Destination: Amsterdam
Shattered after my previous days adventures, I snoozed my alarm and slept much longer than I had intended. When I finally emerged from the TentBox, I was sad to realise that Kidde and Ulrich had left for home. Also, I needed to get a wiggle on, as I had a few things I really wanted to see during todays trip into the city.
Stop 1: Amsterdam
As with the previous day, I decided to get the bus from outside the campsite to Schipol and then the train into Amsterdam. I met a lovely Italian family at the bus stop and we chatted for a while about my previous Italian adventures. They originated from Florence, which was one of my favourite places, and I was happy I could help them get into the city.
I met Em and Ferris at the station and we checked their bags at the luggage lockers at the front of the station, as they were heading home that day. But first we wanted to see a bit of culture, so we made for the Metro. Getting off at Vijzelgracht, we grabbed some delicious food at Bagelboy, then headed over the road.
I’d not been able to get tickets to the Van Gogh museum as it had sold out weeks before. But I was happy that we were going to the imposing Rijksmuseum, as that holds pieces from many of the Dutch Masters.
Rijksmuseum
There was a short wait to get into the museum as it was so busy but the queues were very well managed and we were soon inside. We made our way to pick up a free map from the infomation desk, and then to pick up our interactive guides. I would most definitely 100% recommend getting one of these. Although they do take a while to figure out, you’d miss so much without them as the museum is huge. Additionally, they feature a great ‘highlights’ tour which helps you locate the key pieces if you don’t have much time to explore.
It was incredible to see so many paintings by artists like Vermeer and Van Gogh alongside those by the Dutch Master Rembrandt. I was also particularly struck by the ‘Portrait of an African Man‘ (Jan Mostaert c1530) which is thought to be the earliest painting of a dark skinned nobleman.
The museum hosts a huge amount of artwork, not just paintings. I was also very taken by the Asian Pavilion. This hosts a collection of eastern art, including the japanse sculpture of Budda Amida Nyorai, which really draws you in. And right behind this serene deity the fierce and protective Temple Guards, which stand around 2.5m tall.
Centrepiece of this collection is a bronze of Shiva Nataraja, which is delightful, and whose playfulness definitely brings a smile.
VondelPark
Before heading back to pick up the luggage, we decided to go for a stroll around the Vondelpark. It was a shame the weather had taken a bit of a turn as the past few days had been so lovely. But we still enjoyed our stroll around the gardens, and sat at a bench for a while just listening to the sounds of the city.
As we headed back out of the park we passed the statue of the writer Joost van den Vondel after whom the park had been named. He didn’t seem to be having such a great time of it, but it made us giggle anyway.
It wasn’t long before I had to say cheerio to Emily and Ferris, and left them at the station to get their train to Schipol and flight home. They’d left me with a little challenge so I completed that and then headed for the closest pub qo quickly use the loo.
It was quite a while before I left O’Reilly’s having bumped into a lovely group of people from Birmingham. But I thought I’d best get back to the campsite while I still knew how!
On my way back to the station I had one last look at Dam Square and then it was back on the train to Schipol.
Overnight: Amsterdam Bos
As luck would have it, I arrived at Schipol just in time to get the last bus back to the campsite, otherwise it’d have to have been a taxi.
