DAY 40 –My Special Visit to Amsterdam and Anne Frank House

April 28 – A Visit to the Big City 

Ingrid is quite the host! She is very intelligent and knows a lot about many different things.  We enjoyed all of our talks with her and she truly knows everything!  "The Dutch believe Americans are very tolerant because you can be who you are and in Holland, they are always trying to change you. - it's in the DNA!"  She also believes that the Dutch are tolerant, however, because they know many languages.  Her mother was Jewish and she remembers many stories of hiding when she was little.  There were some sad things back then, of course, that she didn't like talking about.

Ingrid with her cute dog named Sushi - Walking to Vondelpark,  near to where she grew up

Ingrid took us to a suburb of Amsterdam, where she grew up. It was a beautiful, sunny day, which Holland hadn't seen for 7 months, so EVERYONE was out. Plus...it was a Sunday, so very few had to work. We went through Vondelpark, a 100 year old park that encompassed about 5 kilometers (3 miles) It had a rose garden, several ponds, a dog park, and much more. It was very beautiful! 
 

"You lookin' at me?"  Sushi says

Ingrid's dog, Sushi, is such a cute dog – I just love her! I had stubbed my toe a few days ago and it was still quite swollen, so walking wasn't too fun, but it was only the beginning of the day- oh well!

Some Trivia about The Netherlands:

The main three religions are Roman Catholicism (27%), Protestantism (16%) and Islam (6%). The majority of the population is atheist (49%), making The Netherlands the most non-religious country in the world. The Netherlands used to have a large Jewish community especially in Amsterdam, but three quarters of the Jewish Dutch were murdered by the Nazis in World War II.

The Dutch are the tallest people in the world even beating the Scandinavians - 184 cm for men and 170 cm for women. 

The Netherlands has the highest population density of any European country with over 1 million inhabitants.

The Netherlands has spawned many world-class painters, such as Rembrandt, Jan Vermeer, Jan Steen, Vincent van Gogh.

The Dutch company 'Philips' invented the audio tape (in 1967), the video tape (in 1972), the Compact Disk (in 1982) and the CD-ROM (in 1985).  

Virtually every Dutch city has its own red light district and a certain number of coffee shops. Amsterdam has the largest one which is one of the main tourist attractions. The red light districts are just one of the few places where there is prostitution.

Coffee shops sell soft drugs (marihuana).

There is even a museum about these drugs!

Ingrid told us many things that the Dutch are responsible for starting:  Reality Game Shows such as "America's Got Talent", "American Idol", and many others.  Gouda Cheese also originated in The Netherlands, as well as Dutch chocolate, ferris wheels, bells in the church towers, and many other things.

Amsterdam was crazy with people and many were in boats on the canals already partying, getting ready for “Queen's Day”.
 
We walked and walked, looking at the cute little apartment complexes, some of which were nearly 400 years old.


 I went to the Anne Frank House, waiting in line for over an hour.

1942 - 1944 in hiding

 Rich stayed with Ingrid on the plaza watching the people go by.

 I absolutely loved the historical museum and walking through each room where Anne lived. What an amazing young lady she was and what a legacy against war and for tolerance she left us all. 

1942-44 History of Anne Frank

1942 
June 12: Anne receives an autograph book from her father for her birthday and Anne Frank decides to use it as a diary
July 5: Anne's older sister is ordered to report for relocation to a labor camp
July 6: The Frank family go into hiding in Amsterdam because of Margot's deportation order. Otto Frank leaves a note hinting that the family were going to Switzerland and they behave as if they are going on a journey. The Diary of Anne Frank records that she has to leave behind her cat called Moortje. The Frank family move into rooms above and behind the company's premises in a street along one of Amsterdam's canals. Some trusted employees of Otto Frank offer to help them. The Dutch word for the rear part of a house, used in the Diary of Anne Frank, translates as the "Secret Annex" in English. 

1943
August 1: The final entry is made in the diary of Anne Frank
August 4: The 'secret annex' was stormed by the German Security Police  following a tip-off from an informer who was never identified. All of the residents of the annex are arrested and taken to the Gestapo headquarters where they were interrogated and held overnight.  

September 3: They are all sent in a cattle car to Auschwitz.   Once there, the men are separated from the women. October 28: Anne and Margot are transported to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.
January 6: Anne's mother, Edith Frank dies of starvation at Auschwitz 1944 January 27: The Russian Allies liberate the remaining survivors in Auschwitz, including Otto Frank. March : Margot Frank dies of typhus in Bergen-BelsonMarch 1945: Anne Frank dies of typhus in Bergen-Belson June 3: Otto Frank returns to Amsterdam, not knowing whether his family are still alive October 24: Otto Frank receives word that Anne and Margot died at Bergen-Belsen. His loyal friend Miep gives him the diary written by Anne Frank that she found in the annex after the family was arrested.

I very much enjoyed climbing up the VERY steep stairs into her attic and learning more of her story.

Walking up those steep steps and I went into a different time zone

Going through the original bookshelf/secret door -I pretended I was Anne.

A picture of the bathroom that all 8 of them used.

The 8 people in the annex had to share one bathroom and it could not be used during daytime hours because the sound of the toilet flushing could have been heard by the employees working in the office just below Anne's room. Some of Otto Frank's workers didn't know that anyone was hiding in the building.

The toilet is still there today - nearly 70 years later

Many pictures have been taken off Anne's bedroom wall, but others are still there....Shirley Temple, Gretta Garbo,  Deanna Durbin, Ginger Rogers, and pictures of Margaret and Elizabeth when they were princesses.

"Our little room looked very bare at first with nothing on the walls; but thanks to Daddy who had brought my picture postcards and film-star collection on beforehand, and with the aid of paste pot and brush I have transformed the walls into one gigantic picture. This makes it look much more cheerful."

The original kitchen sink

Looking up into the attic where there were windows they could look out

"I go to the attic almost every morning to get the stale air out of my lungs.  This morning when I went there, Peter was busy cleaning up.  The two of us looked out at the blue sky, the bare chestnut tree glistening with dew, the seagulls and other birds glinting with silver as they swooped through the air."   23 February 1944

 

 Her father was the only one of the eight in the hiding place to survive. He died at the age of 91, but worked hard to have her diaries published, create the museum, and set up a foundation to fight prejudice.

Thank goodness I'm not Anne, but we can all learn so much from her courage as young and old alike continue to be amazed by her story.