Leiden and Amsterdam (by Niki)

Leiden's Beautiful Canals

 Had a low key day the next day, a perfect lazy Sunday . We have enjoyed playing with their espresso machine and if we aren't too busy breaking it, we have been making some pretty good drinks! Ria and Ron took us on a walking tour of Leiden, sort of a taste-of-everything tour so that we would have an idea of what we want to do for the rest of the week. We sat by the canals and had drinks while basking in what could quite possibly be the last sunny day of the season. We learned a bit about the city and how when it was much smaller it had a mote that went all the way around for protection with only four gates to access the city. At one point the Spanish tried to starve the Leiden people out and this went on for such a long time that after they failed to succeed, the King of Spain built Leiden a University (the oldest University in Holland)! We saw an old fortress that offered great views of the characteristic rooftops on Holland .

Classic Dutch Windmill in the Leiden Fortress

We returned home to have Ron and Aria treat us to home made fries (delicious of course!) and meatballs with peanut sauce. I think I could get used to eating around here! Afterwards, we perused old photographs of Ron and Aria and their vacations to Canada to visit family and we had a great time teasing Ron about his ever changing hairstyles and clothing.

We woke early the next day with our agenda being to head straight to Amsterdam. I was particularly looking forward to Anne Frank's house and the Dutch Resistance museum (you will notice my propensity for WWII history) and the Van Gogh museum and the FOAM photography museum were possibilities too.

We ran into our first travel bump when we left the tram and I wanted to check the time to see when we should go to Anne Frank's house. At first I did not think it could be possible, at one point even saying to Josh, "is this real?" but someone had stolen our iPods from my purse. The first reaction is denial, Josh must have taken them, I misplaced them in a different pocket...but neither of these theories worked out. It is a very violating thing to be robbed and in truth, I would have been less shocked if it happened in some of the other countries on our itinerary. I felt so stupid that I hadn't been more careful and that I was not more aware but I have to console myself with the fact that these people are professionals any way and we have to move on.

In direct contrast, throughout the day we had some extremely friendly people help us out in our situation, and as you have probably guessed, we have purchased news ones. The only regret is the loss of 400 songs that we put on specifically for this trip and the added expense but such is life. At least we are still at Ron and Ria's so that we can add a few songs before we leave.

Amsterdam's Iconic But Also Sinking Row Houses

It was incredibly interesting to press on with our day and to find ourselves at Anne Frank's house (again more friendliness as they let us in even though our tickets were purchased for hours earlier). The juxtaposition of feeling so victimized at having been robbed followed by the horrific story of the victimization of the Frank family did not escape me, and in fact, really put our ordeal into perspective. This museum is the most emotional museum I have ever been to. It was especially powerful for me because I had just read her diary again and could remember every detail so well. It is so well done with videos along the way interviewing people that hid the Frank family or knew them in some way and with artifacts of their life in hiding like the Cinema magazines Anne loved or the Latin lessons Margot did. The walls are lined with carefully chosen and poignant quotes from Anne's diary at strategic spots in the house and thus really bring the space to life. The annex itself is so dreary and dark, and you can really get a sense of why everyone had such a short temper while in hiding (barring the obvious reasons).

Her father, Otto Frank, speaks in a video about Anne's diary and how he felt he didn't know this part of her, this anguished teenaged Anne. What is so interesting about reading her diary as a woman, for me, is relating to so much of it. It is a very different time and place with very different worries and fears, yet some parts could be the diary of a young girl in 2012! That being said, it is striking how self reflective she was and how she constantly strove to be a "better Anne" and it really makes you weep for the inspirational woman she may have become.

There is another video that struck me which displayed her old friend Hanneli who had survived the war talking about Anne. Throughout her diary, Anne talks about Hanneli and this friend symbolizes her guilt at being safe in hiding while others are being sent to their deaths. She dreams of her in concentration camps and feels that she cannot feel sorry for herself in hiding, and it is so heartbreaking that Anne should perish in the war. That is what is so phenomenal about this one family's story, that they can be so diligent to look ahead and have an option to hide but still be murdered. I truly found the whole experience to be fascinating and am so happy we were able to do this today of all days.

My face says it all, such a powerful experience and tragic story

We grabbed a bite to eat afterwards and just wandered Amsterdam a bit aimlessly, as there was no time for another museum. We saw the homomonument commemorating the gay men that had to wear a pink triangle on their clothing and were also sent off to concentration camps. We went to the famous Bulldog cafe and relaxed for awhile and enjoyed walking around taking touristy photos.


As a result of our unexpected expenses, our itinerary has been altered to make up the cost and we won't be planning any more trips into Amsterdam. Instead, if the weather holds up we will likely go for a nice walk on the beach, and see more local museums. The beaches here are very beautiful with soft sand and large areas to walk or lay on. Parts of the beaches are nudist and the other day we all had a chuckle when we saw this young woman, mostly naked, walk towards the water, remove her thong panties, and tie her hair back with them. Not something Ria or I had ever heard of before, but it was hilarious! Maybe there will be more goofy stories to come.