Monday, May 11
THU 30/4/2026 Day 2 amsterdam to hoogeveen
Rail Miles: 70; Walk 5 Miles: ;
Plan for today was to visit the Van Goch collection at Stedelijk Museum, and then move on for an Off-Pass family visit.
Despite the previous long day I was up and out early whiling away the time until my prebooked timeslot arrived for the gallery.
With time to kill I wandered over to the museum, which is in a enormous area containing a number of museums and galleries - smart idea, and then I generally mooched around taking in the sights in the weak sunshine
Google maps was, as always on this trip, invaluable for getting around and finding key locations.
Seeking coffee & cake it led me to Bakers and Roasters cafe (Branch: Eerste Jacob van Campenstraat 54)
From the outside it appears a small & quiet cafe, but inside the place was packed. Very popular and lots of repeat customers.
Highly recommended.
I sat out of the way, at the counter and chatted with the manager as he worked. A well travelled man, originally from Brazil, via New Zealand, he felt typical of many of the people I seemed to encounter on this trip. A useful insight in living in the Netherlands.
Time for the museum. Initially I was glad I'd booked in advance, for a specific timed slot, as the gallery was sold out for the day. Decent luggage storage lockers inside but the gallery itself was a disappointment after seeing the Van Goch exhibition in London last year.
An artist, during their life, will play with a variety of styles and influences as they build their experience, and try to make a living, but much of these are dead ends, or frankly not very important except to the artist themself.
The permanent collection felt like many of the artwork pieces were there because VG painted them, not that he necessarily intended them to ever be seen.
Meanwhile the BIG pieces were missing.
Switching over to the temporary exhibition I finally found one of VG's sunflowers, hung as far away as possible in an an attempt to drag the tourist (and it certainly was all tourists) through everything else until finally getting here.
Having seen this representation in a couple of guises in London (VG knocked off around 50 of these I think - he did like his sunflowers) the impact on me was low.
Not really helped by the press of those trying to selfie themself with the picture. Along with the guided tour groups who stood in a semi circle in front of key hangings, obscuring the view of the rest of us, I quickly decided to call it a day
45 minutes, entry fee 22.5 euros. Not a trip highlight.
No idea what this one is called - lol
By now, more familiar with the layout of Amsterdam, I headed directly for the station using my Netherlands Rail app to buy a one way ticket for Hoogeveen and a couple of nights stay with family.
AmsterdamAn interesting vibe to the town. Bicycles everywhere. Pedestrians are clearly the second class here, and it was an rapid education in cycle lanes, rights of way and recognising cycling rule breakers. Useful lessons that would stand me in good stead for the rest of this trip.
Be nimble, or be mowed down. Although to be fair I didn't see one collision in my time away.
NetherlandsGod its flat. We joke about it but experiencing the flatness of the place is awe inspiring. And with the terrain, a constant wind.
This is why we travel. To experience a place one has to be there, no guide book can ever provide this sort of physical and emotional connection.
Rail Miles: 70; Walk 5 Miles: ;
Plan for today was to visit the Van Goch collection at Stedelijk Museum, and then move on for an Off-Pass family visit.
Despite the previous long day I was up and out early whiling away the time until my prebooked timeslot arrived for the gallery.
With time to kill I wandered over to the museum, which is in a enormous area containing a number of museums and galleries - smart idea, and then I generally mooched around taking in the sights in the weak sunshine
Google maps was, as always on this trip, invaluable for getting around and finding key locations.
Seeking coffee & cake it led me to Bakers and Roasters cafe (Branch: Eerste Jacob van Campenstraat 54)
From the outside it appears a small & quiet cafe, but inside the place was packed. Very popular and lots of repeat customers.
Highly recommended.
I sat out of the way, at the counter and chatted with the manager as he worked. A well travelled man, originally from Brazil, via New Zealand, he felt typical of many of the people I seemed to encounter on this trip. A useful insight in living in the Netherlands.
No idea what this one is called - lol
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