Our Visit To Anne Frank's House
Anne Frank's House Was Definitely Worth The Visit
If you are contemplating a visit to Anne Frank's house during a trip to Amsterdam, I would highly recommend it. In the summer of 2009, my family had the opportunity to take a European cruise. We finished in Amsterdam and spent about a day and a half touring there. We managed to pack in a lot in that short time (much more than we planned or thought possible) and one of my absolute favorite visits was to Anne Frank's House.
Just in case you don't know, the Anne Frank House is now a museum which shares the story of Anne Frank, a Jewish girl who, during the Second World War, lived in hiding with her family and friends in Amsterdam at the Prinsengracht.
Click here to buy this photographic print of Anne Frank's House in Amsterdam from AllPosters.com.
"I don't think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains." ~~ Anne Frank
Our Visit To Anne Frank's House
Because we did not know how much we were going to be able to do in one day, we did not make reservations to visit Anne Frank's House. RESERVATIONS ARE RECOMMENDED in the guidebooks and the books also say that having made reservations can save you a long wait in line.
We did manage to follow another recommendation that appeared in the guidebooks and that was to ARRIVE LATE IN THE DAY. While we did have to wait in line, the line up was not huge and the wait was not lengthy.
Once inside the building (which actually was a warehouse rather than a home), you proceed in a single line through the tight corridors and you do get to see much of the building including the rooms at the top where the Frank family and their friends lived. It was a moving visit, which was especially important to me, the only female member of our family and the only one who has read the Anne Frank books and seen some of myriad of Anne Frank movies.
Despite the fact that my teenagers (then 15 and 17) did not know a lot about Anne, they did know a bit about the history and there was plenty to keep their interest almost long enough for their mother to read almost everything in sight.
What I had not counted on was the amazing museum facility that has been added to the original building. It allowed much for information to be presented and it is in that space that we were privileged to see Anne's diary.
As Rick Steves' said in Europe Through The Back Door, "Even bah-humbug types, who are dragged in because it's raining and their wives read the diary, find themselves caught up in Anne's story."
The Anne Frank House on Video
Inside Anne Frank's House
A beautiful hardcover book by Hans Westra.
Inside Anne Frank's House: An Illustrated Journey Through Anne's World was published on the 75th anniversary of Anne Frank's birth and it was the first book that was issued in color which celebrated both Anne Frank and her famous house. The pictures are in black and white and share Anne's family and friends, the people who looked after them while they were secreted away and the house and the remaining items from Anne's time.
AMAZON CUSTOMER REVIEW:
"This book transports you to Amsterdam to the Anne Frank House which has been a museum since 1960. You take a route through photographs and documents in the same order that viewers who are lucky enough to be able to visit the museum in person. You meet Anne Frank and her family from heart rending pictures beginning with a happy family to a family in hiding to their capture and the post-war lives of those lucky enough to survive. When I bought this book I expected to see photographs of the House but was unprepared to face their overall and cumulative impact. This book is shattering and essential. This book although expensive belongs in the home of everone. It still costs less than a trip to Amsterdam." ~~ R. Rockwell
The Complete Story of Anne Frank - Anne Frank House CD
This CD-ROM, designed for adults and young people, will take you on a virtual tour of Anne Frank's life including her family, the House on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam, the Second World War and the family's hiding from the occupying forces. You use your mouse to guide yourself around and through the building. The main characters from Anne's life will be involved including Anne, her father (Otto), her mother (Edith), her sister (Margot) and more. It contains the stories of their lives with unique images and unique information which includes pictures and reports from eyewitnesses.
AMAZON CUSTOMER REVIEW:
"I ordered this CD several years ago from the Ann Frank House museum in Amsterdam; it's fantastic. You will not be disappointed. The disk contains a lot, and I mean a lot, of information. And loads and loads of pictures. It is an interactive cd. There is so much stuff on it, you will never be able to find it all. I never did. ~~ David R. Martin The Anne Frank House CD is also available for Mac users by clicking right here.
You can visit the Anne Frank House on your own only and not part of an excursion because the house is too small for groups to visit.
Should You Visit Anne Frank's House? - Here's another excellent recommendation.
- Grief Tourism in a Theme Park World
"And that, in the end, is what's so effective about the Anne Frank House. Most of us already know the story, the context. The museum section on the lower levels of the house provides further background about both the historical moment and the Frank f
Anne Frank's Amsterdam App
In 2012, the Anne Frank House released an app called Anne’s Amsterdam, for your iOS, Android and WP7 devices. Using this app, you can explore Amsterdam with an eye to the history of World War II. Included are personal stories, film and photographs.
Download your app for free by clicking right here.
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© 2010 Treasures By Brenda
Related
Have you been to Anne Frank's House? Are you contemplating a visit?
Terrific lens for the wonderful Anne Frank house. One of the most moving museums in Europe.
I love her Diary, I'd love to go! Thanks for the great advice, and the videos and everything. I've featured your lens on mine: http://www.squidoo.com/open-the-window-day-anne-fr... . Thanks for sharing.
