Just too many museums...

A rainy day in Amsterdam. What to do? Visit some more museums. Not Don's favourite activity but he seemed to enjoy them!

Some sights on our walk today......

                                                  Where else can you buy 50 tulips for 10£?

                                                       Or Cannibas beer?

                                                         Or smoke your joints inside?

We visited the Hermitage Museum which houses a large collection of Impressionism paintings as well as the Van Gogh collection since that museum is closed for renovations. Two for the price of one!

We were both impressed with the Van Gogh collection. I was amazed to be that close to so many of his works. It is one thing to see pictures of his paintings but another to actually be able to see his brushstrokes and the use of color especially in his later works. The collection also gave an overview of his evolution as a painter, he started out as a preacher. As well as his eventual placement in a mental institution and an early death at 37 by gunshot wound.

There were a number of self portraits including this one. He was too poor to hire models so he worked on himself. It gave him more freedom to experiment.



The other exhibit gave the history of the Impressionism movement in France which started in the mid 1800s as a rebellion against the classical works that were so popular at that time. The painters Monet, Cezanne, Renoir and Gaugin were all represented in the exhibit. My favourite ones were the really large works by Monet and the sculptures by Rodin. Don wasn't too impressed with them at all but liked the earlier classical pieces. He said at least he could understand them!

 Claude Monet painted many outdoor water scenes including this one.These pictures are a lot more delicate than Van Gogh's broad strokes.

Viewing Monet's work

After that workout we stopped for some refreshments at a etcafe around the corner and then continued on to the Dutch Resistance Museum. After walking the wrong way we got ourselves oriented  but that meant we only got an hour or so at the museum. We both agreed we could have stayed longer as the exhibits were so interesting.

              Making sure the head is level and the beer glass stops at the exact measurement



This museum tells the story through interactive exhibits of the lives of the Dutch people just proceeding World War II and then the years from 1940- 1945 when Holland was occupied by the Nazis. The exhibits are set up to question whether in such a circumstance was it better to Adapt? Collaborate? Or Resist? It then goes on to tell the stories of ordinary Dutch citizens and what decisions they made during the war.

                                               Questions that had to be answered by the Dutch people


At the beginning of the war there were 140,000 Jews living in Holland and as can be seen by the numbers below very few survived.

We learned how some of them did survive with help from their neighbours and many that died as the Nazis started there reign of terror. The museum chronicles how the Dutch Resistance movement started and how it survived and operated throughout the war. As a result the Germans who at first hoped to persuade the Dutch to support them quickly realized that for part of the population this was not to be.

                                                         Posters encouraging the Dutch to join the Nazis

                                    All the Jews had to wear the Star of David

                                                       The bones of many that did not survive the camps.



We follow the Dutch through occupation, the difficult decisions that were made, for example they surrendered after five days. The decision by many to join the NSB, the Nazi Party, and the actions of others who risked their lives to resist. We would highly recommend this place if you have any interest in WWII history.

After a long day and a long walk in the rain back to our apartment we decided to pick up some cod, salad and wine to  eat in again tonight. So much easier than going back out in the rain.