Amsterdam has many museums for everyone. They even have the so called “Museum Night”, in which, once a year, on the first Saturday in November, 42 museums in Amsterdam open until 2 am! It’s a festive in itself! I remember going to a Museum Night a few years back and it was a blast. I bumped into some Dutch celebrities that were also visiting some of the museums. That’s how fun and popular the Museum Night is!
Anyway, my favourite museums in Amsterdam are Van Gogh, the Rijksmuseum (the National Museum of The Netherlands). Both museums are located in Museumplein.
I never get bored of visiting the Van Gogh Museum, even though I’ve been there many times. It’s just amazing to see the different phase of Van Gogh’s life influence his artworks. I also love the letters that he sent to his fellow painters. One could see that he thrived to improve his skills all the time, by learning from the other painters, moving to new places, and.. studying about arts, too. Impressive.
So, I took my Mom (she is also a painter!) to visit this museum. I knew she would love it. Even though the line was super long, we didn’t give up. (the line is always long. It would actually save you a lot of time if you have a museum card or buy the ticket one day before – online).
The first floor of the museum has a convenient restaurant and displays some of the best Van Gogh’s self portraits as well as his life’s milestones. The second and third floor houses Van Gogh’s paintings from different era. You could see how he evolved and changed his style.
In overall, this museum houses the largest collections of Van Gogh’s paintings in the world. You can easily spend a good three hours (or more) here.
ps: Ticket price for Van Gogh Museum is 17 Euro for adult.
The building itself is breathtaking! Pierre Cuypers, the architect of the Rijksmuseum also designed the Amsterdam’s Central Station. One could see that both buildings have the same style. He also designed some other buildings in Amsterdam, as well as houses. If you happened to walk around the city, you would see some buildings or houses look similar to the Rijksmuseum or the Central Station. All gorgeous!
One should spare plenty of time to explore this museum. One day is not enough. Really. And please wear comfortable shoes or sandals, because this museum is HUGE!
The museum displays 8,000 objects of arts and history from their total collection of 1 million objects from the years of 1200-2000. It houses the Rembrandt’s famous painting, the Night Watch.
Walking around this museum, one would be amazed not only by its collection, but by the building itself. Everything looks huge and ‘royal’. I just love it, even though my feet always screams, asking to be massaged. :))
When you’re tired from walking and enjoying the masterpieces in the Rijksmuseum, you can take a rest and have a little picnic on the grass at the Museumplein. In the summertime, the locals love to do this. Sunbathing on the grass overlooking the beautiful building of the Rijksmuseum in the sunny day, breathing the fresh air, sounds like a great way to spend the summer, right? 🙂
And yes, my Sienna Little Explorer also loves it!
ps: Ticket price for the Rijksmuseum is 17.50 Euro for adult.