TANZANIA TRIP DAY 1 (AMSTERDAM)

I visited Amsterdam 40 years ago and spent a cold, surreal New Year’s Eve evening the  walking around alone. Since our mission team to Tanzania was flying through Amsterdam, I decided to arrive two days early and get better acquainted with the city that I never really got to know.

I arrived at the crack of dawn, checked into my hotel and headed out for a scrumptious breakfast before visiting the Rijksmuseum. The streets were barren at 8 a.m. Amsterdam is a city that wakes up slowly.

I spent the day visiting three fascinating museums. I love art and museums. I missed seeing the Rijksmuseum some 40 years ago. So, that was a top priority. It has a great collection of paintings by Rembrandt, who used to live in the hotel where I am staying.

My hotel was founded in 1643. It has staircases that are narrow and sheer almost vertical and no elevators. My room has a great view. It overlooks the canal and has a beamed ceiling. It probably hasn’t been updated in 30 or 40 years.

While Rembrandt was great, I was thrilled to see works by Franz Hals at the Rijksmuseum He is one of my favorite artists. Tomorrow, I will tour the Anne Frank house and also hope to visit nearby Haarlem, where Hals was born and where a museum dedicated to him has the largest Hals collection in the world.

After the Rijksmuseum, I skipped lunch and toured an exhibit of Banksy – the famous graffiti artist and social justice critic. This was an homage to our daughters who see things in contemporary art that are often lost on me. Most of the visitors to this exhibit were less than half my age.

The afternoon was devoted to touring the Van Gogh Museum. It was outstanding. They have over 200 Van Gogh paintings and more than 600 of his drawings. What a fascinating life Vincent led. Just imagine – he never sold a picture in his lifetime. Now, he’s world famous. He painted to connect with his soul and in the process he has expanded our souls. How fortunate we are.

May we do the same in this Epiphany Season.

With love and prayers from Holland, 

Marek