Amsterdam, Day 2

Day 2, actually the main day I was there, I got a 24 museum/transportation pass. I managed to see the house where Rembrandt lived, the Rykmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, a special art exhibit by the Stendalahk (sorry about the spelling), the Neukirk, Oldekirk, Our Lord in the Attic, the Amsterdam History museum, and I'm sure some others. I'm including a brief video of a canal tour that I took, as well as a jerky, stomach turning trip up the "Our Lord in the Attic" church. The church was hidden in the top of a building during a period when Catholocism was banned in The Netherlands. At any rate, I had a much more positive experience in the 'Dam this time, although I still feel vaguely unsafe walking through most of the town by myself. Unlike Paris, where every dark alley calls for exploration, dark alleys in Amsterdam make me feel on edge, and it's a town where it's almost impossible to travel without going through small alleys. Still, it's a gorgeous place, filled with cultural wonders (and grey coffee shops).

Amsterdam report

First of all, I've got to say that the Hotel Krasnopsky is one of the nicest hotels I've ever stayed in. Right on Dam Square, the five star hotel was a comfortable home base. It was a Priceline bid--$70 per night, regularly about $300. The first night I wanted to unwind, and there were lots of ads for the Deco Sauna. I thought a steam/jacuzzi might be just the ticket for my poor feet, so I grabbed my trunks and walked the fifteen minutes across town. It turned out that swim trunks weren't allowed (oh my!). There were lots of normal couples milling around the cashier lady, normal although naked. Figuring what the hell, I'm in Europe, (and too embarrassed to walk back out now), I grabbed a way too small towel, a shower, and headed for the sauna. Eventually a bit of the discomfort faded, and I did feel more relaxed and clean than in the last few weeks. Sorry, no pictures :-) Here are some pictures, though, of Amsterdam: 

Back to posting tomorrow

I'm back from my mise-en-abyme, my trip-within-a trip. Figuring I would become nonchalant to Paris' beauty, I booked a two day train getaway to Amsterdam, where, once you get beyond the sleaze factor, you find a higher concentration of first class museums and architectural treasures anywhere in Europe, outside of Paris. Tomorrow I'll post some pictures and maybe a video, although I'm going to be back to prowling the metro stops.

I hate snow

Louis Braille's birthday

Sunday, January 4 was the bicentennial of Louis Braille's birth. To celebrate, Notre Dame hosted an organ recital last night. The organist was Jean-Pierre Leguay, who is the blind organist at the cathedral, and he presented work from himself and four other blind organists who had served as organists in Paris. The event was well attended, and there must have been at least a hundred blind people (many with their dogs) in the audience. Here are two short video--one to give you a flavor of the recital, and the other of Leguay's curtain call at the end. 

Some from the other day

Here are a couple of quick pictures from the other day. The alley is a famous alley in Montparnasse where Picasso, Chagall, Zadkine and others worked at one point or the other. The snow picture is from the lovely little square behind the church at St. Germain, and the cemetery photos are all from Montparnasse.

January 04

Ok, I've been lax the last few days. Yesterday, for the first time, I made it through every single stop (except for ones I'd seen other lines) of a Metro line, and was just too damned tired to write anything afterwards. Today, being the first Sunday of the month, was free entrance day to many of the areas museums and attractions. I went to the Louvre, the Guimet Museum of Asian Art, The Museum of Patrimonie and Architecture, Passy Cemetery, and the new Africa Art Museum, the Branley. sorry to just spill so many images out like this, but here's a quick look at some of today's pictures.