Mijn Avontuur in Oranje Land: Amsterdam - You’ll just have to see it for yourself!

One of the many views from the train.

With another week of classes completed, it was time for another trip. This time we took the train 2 ½ hours north to Amsterdam! With a paper due the following week we boarded the train at 7:30am to maximize our two days before we returned on Saturday night. The train ride was enjoyable and took us through the Netherlands with several stops along the way. Once we arrived there was so much to see. Unfortunately a few places don't allow for pictures so I guess that means you will have to book a trip to see them yourself.

Once we arrived in Amsterdam we headed to the Rijks Museum. Rijks is a national museum dedicated to arts and history. With over 8000 objects of art and history on display we knew that there was no chance to see everything so we opted for the 90 minute “top sites” feature on the app that you could download for your mobile phone.

There was a lot of beautiful pieces in the museum not to mention the stunning features of the building that was opened in 1885.

Rijks Museum

Rembrandt's The Night Watch from1642

Still Life with Books, Jan Lievens, c. 1627 - c. 1628

Model of a 17th century Dutch warship

The Battle of Terheide, Jan Abrahamsz. Beerstraten, 1653 - 1666

Part of the Dolls' house of Petronella Oortman
c. 1686 - c. 1710

Me and my two temple guardian friends. c. 1300 - c. 1400

Van Gohg self portrait from 1887.
My favorite painting from the weekend.

In the Month of July
Paul Joseph Constantin Gabriel, c. 1889

Shipwreck off a Rocky Coast, Wijnand Nuijen, c. 1837

Library inside Rijks

After our Rijks tour, and because it was afternoon, we headed to the Heineken Experience. The self-tour was a fun experience to see the history of Heineken inside the original brewery. We were also granted a few complementary beverages and a nice little souvenir glass from the tour.

Later in the day we walked around the canals and the city center. We took in some of the sites including Oude Kerk, the Royal Palace of Amsterdam, and the red light district.

Royal Place of Amsterdam

Oude Kirk

A PG picture of the Red Light District

I amsterdam sign infront of the Rijks

After our walking tour we ended up back at the Van Gogh Museum. On Fridays, the museum is open until 10pm so we went inside where there was a bar and dj. It was a different feel than most museums. There are several paintings from Van Gogh and artists that inspired him. Unfortunately, we were not able to take pictures of the paintings inside but if you visit Amsterdam you need to go to the museum.

Saturday we woke up excited to see more sites. One of our hall mates informed us that we should arrive at the Anne Frank House before the 9am opening time. Our early morning walk was full of sites and then we finally arrived at 8:45am to an already long line. We waited 30 minutes to get into the museum but there was a line behind us by 9am that was about a 2 hour wait.

The front of the building where the business

was located.

The museum was also very interesting and moving. The hideaway was larger than I expected but would have easily became uncomfortable. It was also very well hidden within the building. I would highly recommend taking the tour, but arrive very early.

Pictures were not allowed inside.

After the Anne Frank House we were hungry and went a few blocks away to The Pancake Bakery. Luckily we were able to sit down quickly but a line formed soon after. I ordered the Canadian that included crispy bacon, onions, mushrooms, ham and cheese. Olivia opted for the Belgian that included apples, raisins, sugar nuts, Cointreau, vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. Of course we shared and both were delicious.