This is it.
Our last full day in Amsterdam and in Europe! Plus it was the birthday of one of our Adventurers. So the post may be more abbreviated than usual because the birthday boy is watching World Cup soccer and finishing this post.
We did exactly as Dad wished today which was to visit the Rijksmuseum which houses many of the Dutch master painters from the 17th century.
The building is a magnificent structure in and of itself. It was specially designed for the paintings herein and was thoughtfully renovated/restored from 2003-2013. It presents tons of natural light and is organized to draw visitor’s eyes to the best spots during their visit.
Of course Rembrandt features prominently here and his most famous masterpiece is “The Night Watch”. Shown above, this painting is currently undergoing a restoration which uses a highly technical scaffolding to control a stylus which is removing either varnish or lacquer depending upon the spot. It works very slowly so no video, sorry. The results will be spectacular so we will have to come back!
Suaram LOVED the biblioteque (library) with its tall stacks and solemn adherence to quiet study. Dad was appreciative of the stained glass entryway to the museum which recognized the masters of the time of the museums construction.
The sculptors shown on the right and the painters on the left. Because it was planned and designed by the premier Dutch architect Cuyter, the architects got the center panels, as shown above.
We were glad we’d had a few days off between the history/palaces of Scandinavia so the kids were more interested in checking out the Dutch Art. We waited to go until they were a bit older and they seemed engaged so that always makes it more fun for everyone.
As most of our “fans” know, we have been to Amsterdam in the last few years. Here is the 2026 version is the Rembrandt park play structure photo that we have taken on each visit to this wonderful city!
It was the kids idea to recreate this photo again so after we finished in the Museumkwartier we crossed town on another tram to check out this playground. As you can see from the construction fence it’s getting a bit of a facelift so next time might be quite different.
We ended the night with a leisurely (slightly too leisurely) dinner outside at a nearby cafe and then turned our attention to our departure tomorrow. We fly back to the US mid day and will likely spend our first hours stateside in rush hour LA traffic trying to get home.
It’s been fun keeping everyone updated on this trip and we’ll be sure to keep you updated on where ever our next Adventures take us.
5 Adventures Together 