So, as can be expected, my mom was pretty cranky the next morning. The two of us were scheduled to see the last great museum in the Hague, meet Scherezade after work, and continue our wander in nearby Delft. This was the first day that Mom discovered the enormous healing powers of Holland French fries. Not only did they help her "day after puking" stomach, but they were mighty tasty on their own merits. From that point on, hardly a day went by when we weren't eating frites of some kind or another.

another dreaded sunny day...

The Moritshuis used to be a private home with a great art collection, but over the years it evolved into a public gallery with an emphasis on Dutch Old Masters. "The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp" is there, and it's a unique feature of the house museum that I was able to get close enough to that painting to see the brush marks (and touch it, carefully, on the edge, with the outside of my finger). There are also some really nice late Rembrandts, a few delicious Rubenses and three of the most stunning Vermeers I've ever seen, including "Girl With Pearl Earring." Before this day I wouldn't know a Vermeer to pick out of a prison lineup; now after spending some quality time with these three lovelies, I feel as though I could find his canvasses in the dark by touch alone. The "Girl" is one of the most remarkable portraits I've ever seen - light shines on her and from her with a softness that makes DaVinci seem brutal. This was my mom's favourite museum of our whole trip, and it was definitely one of mine, if only from the fact that I felt completely comfortable for the entire 2 hours. I felt like I could stare at a painting forever, or skip through the room without a backward glance. It still felt like a home, if that conveys anything to you.

There isn't really much to say about the rest of the day: when we met up with Scherezade outside the Moritzhuis gates, we wandered though a few markets before giving up on the day. I very nearly ran off with a calliope man: his cart called to me like the Pied Piper, and I had to be very stern with myself to keep from renouncing the drone lifestyle for the exciting career of a calliope groupie.

really big fish

We had our lengthy dinner in Kleyweg's Stads-Koffyhuis, an extremely picturesque little restaurant in the heart of Delft. The English menu was unusually incoherent, and contained such gems as, "Kleyweg's Stads-Koffyhuis would not be Kleyweg's Stads-koffyhuis if not everyone were welcome!" I had a lovely Brie sandwich, my second of the tour. Mom started to make fun of my incessant Brie-eating, but I just didn't care.

That night we did the usual - rotating turns on the Internet, reading of guidebooks and catch-up on "Love & Rockets" (okay, that last one was just me.) I really appreciated the fact that we had recovery time at the end of each day - it kept me from becoming too exhausted by our heavy museon-and-frites lifestyle.

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