My Darling and I visited the newly reopened Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam today. Ten years of restoration, and what a triumph. One of the things that has captured my attention on this trip is how European school children are enraptured by art and music. Through out the entire museum, groups of children sat on the floor listening to lengthy lectures about a particular painting or object. In Vienna, at the Opera, a number of seats were filled with youngsters, and on the streets, doing live performances, are teenagers with audiences of kids.
“Night Watchmen” by Rembrandt
Here, the famed “Night Watchmen” by Rembrandt. After the museum, we made a pilgrimage to Rembrandt’s home and as I stood in his upper level studio, I envisioned all the faces of children I have seen these past days truly appreciating art. Rembrandt lost his only son, Titus, when he was in his early twenties, and then Rembrandt went bankrupt and lost everything. I imagine he would be astonished to know the impact he has for so many all these years later.
Teenage street performers, Prague
“Night Watchmen” by Rembrandt
Luxury family travel for the Dutch
Rubber ducky art…but can you ride it?
Paint set up in Rembrandt’s studio
So, there’s this whole thing going on…Vienna, Prague,
Amsterdam, where lovers take a padlock and attach it
to a post of a famous bridge or railing overlooking
water and ” lock their love” forever.
Sally and Robert with Architect Thomas Bitnar in his
home town of Prague
