Amsterdam

My sister Sandra arrived October 15 and I went to meet her at the airport.  She arrived on time 7:15 early in the am.  We hopped the train back into Amsterdam and it was raining so we took a cab home. Now to keep her awake for the rest of the day.

We had a little breakfast and then went walking to see if we could get in the Anne Frank house.  The line was too long, so we opted for a nearby canal tour.

Getting our tickets

On the boat

Toured all the major canals.  When we got back, it was lunch time, so we went to a nearby cafe for lunch.  Had Dutch pancakes, so Sandra could experience the local specialty.

As we walked back by the Anne Frank House, the line was not too long, so we opted to stand in line.  Terry had been here before, but neither I nor Sandra had seen it.  There were no pictures allowed in the house, so we just got one out doors.

As everyone knows the story of Anne Frank, you would expect the house to be a sobering experience, and it was.  There were many pictures of those who hid in the upper floors of the house, as well as numerous quotes from Anne's Diary.  I took these pictures from the booklet they gave us at the entrance.  One is of the families in hiding 

and the second is of those who helped them stay hidden and provided food, clothing, books, and newspapers.  The inhabitants of the secret annex are completely dependent on the helpers, who put their lives at risk by providing assistance.

The house which contained two businesses of Otto Frank (the father) was used as the secret hiding place.  HIs office staff were aware and were the helpers.  There were other workers (warehousemen) who were not aware they were in hiding, thus making it necessary for the inhabitants of the secret annex to remain silent during the day.  

They lived in hiding for two years.  After receiving an anonymous tip, the German Secret Service raids 263 Prinsengracht on August 4, 1944.  Having been betrayed, the eight people in hiding and two of the helpers are arrested and taken away.  

The eight are further transported to Auschwitz-Birkenau death camps on September 3, 1944.  

Only Otto Frank survives the war.  All of the helpers survived.

The rooms in the secret annex are bare of furnishings, but there are many pictures showing how it was set up, and papers that were saved by Miep Gies and Bep Voskuijl after the arrests.  Annes's diary, notebooks and papers were kept until the end of the war.  When it was clear that Anne had died in Bergen-Belsen, she gave them to Otto Frank.  He committed the rest of his life to combating discrimination and prejudice.  He provided access to the Secret Annex and in 1960 it became a museum.  It is one of the most visited places in Amsterdam.

After the museum we walked back home 

and since all were tired, we fixed dinner at home.  Sandra lasted until about 8:30 or 9:00.  So a good day.

The next day, Saturday, was market day.  We thought Sandra woulld like to experience the market so off we went.  Also wanted to pick up some homemade pasta for dinner and a few other groceries.

Hats, of course

After lunch, we headed off to the Van Gogh Museum.  Took the tram to the museum area and wandered around until our prearranged tour time.

In front of the Riiksmuseum

This is in front of the school for bartenders

The Van Gogh was, what can I say, very Van Gogh.  Many of his famous works, but again no photos, so if you want to see his art, just google it. Ha

After the museum we took the tram up to the Leidesplein for a coffee break and then walked to the floating flower market and cheese shops. 

We took the tram back to Central Station and decided to walk to the Chinese Restaurant on the water for dinner.  It was a really good idea, because the food was excellent and the view was great

Another early night as all were tired.

Sunday we lazed around, did some packing as we are leaving Amsterdam on Tuesday, so had to get some stuff done around the house.  In the afternoon we walked down to some fun streets in the Jordan area and took Sandra to the "Pompadour" Chocolate store.  We had tea, coffee and goodies.  Yum

Tonight we dined at a place called "Pasta e Basta".  

It was pretty dark inside

As the name implies, it was Italian.  It also came with singing waiters and a great piano player.  The wait staff sang opera and jazz and pop throughout the evening.  It was a great place.  We cabbed back home and went to our neighborhood bar Cafe "Papeneiland" at Prinsengracht 2 (should ever want to visit).  We wanted to say goodbye to our favorite bartender Jan.  We decided to have a last drink and at the end he said "It's on the house".  Just the nicest people here you could ever want to meet.  It's just a little bit sad to leave Amsterdam.

Monday we packed and took a couple of boxes to mail to our next destination in Avignon.  On the way home we stopped in our favorite coffee shop for a last decaf cappacino.

Tomorrow morning at 9:18 we board the train for Paris and then Rouen, where we will pick up our rental car to tour the Normandy area.  Let the newest adventure begin.