We spent most of the day in the Rijksmuseum (national museum), which has very many paintings and other works of art. I liked quite a few of them, so it was definitely worth the visit for me.
We took a canal cruise, which is the obvious tourist thing to do in Amsterdam, and for good reason - it was a very pleasant and interesting trip despite the weather.
Couple with matching hats standing on bridge over the entrance to Reguliersgracht.
This was the day allocated for visiting the handbag museum. (Yes, there is a handbag museum in Amsterdam.) You may be surprised to hear that it wasn’t actually my choice, but the museum was quite nice.
After that we visited the Museum Willet-Holthuysen, which is a recreation of an old canal house (well, it really is an old canal house, but I mean, the interiors have been restored to match the period).
More museums - this time, the Museum of the Canals, which had some very nice displays but wasn’t as detailed as I might have hoped - and more canal walks.
Wonky buildings along Herengracht, with the Catholic Church (De Kritberg) poking out behind.
In the evening I took a few photos inside our holiday flat, which is part of a complex built around a converted tram depot.
Birdcage lamp and red table.
1/60 at f4, 23mm, ISO400
Balcony of sleeping area.
1/4 at f2.8, 23mm, ISO1600
Friday
We spent a good chunk of the day in the Van Gogh Museum. In the afternoon we had a quick look around the red light district (but failed to hire a prostitute), then walked around a little more nearby.
Red door in the Waag (15th century building, originally a city gate).
The train back doesn’t run direct, because of customs hassles; you have to change in Belgium. On this occasion that was convenient because we managed to schedule a fairly long wait and meet one of R’s friends who lives in Brussels. So we had a nice journey to end the holiday.
