We started the day (afternoon) off by going down to the Rembrandt House. It was a short walk from the dorms, so Jenny, Clint, Dylan, and I headed out as quickly as possible. It was a little confusing to find because of the Rembrandt Center (tourist shop) and the Rembrandt Corner (no idea what that is about) flanking the Rembrandt House.
The entrance was super modern and therefore confusing since I was expecting Rembrandt's front door, but the sign in front of it was unmistakable so we went in. Thanks to our museum cards we got in free, which was great since I had not yet found a place that accepted the card.
Inside, the entryway led into the actual house, and as we walked down the hallway, the modern entrance & giftshop melted into a recognizable historical Dutch house. We started on the main level where the main door was found. The entryway was filled with prints from other artists and one Rembrandt. I was surprised to learn that Rembrandt was also well known as an art dealer and master, since I had only been taught about his work as an artist.
We made our way up through the house, and got to see the traditional super narrow spiral staircase. It felt like the house would never end as we passed through the studio, the bedrooms, and the showrooms. All told, I counted 4-5 floors in Rembrandts old house, which for 13,000 gilders must have been quite the mansion at the time. The most interesting room in my opinion was Rembrandt's room of his collections. As an avid collector, Rembrandt had tons of (now illegal) animal relics, ranging from tortoise shells, to huge antlers. In addition there were several busts of Roman Emperors (which Rembrandt seemed to have a thing for), a cabinet full of coins, and a vast collection of old weapons. The most impressive part was Rembrandt's collection of other artists' works. He allegedly had 8,000+ prints bound in books, and although I knew none of the objects were the real thing, I could still imagine the amazing amount of effort Rembrandt must have put into making his collection.
The highlight of the house were Rembrandt's etchings. I had learned before about the process of making the etchings, but it was something else to see Rembrandt's studio and his original works. The detail he managed to get into his portraits were mind blowing, and the landscapes he created of the countryside were far more impressive than the photographs I had seen before.
After the Rembrandt house we returned to Prins Henrikkade to meet up with Kelsey and Ruben to head over to Rijksmuseum. By the time we were ready it was nearly 4:30PM, and we were worried about not having enough time to see the exhibits, but the walk and the tram ride over were brisk and afforded us an hour to do a "pre-screening" as we decided to take advantage of our museum card and come back again for the real thing. Unfortunately, photography was not allowed, so I don't have any photos of the exhibits (you'll have to see it for yourself!) but I do have some photos from outside the building.
The museum itself was truly impressive, classic and a bit imposing on the outside, and modern and beautiful. I was very impressed with the Vermeer paintings and the Japanese temple guardians. The best part in my opinion was how well the museum housed all of their works. Unlike most museums I had been to, the rooms really suited the art, and were not just generic darkened rooms with dimly light paintings or artifacts behind thick glass. I also noted that many of the works were purchased with help from the National Lottery, which I wish the US would do from time to time.
After the museum we made our way over to Amsterdam's first Ethiopian restaurant, Lalibela. It was a bit of a struggle to get a table since we ended up with 11 people, but with a bit of rearranging we were all seated. We then proceeded to make fools of ourselves by not knowing how to order and not being able to explain the various food allergies and vegetarian needs. It took about half an hour, but it was totally worth it when our food arrived. I had never had Ethiopian food before, but I was very pleased when I discovered that I would get to stuff my face with various breads, meats, and veggies. Most of the group ordered veal, Mimi ordered chicken, I ordered mutton, and all of it was delicious.
This is what it looked like when we started eating:
Pardon the poor quality, but I'm just getting used to using my little digital camera.
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