#26 Puttin' on the Ritz - St. Moritz

St. Moritz is called an alpine metropolis and there are numerous luxury hotels, spas, and upscale shops. This church with bell tower was next to our room at the Hotel Languard. The proprietor of this boutique hotel recommended we dine at the La Stall Ristorante. The executive chef was super nice, and when I admired their felted wool bread basket, he graciously gave me one. He did not want me to tell the proprietor because every guest would want one too. They were special ordered and hand-crafted in Italy.

We enjoyed travelling around the town by bus, but what we really wanted to do was get up the mountain. We had quite an array of choices but chose Surlej. The cableway took us to a mountain "resort", where we could relax, eat, and take in the breathtaking view of the glaciers, mountain lakes and peaks.

There were small villages everywhere, each surrounded by mountains and lakes. No wonder why these locations were chosen.

St. Moritz has hosted the winter Olympics twice. There is beauty everywhere.

We spent several hours here.

This trip was last August, early September and it was 100+ deg. F in Garland where we live.

#25 anne frank huis - Amsterdam

We felt that we could not visit Amsterdam without touring this "Museum with a Story." It was easy to find--we just looked for the longest queue. After 45 minutes in line we reached the entrance and ticket counter. The price of our tickets was 8.50 Euros each, and we could move about the museum at our own pace, taking all the time we wanted.

The museum was darkened, no doubt to protect the priceless pictures and writings from fading, but that certainly contributed to the somber mood. I counted this as hallowed ground, even above the churches and cathedrals we had visited. Cameras were not allowed, and if even they were, I was not inclined to intrude upon the solemnity of the story.
My best efforts to put this experience into words or context, fall short.  I was impressed that Otto Frank wanted the rooms to always remain unfurnished, as the Secret Annex had been stripped of its furnishings after the family was arrested. I took note of the steep narrow stairs that led to the upper floors and the window in the tiny attic where Anne often went, to set her spirit free for a few moments. I peeked into the water closet and was amazed to see the most beautiful blue and white painted porcelain toilet--a paradox of luxury in the midst of such lack of basic needs.
She is my literary and real-life heroine. She loved to write, as I do, and her dream of writing a best-seller came true, although she did not live to know that.
Thank you, friends of the Frank family, for saving this building from destruction, and for making this "Museum with a Story" possible.
Our wedding date was May 13, 1961 and just 17 years earlier Anne wrote this in her diary:
"Saturday, 13 May, 1944
Dearest Kitty,
   It was Daddy's birthday yesterday. Mummy and Daddy have been married nineteen years. The charwoman wasn't below and the sun shone as it has never shone before in 1944. Our horse chestnut is in full bloom, thickly covered with leaves and much more beautiful than last year."