we could have some lunch and find some shops so I could get a t-shirt for T.  We accomplished both of those things, and as a bonus, we got to walk through a bit of Vondelpark, a lovely green space.

Vondelpark

Here are some photos I took of Amsterdam that day as we wandered:

Rijksmuseum - the National Museum of the Netherlands

another charming street

I think I could live in this house

classic! iconic!

a cute area right behind our hotel with a giant bookstore

We did stop in bookstores - nearly all that we passed by, I think. Most of the time we didn't buy anything. When we did buy something, it was postcards and/or magnets. I liked going into the bookstores. There were always lots of people in them, and I guess it made me feel happy to know that people still read actual books. 

In the evening we took a dark history tour. Amsterdam does have some serious dark history. We were the only guests on the tour, and our guide was a bit twitchy. She kept touching the ends of her hair and rubbing her mouth, nose, and eyes and she kind of made me uncomfortable. She seemed surprised when we weren't interested in going through the Red Light District. As it was, we were on the outskirts of it, and that was enough for me. I saw plenty.

When we got back to the hotel, we got a few beers in the lounge and spent some time tipsy packing, which may be the best way to do it, honestly. 

Sadly, my umbrella did not survive the trip. She stayed in Amsterdam.

RIP umbrella

So that's it! The next day we went to the airport and spent our waiting time in the KLM Lounge; that felt really nice. The flight was fine, and then we were back in SLC. Lizzie stayed over Friday and Saturday and went back to LA on Sunday. I was back to work on Monday, and just like that, eight months of waiting and two weeks of traveling through Central Europe were done. I loved every minute, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. So. Fun.

I hoped you enjoyed reading through the vacation memories as much as I enjoyed reliving them through writing and posting the photos. Where to next? I'm not sure, but I'll come up with something!