Blogs from North Holland, Netherlands, Europe - page 8

http://www.heygo.com 9th February - Trading on Tolerance - Amsterdam Amsterdam has famously tolerated prostitution (Red Light District), Catholics (Hidden Churches) and cannabis (Coffeeshops) when all those things were illegal. Mark, our guide today explained and charted the history of these 'tolerances' through to the present day. The Dutch concept of tolerance dates back to the end of the Eighty Years’ War, after William of Orange, had just been crowned King and as a Protestant monarch decided to let the Catholic minority have the freedom to practice their faith as they saw fit. This was really a big deal and it would never have happened in countries like France, England, Rome or majority of the Italian City-States at that time. This not only laid a foundation for tolerance in the Netherlands, it planted the seeds that would ... read more

Back onto the train towards Amsterdam, NETHERLANDS. Our lodging is in a cozy little room right on a canal. Trying to cross the road is like taking your life in your hands. There are 850,000 residents here, and 850,000 bicycles, and the cyclists have the right of way. Thousands of bikes are stollen each year, and many are found in the canals. Oh, and no-one wears helmets. A fresh day, and off to the Albert Cuyp Market. Many stalls sell the stroopwafels that taste like a waffle and caramel cookie combined. There is a bird of paradise tree for sale, huge figs, local art work, and tasty sausages, plus clothing booths. Our girls suggest we attend the Rijksmuseum. The building contains paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer and Van Gogh. You can stand and watch Rembrandt’s famous Night ... read more

Today I spent most of the day visiting two of the world’s great art museums. The Rijksmuseum contains Dutch art through the centuries and the Van Gogh Museum contains works by, well, I’m sure you can guess. The Rijksmuseum’s collection of works by Rembrandt includes his famous Night Watch (featured on Dutch Masters Cigar boxes). This large painting presented a bit of a spectacle because the museum is systematically rescanning all of its holdings and The Night Watch was on the schedule today. It was hard to see much of the painting, but it was interesting to see the computer-driven camera scan back and forth over a section of canvas. Another artist I wanted particularly to see is Johannes Vermeer. The Rijksmuseum has the world’s largest collection of Vermeer paintings - four. The Milkmaid is one ... read more

Today was the only day of the trip where I had an early morning flight so I was at the airport by 6AM. I flew to Amsterdam, and it felt a little like a homecoming since I have been here a couple of times before (not counting the several times I’ve passed through the airport). I headed for the city center at Dam Square with the identifying obelisk and then I went for a walk around the Jordaan district west of there. It is very picturesque with many gabled houses and pretty canals. I had booked an entry time online for the Anne Frank house and visited there in the middle of the afternoon. The house itself is preserved, but the house next to it has been turned into a modern efficient visitor-friendly building. That is ... read more

The war in Europe is over. Celebrating was fervent in North America - massive crowds filled Canadian streets - there were parades, band concerts, tickertape was dropped from the sky by aircraft -offices and some factories (not churning out war materials for the ongoing Pacific battles) closed and students left their classes to participate. There were many prayers and tears of relief. Many cities wisely prepared for the surrender announcement by ordering liquor stores and drinking establishments be closed to prevent over "exuberance" and potential looting. In the Netherlands there was great celebration as well - for the Dutch there was finally food and freedom - every village, street and house was decked with red, white and blue Dutch flags and orange streamers. The Canadians - Private Kelley included - were greeted with a tumultuous welcome. ... read more