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Day 663, 27 Mar '16, (Easter Sunday) Amsterdam Museum, Nieuw & Oude Kerks, Our Lord in the Attic Hidden Church, Royal Palace, Allard Pierson Museum (Sicily Under the Sea).
We were up at 8 am - struggling somewhat (mightily). We spent a bit of time planning over breakfast this morning. Aside from anything else everything is open. All day Good Friday and it seems everywhere we want to go will be open today too. Dutch business practicality in action. First up - the Amsterdam Museum. The trouble with Amsterdam museums generally is they are just so jolly good. This one shows Amsterdam from prehistory onwards and how it was built on piles and developed during the Golden Age, the time of Napoleon and onwards. We followed up our visit with a look around the Sunday Art Market on Spui then headed into town on foot to see the Nieuw Kerk (New Church) and it's current one painting masterwork exhibit - Marc Chagall's "Calvary". We visited the Oude Kerk (built in 1400 and the oldest building in Amsterdam and thus... the Old Church). A service was actually in progress - not surprising given it's Easter Sunday - but still, a bit surprising since 99% of Amsterdam has been open all of Easter weekend. Tootled home for lunch and a coffee then headed out again and tracked down The House with the Heads - or Huis met de Hoofden (go on, say it out loud and use your Swedish chef accent). The museum inside was closed (that's the 1% of Amsterdam closed on Easter Sunday), but the building itsellf was amazing. We then headed crosstown to the hidden church of Our Lord in the Attic. Well it was hidden for years albeit an open secret within tolerant Dutch society. Not hidden any more - the stonking great museum banner outside gives it away somewhat. I visited last time I was here but a lot of work was being done, so it was great to see this amazing museum finished - and well worth seeing again. From there, back to Dam Square and a first visit for both of us to the Royal Palace. Prior to Napoleon turning up, waving a wand and calling it a palace, this was the Town Hall. The most extravagant ever, designed to show the length and breadth of Dutch superiority. Now open to the public except when visiting dignitaries/bigwigs are ensconced in the luxurious rooms, it was an interesting visit. We still had some feet left (and the cricket T20 world cup was recording), so we managed "just one more" museum. This time (and because it's only 5 minutes from home) we tried the Allard Pierson Museum - Amsterdam's archeology museum. The current special exhibition is Sicily Under the Seas - treasures from ancient times recovered from ship wrecks around the coast of Sicily. We are both keen wreck divers so this was an incredible exhibit - we can only imagine the excitement of finding a sculpture on the sea floor. Pictured is a relief found in Catania Harbour. Dated to 200BC it depicts Hercules lifting the giant Antaeus off the ground. (As the son of Gaia, mother earth, Antaeus derived his powers from the earth - lifting him off it defeated him). This relief was thought to decorate the wall of a public building such as a gymnasium where wrestling occured. Their permanent exhibit was heavily focussed on Egypt and it took us both back to that magical land - almost enough to have us visit again one day - if for nothing else than some more diving in the Red Sea. We kicked ourselves out of the Allard Pierson at 4.45 pm (15 minutes until all of Amsterdam's museums slam their doors). We limped over the road, wended through a couple of alley ways and were home in 5 minutes. And then we sat down. We doubt we will ever stand again.
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