2022.04 Amsterdam weekend, Keukenhof and Rijksmuseum Part 5 – Rijksmuseum
After a second lunch to have our favourite food at our favourite restaurant, we headed over to Netherlands’ national museum, the Rijksmuseum. It was a great day, even if we still had a bit of jetlag.
Dim Sum
Since visiting Sea Palace on our honeymoon I enjoy finding ways, and excuses, to stop in Amsterdam to enable us to have Dim Sum. Schedule a 23 hour connection? Of course! Route an-almost-around-the-world trip to go through Amsterdam? Definitely. On this trip we stopped for Dim Sum both days for lunch. In fairness, had our flight arrived earlier on the first day, I joked “We could have had Dim Sum!” In reality, the jetlag would have had us sleeping with our heads on the plates instead on that first day.
For our two visits during this trip, we had a relaxing tempo to our day. I didn’t schedule anything for the mornings. That allowed us to have a leisurely breakfast, relax, and then head to Sea Palace for lunch, and then onward to sightseeing for the rest of the day.
With our stomachs full, it was time to explore and enjoy our afternoons. On both days the weather co-operated being clear, albeit fresh with a cool breeze.
On our second day our destination was the Rijksmuseum.
Rijksmuseum
I’m sad to say that this was our first time visiting since the museum’s renovation, which was completed in 2013! We visited during the renovation work and saw their “Taste of” or “Best of” collection that was available during the ten year long renovation period.
The building is spectacular. With the entrance from the middle of the building it’s a healthy mix of the original building and new spaces to handle the crowds. Our visit was during the afternoon of a weekend and it was busy but seemed very manageable.
We started from the top of the museum where they had an early bi-plane on display:
From there as we made our way down, the main area was the gallery above the outdoor pedestrian walkway. The architecture and stained glass of the building was impressive on its own:
In the picture below, beyond those doors was the main area that had a selection of Dutch painters, but also one of their significant artworks on display,
Rembrandt’s The Night Watch:
Seeing a massive piece of art in person and up close always gives me pause and praise for the artist’s skill. This painting was not something quickly made. The rigging and lack of frame were hints that restoration work being performed on it. We did look for Vermeer’s “Milkmaid”, however found out it had been loaned out. Other things on this floor included Delft blue:
In another section of the museum were nautical items, and here, the scale of this item certainly ensured this model ship would not sit on a desk:
One interesting part of the museum was the library, where we could just step into and take it in. It looks like the standard that every movie copies:
The architecture in the new section also stood on its own. The way that the light streamed into the lobby areas above the entrances:
Being one who is sarcastic, I did do a double take around some of the artwork, however still life of food at a table always seemed to be a painting style that appears to be a popular punchline. Seeing it up close though, and the detail of the food, along with the shading made me appreciate the skill involved in the work. Even from this picture, doesn’t the cut apple on the plate at front look ready to fall with a knock on the table?
We didn’t explore all of the museum. One item that did make me laugh was the historical context of the way of life:
The drinking part certainly was true when we visited during past Queen’s Day celebrations. We were the odds one out it appeared, as we didn’t have any alcohol in our hands during that day.
This is an excellent museum to visit, and I highly recommend it if you make your way to Amsterdam. Personally, out of the three museums in the area (Van Gogh and Stedelijk) I’d say this is the must visit.
Explore other parts of this trip:
Part 1 – Air Canada flight Toronto to Zurich
Part 2 – Connection in Zurich, Swiss flight Zurich to Amsterdam
Part 5 – Rijksmuseum (this post!)