Amsterdam is not a city that can be tackled in a day (or half a day), but that is exactly what we set out to do on Monday. Amanda had bought special tickets that were good all day for us to ride on the trains in the Netherlands. We started out at Heerlen at 9am but due to train construction/delays our 2.5 hour train ride took us 4 hours. We arrived in Amsterdam just in time to catch the 1:00 walking tour with Sandeman's New Europe tour group. This company provides free tours of the city. At the end of the tour you tip your guide what you feel the tour was worth. I was a little unsure of how much I'd like the tour but decided it was worth a shot, as Amanda had raved about it. After getting the ins and outs of the rules for the city, and a warning about staying out of the way of bikes (that's no joking matter!) we were off on our tour.
Our guide Julian is from Australia originally, but has been living in Amsterdam for 4 years. He lead us (and about 20 of our new found english speaking friends) on an over 3 mile tour of the city.He gave a lot of historical background on the city and the culture of the Netherlands and Amsterdam. We walked through the red light district (not at night) and he explained the laws concerning the sex trade industry in Amsterdam and some of the complications that come with it, such as human trafficking. We stopped in multiple places including Rembrandt's house (whose birthday it coincidentally happened to be), the Jewish quarter, China town, medieval portions of Amsterdam where the Anabaptists were persecuted. He even took us into a small quiet courtyard in the city that has been a religious sanctuary for a few hundred years. In this courtyard is the English Reformed Church that the Pilgrims worshipped at before coming to the US. It was such a peaceful and serene courtyard right in the heart of the city. In this courtyard there are stipulations on who can live there (it's on for single females over the age of 30).
We also stopped by one of Amsterdam's famous coffee shops. This is not be to confused with a coffee cafe. In Amsterdam's coffee shops the menu is full of marijuana. You will not be able to get your normal cup of joe. TO play it safe, I made sure to buy my coffee in a trusted American company... Starbucks! :)
We talked for a while on our tour about the marijuana laws and why the city has so many "coffee shops". Interestingly enough, marijuana is illegal to sell or grow in all of the Netherlands. Yet, it is for sale all over the city of Amsterdam (and the Netherlands in general). The coffee shop is in a sense the "cover business" for marijuana distributors, except it's not at all a secret as you can smell the shops from quite a few doors down. In the words of my momma... "That gives a new meaning to the coffee pot!"
At the end of the tour, Julian told us about how the people of Amsterdam revolted against the Nazis as they persecuted the Jews. Amsterdam was the first city for nonJewish people to rise up to defend the Jews in mass numbers. While they ultimately failed at overthrowing the Nazi occupation and persecution, it still was a success in showing how the people came together to show their support for their fellow Amsterdamers.
Our tour concluded around the corner from the Anne Frank house. We waited in a short line and then toured the house. Anne's story, like many other of the time is such a good reminder of the horrors of the Holocaust. As you walk through the house, it is not hard to imagine the frustrations of the people as they stayed locked away and quiet in the rooms above her father's store. The secret annex is such a small place for the number of people that were living in it. You can almost see the kids tiptoeing around trying to stay quiet, knowing their lives all depended on it. While the Holocaust is such a sad part of history for the Jewish people, and you can understand how they would think God turned his back on them, I love the story of redemption that comes from the return of Israel as a nation that follows WWII. While no one likes Hitler, God used a wicked man to fulfill the prophecies of thousands of years before (not surprising for our God). "What man intended for evil, The Lord used for good."
Otto Frank had a quote on the wall in the house something to the effect of... "You can't build a future without an understanding the past." So true! I think I'm going to display that in my classroom this next year.
We grabbed dinner and then caught our train home. The way home was much faster (2.5 hours). We got home and then packed for our car ride to Normandy.
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