Day 3
Wednesday, December 13, 2023
On my first trip. I was tempted by the city's museums, but didn't want to burn my one day indoors. With three days, I booked tickets for two of them. Today, it was an easy walk to the Ann Frank House and Museum.
Otto and Edith Frank lived in Munich, Germany with their two daughters Margot and Annelies. When Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of German in 1933, they decided it best to get out, so they moved to Amsterdam.
Otto bought a small company that made Pectin, used in manufacturing jam. He also filed papers with the United States Consulate in Rotterdam to get on the immigration waiting list. When the German army invaded the Netherlands in 1940, they burned the consulate to the ground, destroying the paperwork.
It didn't take long until Jews found their rights being stripped away one step at a time. Otto was forced to give up his business as Jews were no longer allowed to own them. But, he still worked there.
With help from some friends he was able to quietly furnish an old storage room upstairs in the office and turn it into an apartment. In July, 1942, his oldest daughter Margot received an official notice. She was being ordered to one of the work camps.
Otto Frank told a few people his family was escaping to Switzerland as a diversion. Instead, he and his family moved into the apartment upstairs. The entrance to the stairway up being hidden behind a bookcase.
The apartment was small for four people. They would eventually be joined by a former business partner, his wife and son. Now seven people were sharing a room of about 450 square feet. Imagine if you can, seven people in one room for two years. They had to be careful walking, so no one downstairs could hear. They did have a bathroom, but couldn't run water while the office was occupied.
Ann started documenting her experiences in the diary she had received for her thirteenth birthday. In August, 1944, the apartment was discovered. The seven occupants, as well as the business owners suspected of helping the families were all deported to concentration camps. Otto Frank would be the only one to survive,
The building from outside...
Photography inside isn't allowed. But, you can take a virtual tour courtesy of the museum. Just click the link:
After leaving the museum, once again, I had no set plans.
One sure fire way to brighten a gray, damp day is with a visit to the floating flower market. This time of year is was more geared to selling seeds and bulbs though.
Definitely not a coffee shop...
The expected rain finally arrived, so I simply called it a day,
No comments:
Post a Comment