Day 2 in Amsterdam was our only day to really "check out the sites" as we were flying to South Africa the next day. So over our breakfast of a variety of breads and cheeses we looked at the list of potential places of interest and decided Anne Frank's house (or "huis" in Dutch) was a necessity. We'd sort of follow it by ear after that. So, we bundled up in what we did bring to keep us warm, and headed out into the Amsterdam culture. Anne Frank's house was only a few blocks (and about 4 canals) away. The architecture in Amsterdam is beautiful and we were able to see much of the old Amsterdam life. What truly amazed us was the number of people riding bikes. The bike is the most prevalent form of transportation in this city. We saw people riding to work, carrying groceries, delivering items, carrying babies. And they aren't real fancy or expensive road bikes or mountain bikes, like what would be a perceived necessity in the U.S., but rather those old jalopies our parents had when we were kids. The number of canals that intertwine through the city also was cool to see. Every couple of blocks or so, we would cross another canal, which tend to run north, south, east, west, diagonal-you name it. Finally, it was also interesting to see the number of buildings that were actually tilting due to settlement in the soft foundation underneath the city.

Anne Frank's house was impactful for all of us, even the little ones. Of course, Jack being the army-oriented type of guy he is understood the importance of needing to hide from the Nazis. What did boggle him was why the Nazis felt compelled to kill regular people like moms and dads and children, rather than just shooting soldiers. Seeing the reality of a hidden house touched him deeply and brought a new dimension to his idea of the horror of war. Bekah fell in love with Anne Frank's bedroom in the hidden house, which was lined with all sorts of pictures and newspaper clippings that were important to Anne. Being older and within the age frame of Anne Frank, Kara and Katilee could relate to the magnitude of the ordeal. For good reasons, we were not allowed to photograph inside the house. There are some aspects of life that just cannot be captured on film.

After a bread and cheese-type lunch, we headed for the infamous Madame Toussaud's Wax Museum, where we were able to have a lot of fun interacting with wax likenesses of Oprah, Tom Hanks, and gang. It's always fun to see what another culture selects as "stars worthy of being immortalized in wax," especially with regard to music. The Dutch apparently feel such musicians as Boy George, George Michael, Freddie Mercury, and Prince top the list, rather then your traditional Beatles, Rolling Stones, Diana Ross and the Supremes, etc.

A bit of pigeon chasing and trinket shopping, with another meal at a small French bistro, brought the day to a close. An end of the day inquiry as to what was the favorite part of the day found the following: "getting and eating the chocolate" (Bekah), "seeing the secret bookcase door at Anne Frank's house" (Jack), "Anne Frank's house" (Katilee and Kara), "experiencing the Dutch culture and seeing the architecture" (Kathy), and "seeing the tilting houses" (Bob).