I can't believe I haven't even read the book yet. It's on my list. Thanks for the trip to the house.
One can hope that someday there will be no need for "safe houses." Blessed!
Yes, I've been there, but I think I was too young to really appreciate it.
I've read the book and seen the movie and would like to visit the museum. Thank you for this well presented tribute. The virtual video was amazing. Blessed.
Great lens and you even took a photo inside. Did you have special permission? In general no photos inside are allowed.
Great lens, featured on my Holocoast Memorial Day UK lens: http://www.squidoo.com/holocaust-memorial-day-unit...
I am so sorry we dod not get to Anne Frank's house during our few hours in Amsterdam. I wanted to go. My dear one did not. He won. Thank you for the lens.
We toured past Anne Frank's house during a past vacation ... I've done that tribute lens on her as she is one of my superheroes, you know?
:) Of course I accepted all the lenses about Amsterdam and Anne Frank in my Netherlands Headquarters :)
Anne Frank's story has always fascinated me. I don't think I will get to Amsterdam, but your lens sure helped give me a feel for it! I can see why it is a purple star lens!
I really want to go to Holland some day and certainly this would be high on the list of things to see. Well done!I'll lensroll this to my lens on Childhood Memories of WWII.
I've been to Anne Frank's house twice, once when I was really young and again as a teenager. I cannot even begin to imagine what her life must have been like. Whenever I think about her I am reminded that my son and I have so much to be grateful for.
This is fascinating. I just recently introduced DH to her book and the first movie. Both of which he enjoyed. What an interesting place to visit. I think I would get chills.
I've never been, but it would definitely be an interesting experience. I love going to historical places and see first hand what the situation would have looked like.
What a great thing to have been able to see this first hand. Nicely done tribute and well presented lens. Top marks fave and lensrolledNorma
Beautifully done. You have presented a comprehensive guide both to the Anne Frank house which I am sure will be of interest to many who have visited or plan to do so. Congratulations on your purple star!
I had an opportunity to visit here about four years ago and you are right, what an awesome, moving experience. I have sprinkled angel dust on it. What a great lens.
Yippeeeeeeeeeeeee! Congratulations on that purple star! This is such a fantastic lens!
This looks likea good resource. I've taught holocaust literature quite a bit. My father's family is of German Jewish ancestry, but they were in the states a long time before those events.
You crafted the page really well, Brenda. However there's a missing book that might be a great addition to this page: the book written by Mip Gies, the employee that took care of the Frank family in their hidden rooms. I read a book that was named "The Annexe" twenty years ago, written by Miep Gies, don't know if it's available in English but "Anne Frank Remembered: The Story of the Woman Who Helped to Hide the Frank Family" is surely the kind of book anyone who's interested in this story must read at least once!Blessed by an Angel.
Congratulations on your purple star. I almost visited this place when I was in Amsterdam, but opted for a bike ride instead. I just thought it would be too sad, given what happened to Anne Frank's family. If I return someday, I'd definitely put this on my list.
I am feeling sad reading this, only because twice I was in Amsterdam, and twice I wanted to visit Ann Franks House but both times it was closed! I only saw it during the canal cruise, and all the memories of her book and the movies I had seen overwhelmed my desire to go inside. But it wasn't meant to be. Thank you for this lens, next time I will make reservations !Also Congratulations on the Purple Star....I love history, and your lens has not only personal experience, but gives others the venues to discover this story for themselves.
Amazing how they were able to preserve the place! I had no idea such a museum existed. I read her diary when I was young so I will certainly visit Anne Frank's house if I ever get a chance to go to Amsterdam in the future. *blessed*
Wow, looks like you had a fabulous visit, and got a well-deserved purple star to boot!
It is when I visit lenses like this that I still wish I had the power to Bless! The story of Anne Frank never fails to move me as I think about the persecution of the Jewish people. To live in such fear for so long is unthinkable as is what happened to so many of them.A lovely and also moving lens.
Wow, Brenda! This is wonderful! I would love to visit and you have given great resources to learn more!
This is fantastic I didn't know this was even an option to visit!
I was not aware that you could actually tour the home, it must be incredible. I am marking it down as a must visit place for my European Tour - when I get there that is... Congrats on the purple star!!!
Congratulations on your purple star. Thank for the information. I would love to visit. What a great way to end your trip.
I've never been to Amsterdam, but it's on my bucket list. I'll add the Anne Frank House to the things I hope to see there. Congratulations on the purple star. :-)
Oh wow. I have chills. I would love to be able to go to Anne Frank's House and am so glad you created this lens so I could see the two videos. You have really done an excellent job on this lens sharing with us all about your Visit to Anne Frank's House. Thank you.
This would be fascinating. I'm a bit of a history buff anyway, but I was very wrapped uup in the story of Anne Frank as a kid.
I haven't, but it looks like a very worthwhile place to visit. Thanks for the great information you've included here!
Oh that is one spot I would really love to visit! I read Anne Frank when I was young, and then our daughter was also captivated by her diary.
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