Amsterdam: Home of Anne Frank

There's lots of canals and even boat houses on the water where people live.

The bikers don't watch out for you, you're supposed to watch out for them. Some of them have a bell so if they're coming up behind you, you'll know. There's thousands and thousands of bikes everywhere and a separate place for them to ride on the street.
 
ANNE FRANK'S ATTIC!!!! It was such a great life experience. I was very touched by this story. The book case and the stairs looked just like I had imagined. The stairs are so vertical, it's hard to climb. All the room are empty, but they have picture on the wall of what it used to look like. They were so small! Anne's room was the only room with something still in it- her pictures. The magazine clippings she ripped out are still on the walls covered over with glass. The outside looked just like a regular house and it was in the center of the city. If you ever go to Amsterdam, make sure to stop by Anne's attic.

A great way to see the city is a canal boat tour. While on the boat, we saw lots of the house boats up close. There are 1,281 bridges in Amsterdam alone.

Our boat takes us to the Gassan diamond factory. While most diamonds only have 57 faces, Gassan made the first and only diamond with 121 faces. They had beautiful jewelry. Some were actually not that expensive, but others were thousands and thousands.

Volandaam is where all the clogs and windmills are. We get into Volandaam, about 30 or so minutes away from Amsterdam, and see all the windmills and clogs. They even had wedding clogs! There was a whole wall filled with clogs. All the windmills had something different inside. One had cheese making, others had drinks or shopping.

We had 10 or so minutes before dinner so we walked around to find an ATM. I asked a guy on the street and he had no idea what an ATM is. Tip if you go to Europe: Always ask for the CASH MACHINE because that's what everyone calls them.

Quick Tips:

There's a local tram that gets you around the city very easy. It's cheap and fast.

Ask for a cash machine not an ATM when you're looking for one.

Watch out for the bikers! They will NOT stop for you.

Best Way To Get Around:

Tram.

This hotel was fantastic!

The rooms are large. Rooms with three beds are almost in two separate locations inside the room. A half wall is inside. There is a huge room with a toilet and sink and another huge room with just a shower. These rooms make it easy to share because one can take a shower while another one uses the toilet.

There's a cute garden in the center of the hotel. I saw people dancing and playing music out in the garden.

The food was good and the servants were very nice.

I would definitely recommend this hotel!

I was in "The Diary of Anne Frank" in high school and the story affects me still to this day. I felt that I was really apart of this story since I played Mrs. Frank for months. Seeing Anne Frank's attic gave me the sense on enclosure and claustrophobia. There really is a bookcase with stairs behind it. The rooms are so small and narrow it seems impossible for two people to share. Anne Frank's clippings are still on the walls. They are pictures of the celebrities she admired in her time. No large bags, huge luggage, baby buggies, mobile telephones, making films, or taking photos are allowed, nor are dogs. It is not possible to tour the site in a wheelchair and guide dogs are not allowed. There is a cafe and a museum store where you can buy postcards, CDs, etc. Group visits can be arranged. Visit http//www.annefrank.org/content.asp?pid=19&lid=2. I would HIGHLY recommend this wonderful and educational tour!

The Van Gogh Museum contains the largest collection of paintings by Vincent van Gogh in the world. The paintings date back to the 19th century. Paintings by Van Gogh include: Impresionism, Post-Impressionism, and others. There are two buildings to this museum. The main structure and the Exhibition Wing. The museum officially opened in 1973. Every year the amount of visitors grow. The museum is accessible for the disabled. There are lifts all around the museum. Wheelchairs and buggies are free. Traveling by public transport: From Central Station in Amsterdam, take tram 2 (towards Nieuw Sloten) or 5 (towards Amstelveen Binnenhof) to the Van Baerlestraat stop. From Station Amsterdam Zuid/WTC, take tram 5 (towards Central Station) to the Van Baerlestraat stop. You can also take tram 3 or 12 to the Van Baerlestraat stop or bus 145, 170 or 172 to the Museumplein stop. For information about travelling by train, you can visit www.ns.nl. Bus and tram schedules are available at www.gvb.nl. Traveling by car: From the A10 motorway, take exit S108, and then turn right onto Amstelveenweg. At Stadionplein, bear right, and turn left at the traffic lights. At the roundabout next to Haarlemmermeerstation, take the second right, into Cornelis Krusemanstraat. Continue down this street, which becomes the Lairessestraat, until you reach Museumplein, where the Van Gogh Museum is located. You can also plan your trip using www.routenet.nl. See also www.bereikbaar.amsterdam.nl for an overview of road works, traffic diversions and car parks in Amsterdam. Opening times: Museum: daily 10am-6pm Friday 10am-10pm Ticket office: daily 10am-5:30pm Friday 10am-9:30 Shop: daily 10am-5:$5pm Friday 10am-9:45pm Restaurant: daily 10am-5:30pm Friday 10am-9:30pm kitchen open until 9:15pm Library Museumplein 4: Monday to Friday 10am-12:30pm and 1:30-5pm Closed 1 January Admission fees: Adults: €10 13-17 years: €2.50 0-12 years: free admission Museum card holders: free admission* Members of ICOM: free admission* I Amsterdam card holders: free admission Special rates Rabobank Europas: €5 Stadspas card holders: €5** ANWB members: €8.50 (a valid ANWB membership card is required)** There is no special rate for groups or students. * ICOM-members and Museum card holders gain immediate entrance to the museum and do not need to wait in ticket lines. ** Unfortunateley these tickets cannot be ordered online. This is a great experience if you are a fan of Van Gogh or even art!

The Canal Bus was built in 1909. It can fit about 40 people. The Canal Bus (www.canal.nl) runs every 40 minutes from 9:50 until 7:25 with 14 stops along three different routes throughout the city. Explore the city by water! See all the house boats and historic sites like the Anne Frank house, Leidseplein, Heineken Brewery, The Gassan Diamond Factory. Meet at Hotel Pulitzer to get on the boat. A day pass is €16 and there is no age limit. This is a nice relaxing way to get around the city!