Wednesday, June 14, 2023

Wednesday, June 14, 2023

Haarlem, Netherlands

8:40 am

My body still felt the effects of jet lag yesterday, although I had a fairly good night’s sleep. After packing I left the lovely hotel in headed to the Amsterdam train station via tram around 9:00 am. I found that several businesses throughout the city would store luggage for tourists and spent some time online checking out several vendors. Before giving a location of such business, however, you needed to book online. I held back doing this and decided to take my luggage along with me and see if I could find a place by just walking in. This proved unsuccessful, so I made my way to the Anne Frank Museum. I had a ticket that I’d purchased in advance before the trip. It was a fifteen-minute walk from the Central Station. Lugging a suitcase and heavy-loaded backpack over the cobblestone walkways, not to mention navigating the many construction zones made for a difficult trek. However, it was early, I had stamina from my rest and made it just fine. At the museum I was lucky to be granted access even though I was two hours early for my appointed visit. Another bit of luck is that a little café just around the corner holds luggage and the price was better than the online advertised ones. With that settled I went to the museum.

I had been looking forward to seeing this memorial. I felt it was not only an obligation, but for me, being inside the walls where this history took place is profoundly significant. When I first walked in the crowd was light, but soon there were many bodies, including a small school group of middle-school children. The building inside is very confined so it was in some rooms difficult to move around. The audio information provided was helpful, as was the reading material and photographs on the walls. Other objects were on display such as a yellow fabric Jewish star and facsimiles of documents.

The most touching portion of the tour was being in the actual rooms where the Frank family and others hid for two years. Photographic recreations of the layout of the rooms helped me to envision what it looked like as the occupants hid for two years. The early years of the 1940s was not that long ago so the architecture of the rooms and remaining appliances did not feel ancient to me.

In Anne’s room the walls were covered with images and news clippings she placed there. I gazed at the sink where they washed, the windows from which they looked out, the stairs leading to the attic they she frequented to visit with Peter. I just kept thinking, “if these walls could talk.” In addition to this mesmerizing experience, I found myself in the room where I could see her actual diaries. This was profound.

During about the middle of my museum tour I began to feel physically uncomfortable. Was I hungry? I had not long before eaten a good meal. Did I need more hydration? Most likely. While I didn’t want to hurry my visit, I knew it wouldn’t be long before I needed to leave, sit down, perhaps get a bite to eat. I didn’t stay to take in the very last rooms, which was a shame. Upon leaving the museum I went to a small café where I ordered still water and a savory Dutch pancake of ham, mushrooms, cheese, and tomato. I could only eat a small portion, so it wasn’t hunger that was affecting me. I soon went to retrieve my belongings, caught a tram back to Central Station where I hopped onto to train to the town of Haarlem where I would spend the rest of the day and night.

What a delight Haarlem is. After a call to the hotel to inquire the best way to get there (asking directions is such a great help and people are happy to assist, that is if they can speak English), I got on a bus and was dropped off just a few minutes from the hotel. The city center is laid out conveniently. Walking out from the hotel I’m in heart of it and walked all around, marking my location by the ancient church across from where I stayed. Feeling better physically, I was able to enjoy a small beer (only 3.20 euros!) and later, a gelato. By around 7:00 pm I wanted to get back to the room.

Walking in the room was stifling. This hotel has no air conditioning, just a fan. Even though I’d left it running, it was necessary to open the window for fresh air. My room was located on the first floor. Across from me is a residential building so I needed to be careful about being seen so I used the thin white curtain for privacy. I spent the rest of the evening on the computer figuring out the next days’ itinerary. I ruled out a trip to England. Would go to France the days I’d planned and not earlier. And realizing that I might not be lucky with finding accommodation, I booked another two-night stay in Amsterdam. I hadn’t planned on staying there but the other towns/villages I checked out were too unfamiliar to me. I decided that transportation from Amsterdam was so convenient I could get by with day trips.

I slept really well. Turned out the light after 10:00 pm and woke at 7:30 am. Although groggy from such a deep sleep, I dressed and went downstairs for breakfast. That first cup of coffee, as my best friend would say was “the elixir of life.” Check out is 11:00 am so soon I’ll be packing up once again, getting to the bus stop that will take me to Haarlem station and back to Amsterdam.

The adventure continues.