Lots of Museums in Amsterdam...

One of our main goals while in Amsterdam was to hit a bunch of museums. Due to coronavirus, reservations with allotted time slots had to be pre-booked online, but often those arrangements could be made just minutes ahead of time. Our first stop was Huis Marseille Photography, housed in two 17th century canal houses. Opened in 1999 as Amsterdam’s first photography museum, it was completely underwhelming. The buildings themselves had little charm except for this ceiling and the exhibition was uninspiring. 

Much more interesting was the Amsterdam Museum (formerly the Amsterdam Historical Museum), which had had a major renovation since we were last there. Photography was no longer allowed, but I snuck in this photo of the Amsterdam Gallery, which is normally free to the public except during COVID times. 

Very fascinating was Fashion on a Ration, a special exhibit at the Resistance Museum about how to get creative while making clothing during a shortage of textiles during the Nazi Occupation. How interesting to see how a downed parachute could be transformed into a wedding dress and a flour sack could become a skirt. 

While I had been several times, Jimmy had never been to the Portuguese Synagogue, built in 1675.

While walking around the temple, which is surrounded by an outer wall, we came across the mikvah, the ritual bath that Orthodox Jewish women immerse in after menstruation or childbirth to achieve ritual purity. 

Jimmy had also never been to the Rembrandt House, which had also been renovated since my last visit. None of the interior is original, but has been reconstructed with historical detail. Here is the kitchen...

…his bedroom...

…and his studio, where he taught up to three students at a time. Most interesting and most crowded was the special exhibit in the attic on how people of color have been depicted in Dutch artwork throughout history.