Europe for slackers

(Hmmmm, something's not right here...)

(I took vacation for this?)

So, when we last left off, we'd made it to Amsterdam. After a nice relaxing night, we headed out into the city for some exploration. Once again, with our Rick Steves guide in hand (invaluable!). As a driver, the bicycles are crazy - as a pedestrian it's worse, because you're vulnerable. Head on a swivel! Sightseeing was nice - there is not a single level building in Amsterdam. Not an exaggeration! Headed to the Anne Frank house for a very somber look at some of the city's history. Had an overpriced lunch at a rooftop cafe. And as the rain began to pour down on us, we made it to Wagamama for dinner (see posts on our trip to London).



The next day, we headed for the train station to take a trip out to the country. Headed through Haarlem, and up to Hoorn for a ride on a vintage steam train (Jaime must REALLY love me!) Only problem was the cold - thank god for hot chocolate. Seriously, temperature was hovering right around 45 degrees with a North wind and occasional drizzle. After a 90 minute ride on the train, we arrived in Medemblik and caught a ferry to the historic town of Enkhuzien and the Zuiderzee museum. It's the Dutch version of colonial Williamsburg - essentially people dressed up in old-timey clothes doing traditional activities. The highlight? The laundry room, of course! We walk up and see this massive smokestack and big building. Thinking "oh, this must be the blacksmith's shop", we're shocked to walk in and see a GIANT washing machine system, and one burly Dutch dude shoveling massive quantities of coal into the furnace to keep it stoked. Interesting fact - the Dutch actually bleached their clothes by leaving them on the grass through the night - some sort of chemical reaction with the dew and the moonlight caused bleaching (ask Jaime, she can probably explain it). It was a nice look into historic Dutch life, and Jaime even tried some smoked herring. Me? NO WAY! After spending a couple of hours there, we caught a real train back into Amsterdam and hit up a walking tour of the Red Light district. After a few drinks, we headed back to the hotel, and spent the final night (or was it?) of vacation relaxing.


The next day, we got all packed up, had a nice breakfast, walked around for a bit in the morning, picked up some souvenirs, and then headed back to the Hotel to grab our bags and a cab to the airport. Now - we checked with the front desk - cabs to the airport all cost the same - and we had the nice lady call one that accepted credit cards. Not 5 minutes later, we see a gentleman at the door waiving at us. Alright, our cab's here! Walk outside, and he's very helpful with the luggage, and he's got some really nice wheels on his cab. Huh, no big deal, the guy's got style! Hop in, start heading for the airport and notice the meter running after a while. Hmmmm, thought it was a flat fee...

As we get close to the airport, Jaime finally asks - "So I thought it was a flat fee to the airport?"
"Oh, well, yes, it is for regular cabs. Did you not call for an executive cab?"

"no, we didn't. Oh well. Do you take credit cards?"

"No, I don't, unfortunately..."

"Ok, then, we're going to need to find an ATM" (the Dutch HATE credit cards!)

Lesson learned - we talked the guy down to a still shocking 55 Euro (from 70!!! I'm not making this up!) Some poor sap at the hotel had to ride to the airport in a regular cab (but only paid 35 Euro)

Most expensive cab ride I've ever had. Ugh.

But it gets better.

We arrive at the airport and try to check in - "Well, yes mam, the flight is completely sold - these are standby tickets..." Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

Ok, well, check our bags anyway, and then get through security and head to the gate to see if any spots open up. Since the tickets were actually purchased through a KLM employee, someone actually asked Jaime if she wanted to ride in the jumpseat (assuming she was a KLM employee as well. Again, I'm not making this up!) Uh, I don't know, is there drink service with that? There is? Oh, you mean I have to help serve it! No, thanks! We'll take our chances.

On the plus side, Schipol Airport has Boingo - so I got to be "That guy" and use my international connection to hook up to the Nordstrom VPN client to log into my work computer, and let my boss know that NO, I won't be at work tomorrow, funny story about that...

As the plane boarded, our hearts slowly dropped, and we realized that we were not getting home that day. Well, make the most of a bad situation! After a phone call to father in law Jim, we got ourselves a hotel, and a dinner recommendation. Checked in, dropped our bags, cleaned up, and got a cab out into the Dutch countryside. Dinner was at an old Windmill that has been converted into an eatery - with the bar on the first floor, and tables all around the 2nd flr. Cool thing - they use a winch and pulley system to raise orders to the 2nd flr, since the stairs are so narrow. This means the beer and wine glasses don't have bases, but instead sit in wooden blocks. I had a shteak, and Jaime had the shpare ribsh, and we learned our waiter had a brother who lived in Shacramento (ask me about it).


After a peaceful, relaxing dinner, and some sink laundry for me, we headed to bed and were ready to face the next day. Fortunately, that day's flight was not oversold, and we made it on board (with real seats!) and headed back for Vancouver. After a 9 hour flight, we landed in Vancouver, picked up our car, and headed for home. I must say, we were expecting the worst at the border, I mean, come on, we'd just flown back from Amsterdam, and opted to fly into Vancouver instead of Seattle. And the Canucks didn't even scan our bags when we landed. But - border was quiet - hardest question we got was about the front license plate not being mounted on Tigger. Oh, and the guy checked our bag of bulbs for proper documentation (which we had paid extra for). And that was it - "Alright, thanks guys, have a safe drive home..." Awesome!
Jaime called our parents to let them know we'd made it, we cruised down I-5, arrived home, got our bags out of the car, cleaned up, and passed out...

Once again, take a look at all the photos here...

Damn, that was fun! So, Oktoberfest 2020? Anyone?