In the summer of , we took our boys on an adventure in Europe. What were we thinking?!? Actually it was a great trip and the efficiency of the European train system made it much easier. We started in Paris , had a side trip to Normandy , and then it was on to Brussels. Our next stop was Amsterdam. I had never been to Amsterdam before. It is a very compact city and very walkable. The city is known for its bikes β everyone rides a bike there and bikes rule the street! I got the feeling that the pecking order was: bikes then mopeds then cars and lastly pedestrians!
Be forewarned that Amsterdam has a very open attitude to many things that are taboo in American, namely drugs and prostitution. It is a beautiful city with a rich history. Its museums are some of the best in the world and can captivate children as young as 6. You may think that this subject matter would be too serious and horrific for kids but this museum really does an amazing job with helping kids understand the World War II occupation through the eyes of 4 real-life Dutch children.
The main part of the museum is amazing but mostly for teenagers and adults. However, there is a completely separate section for kids that really brings home the Nazi occupation that took place in The Netherlands during World War II. Upon entrance to the museum, take a left, which is the opposite way of the main museum tour. You will walk through the end of the main museum as you make your way to the Junior museum. Upon entering the Junior museum, you enter a special portal β made to look like a time machine β that gets the kids excited for the museum.
These four houses represent the four real children you will be learning about β Eva, Henk, Jan, and Nelly. Each house has a TV and gathering space in front of it so you can learn about the child and their life before the war. The houses have several rooms and you see their clothes, their toys, and their furniture. You see the hiding places that they have created in their closets. You read their diaries and see their school papers.
In a very heart-stopping moment, you hear a knock at the door from a Nazi soldier. It really puts you and your child into the footsteps of these children and the hard choices and sacrifices that war brings. Her story of a young Jewish girl living in Amsterdam and going into hiding is very poignant and the real-life connection between Eva and Anne Frank is interesting. We spent over an hour in the museum and only made it through 3 of the houses.
