A busy Sunday in Amsterdam
We started our Sunday bright and early at Hillsong Church Amsterdam which was an amazing experience. We always need the reminder of God’s global church and it was so uplifting to worship and take communion with our Dutch brothers and sisters in Christ. We even met some fellow Americans visiting from Oregon. (yay PNW!)
On a side note, Lauren and I are quite proud that today we finally used all forms of public transportation in Amsterdam (train, bus, metro and tram). Here’s a time lapse from our quick commute on the tram.
After church and some savory pancakes for lunch, Lauren and I went to the Van Gogh museum. The museum focused a lot on how Van Gogh’s mental illness influenced his work and the most prominent part of the collection featured works from the end of his life. There was also a sensory walk-through experience that was supposed to mimic Van Gogh’s dreams which was thought provoking and a little spooky.
But an afternoon spent walking though four floors of Van Gogh paintings is an afternoon well spent! It was amazing to get up close and personal with his work and see all the little intricacies that make his art so fantastic.
After the museum, we went in search of famous fries we’d read about. They were delicious and the perfect afternoon snack. Lauren a curry sauce and I had a Dutch ketchup with a special Holland sauce (like fancy mayo). Both of ours had tons of onions, yum!
Our bellies full, we were determined to find an iconic bench from The Fault in Our Stars, which is a favorite book (and movie) of Lauren and mine. We were thrilled to find it and see all the writing from people’s visits.
We had a quick dinner back in our apartment, and went out to experience the Amsterdam Ice Bar per the recommendation of Lauren’s mom (thanks Max!) Everything in the bar was made of ice from the walls to the stools and even the glasses. Upon entry, we were given gloves and and extra coat to wear in. It was 15 degrees in the bar (note our red noses below). We both tasted a Nutella flavored vodka which was delicious (and potentially dangerous). It was the perfect ending to a very busy and successful day!
