Reflections on Holland - A Memorable Journey

Reflections on Holland

May 10, 2022

I enjoy writing this travel blog, as it allows me to reflect on and savor the experience of our journeys.  I think about what I've seen, the people I've met, what I've learned, how the food tasted, the sounds and smells.

This was a more complicated trip than typical, in part because of the misfortune of illness that happened to cause a change in plans for our barge trip.  But interesting things come from unexpected challenges.  I was pleased that I biked many more miles than I anticipated.  Our group of fellow travelers bonded in solidarity to make the week enjoyable.  We saw, heard and smelled so many things on our bike sojourn through the countryside and towns that reflected our opportunity to stop and smell the flowers.

Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Lisse, Haarlem, Gouda, Schiedam, Delft, the Hague, Zaandam, Leiden - all vivid and interesting places to visit.  I would be pleased to return again sometime in the future.  Maybe so.  But there are still a whole lot of places I have yet to experience.  I definitely would do a bike trip again.  And would highly recommend time boating along Holland's canals.

Below are just a few of my favorite memories:

Amsterdam

Zaanse Schans

Schiedam

Bitterballen and Gouda cheese

Gouda stroopwafels

Bloemencorse Bollenstreek Annual Flower Parade

Rotterdam

Rijksmuseum

Amsterdam

And It's a Wrap! Time to Head Back Home

Settled into our United Airlines seats for the next 10 hours

Monday, April 25, 2022

We had a great trip, but all good things eventually must end.  After our fun excursion in Amsterdam, we returned home on Sunday night via taxi and had a modest dinner in our room while packing up to depart in the morning for our flight back to Chicago.

The challenge is always how to fit in the souvenirs that found us along the way.  I had packs of stroopwafels from Gouda, Bonte Koe chocolate from Karina, gingerbread molds and giant pencils from Zanse Skans, Nolet Silver gin from Schniedam, truffle cheese from Amsterdam and a few other various and sundry gifts for the grands and the ladies.  Thank goodness Michael always brings his black dufflebag - half empty on the way over, full on the way back

Ready and waiting for our taxi to Schiphol Airport

According to the airlines, we needed a negative Covid test less than 24 hours before our flight in order to be allowed to return to the US.  On Sunday afternoon, in the little town of Lisse, we were able to make an appointment with Nurse Alice - an on call service.  Alice met us at this cute little clinic, registered us and performed our Covid tests - negative, thank goodness - and charged us all of $30 for this fantastic service.

The irony was no one - and I mean, no one - at the airport asked about it or cared whether we had it done - nor did they want the 3 page CDC form we were told to print out and complete.  Yikes.

Lisse medical clinic where we obtained a Covid test on Sunday afternoon

Hurray! Negative tests....

Thanks, Nurse Alice, a great service at a good price

We arrived at Schiphol three hours early.  It was a holiday week in the Netherlands, and we were warned that there was a work slowdown by the baggage handlers at the airport.

The lines were very long - it took us more than an hour to get through priority/first class security.  But we had time for a quick coffee before boarding the plane and we made a few last purchases.

I am Amsterdam

We bought Miffy dolls for the grandgirls and Miffy books for all the littles

We tucked into our first class pods on the plane - one seat in front of the other and settled in for our flight.  We were almost an hour and a half late in taking off, because so many people were delayed by the work slowdown going on with the employees. I felt sorry for people that had to make connections in Chicago.  Fortunately, all we had to do was get out car out of the economy lot and head home once we arrived.

I spent the flight working on this travel blog, as I was far behind without internet access while we were on the Aurora.  I had a glass of port after lunch, and had a nice surprise.  The flight steward gave me a bottle of port to take home with me.  How fun!

Love to watch the world go by.  Can't wait to do it again - next trip is in July.

The Most Popular Museum in the Netherlands - the Van Gogh Museum

One of 15 paintings by Van Gogh of olive groves on special exhibition

The Kurokawa Wing of the Van Gogh Museum - main entrance and special exhibitions

Sunday, April 24, 2022

The Van Gogh Museum is the most visited museum in the Netherlands with more than 2.3 million visitors each year.  We were so glad to be among them.  The museum, completed in 1973, consists of two structures.  The Kurokawa Wing is rounded with large curved walls of glass and serves as the main entrance and location of special exhibitions.

The Reitveld building holds the main collection and is 4 stories high.  There are more than 200 of Van Gogh's paintings, 400 drawings and 700 letters.  The collection contains nine self portraits and also shows art pieces of his contemporaries.

The Reitveld building of the Van Gogh museum

Michael wallking between the two interesting wings of the museum

Entrance to the museum - glass atrium wall brings in the natural beauty

When Vincent Van Gogh died in 1890, his collection of unsold work went to his brother Theo.  Theo died six months later, and his widow Johanna van Gogh-Bonger managed the remainder of the collection.  Her son, Vincent Willem van Gogh, transferred the collection to a state foundation, and this is the basis for the current holdings of the museum today.  In the 1960's the government decided to build a  free standing museum to  display Van Gogh's works.

One of Vincent Van Gogh's many self portraits

"The Potato Eaters" (1885) - stark and brutal in its realism

"Wheatfield and Crows" (1890) - one of my personal favorites

The museum was hosting a special exhibition of Van Gogh and the Olive Groves.  They brought together 15 paintings made by Van Gogh when he was in southern France, after being institutionalized for psychiatric symptoms.  

According to the catalog, "Vincent was 36 when he plunged into painting olive groves in the South of France.  He saw many olive trees around the asylum where he stayed for a year.  The gnarly shapes of the trees reflected Vincent's artistic and mental journey.

"Van Gogh vent through a mentally difficult time in the institution.  Outdoors, surrounded by nature, he found comfort and strength.  He wanted to express that feeling in this olive grove paintings."

"Van Gogh made fifteen paintings of olive groves, constantly experimenting with various approaches.  Fascinated by the gnarly shapes of the olive trees and their ever-changing colors, he painted them over and over.  He painted at different times of the day and used colors inspired by the season.  Vincent himself considered his paintings of olive trees to number among the best he had made in the South of France.

"This exhibition reunited Van Gogh's paintings of olive groves and exhibits them together for the first time, thanks to unique loans from museums in Europe and the United States."