Oh, this is just months late but… I don’t care! Enjoy!

It would be rather remiss of us to not go to any museums while in Amsterdam, now wouldn’t it?

While I do admit to not being the most excited when it comes to museums, I was excited to go to the few that we managed to go to.

1. The Rijksmuseum

It was raining most of the morning that we decided to get to this one, and after we stood through a monstrous line (probably not the smartest idea to go on a rainy Saturday afternoon), we made it in! I’m not the biggest fan of museums, like while in the Louvre, I pretty much power walk through them unless something really catches my eye. There was one exhibit that was interesting to me, but we didn’t make it there and I wasn’t willing to run there to catch it.

We didn’t realize that things close so early there, so while we were relaxing at the cafe – thinking we had all the time in the world – we really only had about half an hour before the exhibits closed! So my brother abandoned his treat and booked it to see the Night Watch. I was more than happy to look at the pictures afterwards, and enjoy my apple tart and hot chocolate (with lots of whipped cream). We did browse the gift shop as well, and that was really quite cute too!

Definitely a good thing to do. We didn’t make it to the rest of the art museums on the block (Van Gogh, and Modern Art).

After we popped out of the museum at 6pm, the rain had cleared up and we walked along the streets back to our apartment.

2. Het Sheepvartmuseum

Now, this museum we were headed to because of my brother and his love of all things nautical, but I have to say that this one was my favourite. Less of a stuffy museum, and more hands on! It’s beside the Nemo Science museum, which we didn’t go into but we climbed to the top for a bird’s eye view of Amsterdam.

This is the original Navy port from way back, before they expanded Amsterdam. Another one that closes early, but we arrived with enough time to grab lunch in the restaurant before running through the museum. The restaurant was delicious! An amazing open-faced tuna sandwich for me, enough to fuel me through the museum. We started in the VOC Amsterdam, a replica of the trade ship from the mid-1700’s, which had cannons and all the rooms. It was used by the Dutch East India Company. It was amazing how tight and cramped everything was, other than in the cargo hold. It was extremely kid friendly, with different things to do and lift and turn on. It was pretty cool.

We then headed into the museum, up to the third floor to work our way down. They were promoting a movie that was made about Michel De Ruyter, who was one of the hero navy ship captains in the 1600’s. So there were props from the movie, and a whole interactive movie ride/walk-through that showcased the relationship with water and the Netherlands: past and present.

On the second floor, there were amazing paintings, all the instruments that were used, and the navigational maps that would have been used during the time. Plus a whole room of silverware that would have been shipped and used on the ships. So fancy!

We didn’t make it into the library, but there were some really cool things in this museum. It definitely wasn’t busy, so it’s an easy one to get through especially if you don’t like crowds. If you are interested in boats, ships, or the sea at all, it’s an interesting one to check out!

3. Anne Frank House

I confess, we didn’t go into this one. The line up was just too long, and we couldn’t justify waiting in line again for something we might not even get into! (We walked by at like 4.30, and this museum closed at 7pm). If it was something that you want to do, I would suggest pre-booking any tickets and going early! But looking at the line, it’s definitely one that is a hot spot.

My aunt and mom said that it’s definitely changed a lot over the past 20 years, so it would be interesting to go see it at some point. But maybe on the next trip.

What museums interest you while you’re on vacation? Or are you like me, who really can’t be bothered with them?