Brussels and Amsterdam

On July 15th we started our day out in Brussels.  We woke up in our wonderful hotel, The Metropole Hotel.  It was built in the early 1900s by the Wielemans brothers.  In 1911, the first Solvay Physics Board was held which brought together people like Einstein, Marie Curie, Poincare, Stars, Crowned Heads of State, and politicians all stayed here.  During WWII the Germans took it over during their occupation and then for a year by the allies.

The original décor has been kept from when it was opened.  It is a beautiful hotel and fun to stay in!

We walked a little ways for breakfast and found a place that was good for all of us!!  AJ with some freshly squeezed orange juice and Michael with hot chocolate.

Grandpa enjoying a Belgium waffle and Grandma a good wrap.  As we headed back to the hotel it was perfect timing because as soon as we arrived inside it started POURING down rain!!  It was crazy!! 

I wanted to take Mom and Dad down to the Atomism in Brussels.  It is a LOT of stairs and walking and we had to get to Amsterdam so we just stopped and took a few pictures.  Mom holding up the Atomium!!

AJ and Grandma - look he is almost as tall as her.  He is getting waaaayyyy too big!!!!

After a bit we found Amsterdam.  We had tickets to go into Anne Frank's house that evening so we had a time frame.  We took the boat cruise around to the house to see a little bit of Amsterdam.  Mom had been here many years ago when she studied in France.  She said it looked pretty much the same.

It still amazes me how many boat houses there are, some legal and some not so legal.

I loved this!!  It was fabulous!

This is where all the wives came to see their husbands off and maybe not to see them ever again.

It was so pretty with all the flowers in bloom!

Our first tour in Amsterdam was Anne Frank's house.  It is one place that I have wanted to go the last two times I was there and I was finally able to get there.  We did the informational tour, so there was a 30 minute discussion prior to going into her house.  These are some pictures of Anne while she was growing up.

This was the company that her dad owned and ran before the Germans took over.

You can see some of Hitler's propaganda in these photos.  The small boy with the swastika on the cone.  Normally they are all beautiful and colorful, but that changed when Hitler came into power.

These are the eight people that lived in the house.

Here is a mock up of Anne's house.  On the left is her dad's business and on the right is their "house."  It was amazingly big for those who were hiding from the German's.  They wouldn't allow us to take pictures inside the house, but it was small, cramped for eight people, and I couldn't imagine not seeing sunlight for years.  Truly amazing that they almost made it.

This is the outside of her house.

After that it was time for some dinner.  This jovial gentleman was outside his restaurant and we decided to try it.  He said he had the best pizza ever, it was pretty good.  Grandpa and his boys!!  They are always having a great time together!

After that we headed back to the hotel.  These chairs remind me of Alice in Wonderland.  I couldn't help but take a picture of them, they were waiting for me while I parked the car.  It was another great day and I enjoyed myself as always with the family!!!!