Free Weekend Experiences


Amsterdam, just across from Amsterdam Centraal train station.

There's something incredibly liberating about using the transportation system in a foreign country by yourself. It's not just the physical liberation of being able to go places once you figure it out, mostly. It's also that tiny rush of self-empowerment you feel as the train slides away from the platform and you are on it, as planned, because you figured it out. And you're pretty sure you validated your ticket correctly, but if not, that's a problem for the ticket machines at the other end of the journey. It's time to sit back and enjoy the ride.

This weekend, I had the incredible opportunity to take the train to Amsterdam to visit the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum. I love both doing and viewing art. Van Gogh is one of my favorite artists of all time. I was hyped.



The Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam's National Gallery. A cycle track runs through it!

The Rijksmuseum is the Netherlands' National Gallery, massive and beautiful and overwhelming. It feels like a train station with platforms designated by art area; us, the passengers, arriving and departing in throngs. I didn't have a whole lot of specific goals for the experience, except to see great art, get inspired, learn something new...maybe fill in a few knowledge gaps on Dutch history and Dutch art. Thus, I approached the Rijksmuseum like I would a Grocery Outlet store: I let the museum take me where it would. I wandered about until recognizing, at the end of my visit, that people with foresight grab museum maps on the way in. I paused. I grabbed a map. "This would have helped said museum be less overwhelming," I thought. But according to the map, I'd gone through (almost) all exhibits--and, anyways, I'd done what I came to do. It was incredible.

The Van Gogh Museum is an entire museum dedicated to one of the Netherlands' most famous painters. It is mostly Van Gogh works, with occasional works from persons he drew inspiration from. I didn't get a map here either, yet it was a well-marked space, smaller than the Rijksmuseum--reasonably self-explanatory to navigate. I didn't need it--the crowd moved accordingly and with an aura of reverence. There were many works that you and I have seen before, the ones that pop up in the Google Top 10. I was thrilled to see those works, and also excited to see works I'd never seen before. The whole time, I couldn't stop feeling how lucky I was to be seeing his works in person. I think I cried a little at the sunflowers. It was incredible.

Art pilgrimage complete, I walked back to Amsterdam Centraal and boarded a train for Delft. I proceeded to spend a lot of time thinking about how I could make art a more consistent part of my life. Then I got the dinner of champions, Albert Heijn to-go, and thought some more over pre-sliced convenience apple pie. It was delicious.


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