Anne and Elena

Sunday we went to the Anne Frank House. If you'd like a moving experience - go to the Anne Frank house with your toddler in tow. The toddler who has decided that she quite likes the girl 'Annke Franke' (pronounced in a little dutch accent) and keeps asking, 'Where is Anne Frank now, Momma?' Both Jake and I got a little choked up a couple of times...and we even swished through all the Holocaust displays to spare Elena's young mind. I read Anne Frank's diary for school when I was about her age - 15 or so. I think it is powerful to read that book when you are her age. At 14 I though of her as I wanted myself to be thought of mature, responsible, and of course a little tragic. Now that Anne is closer to my daughters age then my own, I realize what a child she was and the magnitude of the tragedy felt much greater. But then again, maybe it was the innocent voice constantly asking, 'Where is Anne Frank, Momma." Luckily when we bought the new, unabridged diary the nice lady in the bookshop gave Elena a little bookmark with Anne Frank's picture on it. So now Anne is carefully tucked away in Elena's cubbies with old train tickets, scraps of wrapping paper, miffy postcards, and other assorted treasures. Elena carefully scribbled in the visitor's book before we left. I honestly couldn't think of anything worth writing, so I just put under it, 'Elena, 2.5 years old.'

Our plan was well thought out, however. In the summer you wait in the que for hours. On a winter Sunday in the damp rain you walk right in. It was so quick, in fact, that we decided to go to another museum (in part so we could find a dry stop to have our lunch). So we headed over to the Martime Museum. Unbeknownst to us, it was the last day the museum was open for 2.5 years (some major rennovation). So it was free admission and very crowded. We did find a spot for lunch and then toured the replica 1750 boat in the harbor that you can see so well from the train station.

In keeping with our Amsterdam tradition, we took few photos. (this time because of the pouring rain). But here are Elena and I inside the boat (next to where they keep the 'borenkaas')


And, Elena would want you to know, that when we were walking, an auto drove by and splashed a huge puddle and got my pants very wet. It was the talk of the day...