Woken at 5ish by crows again and then just over-thought so found it hard to get back to sleep. Think I fell asleep again by 6 though. Up at 9:45!
Amsterdam!! Went in on park and ride tram thing. Whilst driving to the park and ride I painted my nails a really nice turquoise colour and read a bit of the Diary of Anne Frank.
Got to park and ride; too tram to Amsterdam. Arrived at centre, found map and walked to 'Anne Frankhuis'. Getting there was amusing because when we asked for directions, we weren't told in terms of turnings, but by canals!
Canal!
The Architecture Is Beautiful
Plaque On The Outside
Welcome: An introduction to the house as well as some pictures of Anne, where she looks very happy.
Warehouse: A few artefacts, mainly focused around the restrictions placed on the Jews.
Office: Information about the helpers, as well as a video of Miep Gies.
Storeroom: Scale models showing how the rooms were furnished and arranged- complete with a diary on Anne's bed.
Landing: The bookcase originally used to hide the annexe is still in place. Very moving to walk through the door that lead through, especially remembering why it was built.
Frank Sitting Room: Served both as the sitting room, and also as a bedroom for Otto, Edith and Margot Frank (Anne's parents and older sister). Covered with glass is the map Otto used to keep track of the war, as well as the lines that served as a 'growth chart' for Anne and Margot. There were about the same height as me where the lines stop, and as Anne was younger there were more lines for her. A very poignant reminder that, in spite of everything, they were two girls growing up- you could find a similar chart in thousands of homes. Also saddening to wonder how much taller those lines could have gone.
Anne's Bedroom: Initially shared with Margot, then with Albert Dussel (real name Fritz Pfeffer, a family friend). More walls with glass sections, this time to protect the pictures Anne pasted up. Again, really really brings it home. She was just another girl; she liked reading and writing, she had dreams of becoming known for her writing and she filled her walls with the things that made her happy. It's impossible to fully comprehend everything she went through. This was a very hard room.
Bathroom: Shared by all 8 occupants, though only used at certain times- not everyone who worked in the house knew that they were there. In her diary, Anne remarks that they are luckier than other Jews- yet, albeit inadvertently, the Nazis even controlled their bladders!
Living Room: Hermann and Auguste van Daan (really van Pels, the other family in the annexe) slept in this room- which was also the kitchen, the dining room and the main living room. The scale model made it look fairly big- but in reality it's not so big, especially when you consider all the things it was used for. I can't even imagine having to spend so much time with 7 other people in such a small overall space.
Peter's Room: Peter van Daan (van Pels) was the only person to have his own room, though it was more akin to a stairwell leading to the attic. However, even this 'luxury' must have felt invaluable!
Attic: You can't go up, but a cleverly positioned mirror shows what it's like. It was used as a storage area, and Peter and Anne claimed it as theirs. It gave them a chance to see blue sky and get a little air.
The Shoah: Hanneli Goslar, Anne's friend, talks about seeing Anne in Bergen-Belsen. She threw over a food package, but it was stolen- so she managed to put together another, from the little she and the people she was with had. By that point Margot had died, and Anne had been separated from the rest of her family. She told Hanneli that she had nothing to live for. Though her father was still alive, Anne didn't know this, and Hanneli wonders whether this would have helped her to 'hold on'. Anne contracted typhus, and soon died. Three weeks later, the camp was liberated. The room contains pictures of the eight Annexe inhabitants, as well as video footage of various camps.
Otto Frank: A video of Otto talking about Anne and the diaries- he says he was surprised, and discovered a new side to her. There are also telegrams/letters from his brother, from the time Otto was looking for his daughters and when he discovered they had dies. The diaries were saved by Miep and given to Otto, who found it very hard to read them. He eventually decided to publish them, as that had been Anne's plan- she heard on the radio that diaries etc. were to be collected after the war, and wanted to contribute. Otto was also very keen to turn the Annexe into a museum, as a reminder.
The Diary: In the centre is Anne's original checked diary. Other pages written separately are also displayed, along with a video. Once again, tear-inducing reminders that this is real, that it actually happened. Extremely hard-hitting.
Exhibition: I think this changes; for us, it was in two parts- the first, something to represent each year of Anne's life, such as pictures etc. The second part was an interactive vote thing, taking the form of a range of short clips showing a world problem with two contrasting views, and people had to vote for what they thought should happen. For example, EDL marches- the right to protest versus the right to feel safe. It was very interesting, and sometimes very hard to choose a 'side'. There's always more than one viewpoint, and very often far more. Also, I put my name on a virtual 'leaf' for the (also virtual) Anne Frank tree.
Overall we spent around an hour in the house. I am so so glad we went, as it was incredibly moving. I can only hope that I've done it a small amount of justice in my description- but it is completely different in 'person'. If you ever get the chance, I would absolutely absolutely urge you to go!! Also, here's the link to the website, which is very interesting.
After we finished at the Annexe, we went to 'Sara's Pancake House' for lunch. I had a Nutella pancake! Whilst there we heard a very loud bang from outside. Everyone in the restaurant rushed to the windows. A motorbike and a taxi had collided- the taxi drove off and came back whilst the bike was on the floor. Thankfully the man riding it was conscious, and eventually got up. However, things very nearly got worse- a man went to take the bike away from the center of the road (I can see why, but bad move anyway- in event of a crash things are meant to be left as they were for police, ambulance etc.). As he moved it, it turned on, with him holding the handlebars; it went into a car, which was lucky really, as otherwise it would have gone straight into the road, man in tow. Thankfully, everyone appeared okay.n The police spoke to the guy who wheeled the bike for a long time- at one point he seemed to be explaining something, and a woman who was with him was obviously trying to get him to stop, lest he made things worse!
Over lunch we decided to go to the main canal to go for a boat trip. On the way we walked through Amsterdam a little. I'm decidedly in love with in; it's so so beautiful.
I Love It So Much!
Houses From Water Level
On The Canal Boat!
Spot The Animal!
This One's Interesting :)
Mine And My Sister's Hands
