Three Houses in Amsterdam

Day 84 - Sunday - September 4
We caught breakfast at the airport before catching the intercity train to Central Station in Amsterdam.

Central Station - Road reconstruction seems to be happening everywhere in The Netherlands.

We must be in Amsterdam. Really, this is the only place in the whole country that we've seen  the open selling of marijuana and paraphernalia.

It is also must be the "red light" district for the whole country.

We aren't sure what song they are singing but they really enjoyed singing it and we enjoyed listening.

The more traditional version of the city.

House #1 - Rembrandt's House. This is a box bed. It is so short because in the 1600's they thought laying down was dangerous to their health so they slept in a semi-sitting position.

The kitchen and warmest place in the house.

An example of using paint to create a fake surface, a common practice in the day. The mantle is wood made to look like the marble in the columns below it.

Rembrandt's studio

He had to make his own paints.

Besides painting, Rembrandt did a lot of etching.

This was done by a later artist, Salomen Saverij, based on one of Rembrandt's but much more elaborate.

Rembrandt's House is next to the one on the corner.

The yellow one is a water taxi. They zoom around on water just like they do on land.

On our way to House #2

Our Lord in the Attic is a canal house that has a church on the top floor. It is currently being renovated. The church was built by a wealthy merchant during a time when practicing the Catholic faith was banned in Holland.  These kind of house churches were tolerated (a Catholic speakeasy equivalent?) It was used for 200 years until 1867 and has been a museum ever since.

Normally there would be an organ filling this spot.

The Palace - Queen Beatrice is the current monarch.

Now we are standing in line for House #3, Anne Frank's House. It is so popular that this adjacent building is now used for the support activities like reception, restrooms, and cafe.

We don't have any other pictures because photography was not allowed once in the warehouse and the hideaway house itself. It was as sobering to walk through as you might imagine.

This door is noticeably shorter than a modern door but Donna makes it look tall. People were shorter when many of these canals houses were built.

We watched several of these tour boats make 90 degree turns from one canal to another with only inches to spare on either end.

Must only be one room per floor it's so narrow.

Bike parking at Central Station. The Dutch really do love their bikes.

When we returned to our room, the tent's rainfly was finally dry.