Amsterdam #3

 June 14th.  Weather unpredictable so raincoats necessary.

Today’s excursion was to Westerpark and my first outing in a Bolt, the name of the Uber style company.  We drove along a motorway style road lined on both sides with high fencing for some sound proofing.   

The fences were well decorated with graffiti which is amazingly common here.   Driving on “the wrong side of the road” is certainly a visual adjustment, I wouldn’t want to try driving here.

After around 20 minutes we arrived at one end of Westerpark where the old gas works has been converted into an events complex and currently the Fabrique Des Lumiere is on.   My nephew’s wife had organised tickets and a time slot for entry so we went in to this immersive art experience.   Inside the cavernous interior of the old factory there was an initial video display of how the building had looked originally and in watching that our eyes adjusted to the dim light and we could see the Entry arrow on the floor.   

Then, wow!   From every angle and on every surface was a computer generated light show of  what was basically a history of 17th century Dutch Art.   We entered part way through the sequence and found ourselves flooded with sunflowers which morphed into Van Gogh’s visage and then into The Starry Night.   I found the whole experience mesmerising, entrancing and due to the strobe effect just a little nauseating.

 

  Rembrandt, Blommaert, Vroom, Steen, Van Gogh and others were well portrayed in a 35 minute programme after which the credits rolled and there was an “encore” showcasing Mondrian.   You can click here to see more details - it was an amazing opportunity I’m unlikely to have in New Zealand.   

After this we had a reservation at BakkersWinkel - a bakery apparently famous for its scones but having enjoyed the ultimate scones in the UK we opted instead for a sweet treat.   I chose the Tarte Citron which was deliciously acidic yet sweet and Little Sister opted for Walnut and Caramel Slice.   I was surprised as she really doesn’t have a super sweet tooth.  And she was surprised at how sweet Dutch Caramel is and how thick the layer on the short cake base.   Only half got eaten!   The chai latte was more milky than spicy.

Naturally there are canals everywhere and so of course bridges.   The old one at the gas works is a lifting bridge and is maintained pretty much in its original state.

 

As the weather was still fine at that moment we walked down a street of unknown name and my nephew’s wife led us unerringly to Hooks and Yarns.

  Little Sister was delighted to find yet another yarn store but despite much looking and a lot of yearning she didn’t purchase anything this time.   The shop owner was obviously disappointed too as she invited us to return!   

We walked a little further along the narrow footpath until the heavens opened and we had to seek shelter under a striped umbrella.   

With no sign of it letting up we set out stoically on towards the bus stop and caught the number 18 back home.