| A visit to Anne Frank's hiding place |
 |
| The Diary of Anne Frank is one of the most widely translated and popular books in the world. This summer I traveled to Amsterdam, Netherlands, and had the opportunity to visit the secret annex where Anne, her family, and others hid from the Nazis for more than two years. The picture to the left is Anne's diary, in which she wrote while hiding. It was left behind when the families were betrayed on August 4, 1944. After hearing Anne had died, Anne's father, Otto, the only survivor among all of those hiding, decided to follow his daughther's wishes and find a way to get the diary published. |
| You've known for a long time that my greatest wish is to be a journalist and later on, a famous writer. In any case after the war I'd like to publish a book called The Secret Annex. May 11, 1944 |
| The Frank family went into hiding on July 6, 1942, after Anne's sister, Margot, was called up by the Germans to report to a labor camp. The building consists of two sections: the front part was Mr. Frank's business Opeka, a jelly company, and the back part is what is known as the Secret Annex. The Franks were joined by Hermann and Auguste van Pels and their son, Peter. In addition, a dentist name Fritz Pfeffer joined the family. These eight people could not leave the Annex. In the picture, the home is the third one from the left. |
| The office personnel helped the people in hiding by bringing them food and supplies and keeping them in touch with what was going on in the outside world. Miep Gies, Bep Vokuijl, and Jo Kleiman all helped to keep the families safe. The warehouse workers in the factory did not know about those hiding. The picture to the right is of the canal right in front of the house. Anne could carefully look out the curtained window and see this canal. |
| Because the company had to continue to run, those in hiding had to be very quiet during the day. They could not walk around, speak higher than a whisper, go downstairs or use the bathroom. The picture is another view of the canal across from the home. |
| Countless friends and acquaintances have been taken off to a dreadful fate. Night after night, green and gray military vehicles cruise the streets. It's impossible to escape their clutches unless you go into hiding. November 19, 1942 |
| Our own helpers, who have managed to pull us through so far. Never have they uttered a single word about the burden we must be. January 28, 1944. |
| * |
| Click on the quotes at the bottom of each page to navigate! |
 |
 |
 |