After a good nights sleep we returned to Amsterdam on a morning train. Once back we had plans to see the Anne Frank House and the Van Gogh museum. The Van Gogh musuem is housed in a new modern building with I'm sure many architectural qualities. Prince Charles would probably describe it as an ugly carbuncle and for once I may be inclined to agree with him. I have never really got Van Gogh and being subjected to a gallery devoted to his work I found the history of his life a lot more interesting than the art itself. The irony is he spent most of his life frustrated that he was no good at anything. Not to be cruel but when it comes to some of his art he had a point. I don't want to sound snobby but what should be a calm experience is ruined by the fact the gallery seems filled with a high percentage of ignorant people, who pile around at breakneck speed trying to find that horrible sunflower picture like train spotters trying to tick off the final number in an I Spy book. So perhaps my view is tainted a little but all in all a very disappointing experience.
A good lunch is then taken in a brown cafe (Cafe Panaroma on Raadhuisstraat) that does some of the best baby back ribs I have ever had the pleasure of eating. Jackie has a great piece of Sole in a lemon sauce and some enormous potato wedges. Then we walk around in the evening to Anne Franks house. A truly moving experience even though I have never read the diary, something i put to rights immediately, sitting up most of the night reading it .
Im going to leave you with a little more Rush , the overture from the R30 tour from 2004. Would love to have shown you something from this tour but I simply could not find a decent clip that was either in focus or undistorted.
1 comment:
I think you can be unlucky at the Van Gogh museum. Sometimes it is more like a theme park than a gallery. Dont forget it sometimes has excellent visiting exhibitions which can contain much better works.
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