Amsterdam, May 23rd Afternoon

 Saturday May 23, 2026

We spent a few hours Saturday afternoon on what was described as an Anne Frank Walking Tour. It didn't include a tour of the Anne Frank house itself (we have tickets for that Monday evening), but it was a fascinating way to learn about the impact the Nazi invasion had on the people of The Netherlands and Amsterdam itself. Of the 80,000 Jews living in Amsterdam prior to WWII, somewhere between 60,000 to 65,000 were deported to concentration or extermination camps. Over 80% of these Jews didn't survive.

There's a statue of Anne Frank in Westermarkt Square, around the corner from where the Frank family hid from the Nazis for 2 years.

During our walking tour we passed by the Jewish synagogue, saw examples of the Holocaust stumbling stones, created by German artist Gunter Deming, and visited the Holocaust memorial which lists the names of all those who died in concentration camps during WWII. It was a truly sobering experience. Never again!

Examples of the Holocaust Stumbling Stones: it begins with 
"Here lived" followed by the person's name, birth year, when
they were deported, when they died and where