And So It Goes

We arrived and are into full day 2. For as much worrying as I did over the Delta flights giving me grief about my carry-on being too large, it was KLM who provided the serving of heartburn. It measured their exact measurements according to their website, including the handle and wheels. Still they made me use the metal template at the airport. It was a struggle, but I could force it in. The staff person sighed, said it was a full flight so I may be uncomfortable having it under the seat. As it turned out, there was plenty of room in the overhead bins.

All three flights were excellent. KLM took us from Budapest to Amsterdam and then Delta pulled a double shift with getting us from Amsterdam to Minneapolis-St. Paul and then from there to Des Moines. Once there, Ron’s friends Susan and Dick Leonard were waiting for us in the baggage area. Miraculously, our suitcases were some of the early ones to arrive, so we were off in a flash.

I had met Susan and Dick once, but many years ago, and even then for only a short time. No matter, these are the type of people that after you know them for five minutes, you feel as if you have known them for years. They took us to their very comfortable home where we were to spend our first two nights. Siting on the bed were piles of packages and boxes. Each pile had a ribbon sitting on top as if Christmas had arrived. These were the items I had shopped for online. As exciting as this was, the need to be social overwhelmed my need to satisfy my curiosity.

After sitting around having a beer or glass of wine, Dick had prepared a dinner of chicken served over spaghetti with spinach. It was delicious. By 9pm, we were wiped out. We had gotten up at 3am to get our taxi to the airport and slept little on the planes.

Yesterday morning, after breakfast, Susan drove us downtown to pick up our marriage license. Dick was going to go grocery shopping. Downtown is impressive with the styles of architecture and refurbished building that are quaint businesses now, but there was an excitement that overwhelmed everything else. That was getting license. I had corresponded with a gentleman from this office so many times; questions ran the gambit how to get the license long before hand due to the 3 day waiting period, did they get the application, and finally is everything alright. He was so kind and gracious with each response, I commented on it. He responded with “I am just doing my job.” To this I responded “Many do their job, but not all do it pleasantly.” Because of this, we brought him a little gift from Budapest. Rats! It was his day off, so we did not get to meet him. We left his gift with a co-worker who was equally as charming, but with little contact with her, no gift.

Downtown Des Moines has a skywalk, a connected walkway that is enclosed with glass walls where you can travel through much of the downtown area. You can literally walk for 4 miles without having to stop for traffic or to cross a street. It is truly an incredible feat and an attractive feature of the downtown area. If you work within the skywalk network, you can go to other offices or restaurants without ever feeling the outdoor elements. No winter mittens, hat, overcoat or boots needed during inclement weather.

Our next stop was the grocery store. This is more than a grocery store as it contains a bank, real estate agency, pharmacy, florist, and of course food. I picked up some ‘forever’ stamps, the US postage stamps that are usable regardless of rate increases for first class mail. At the pharmacy, I shopped for all the little essentials that we cannot get in Budapest or at least in any form we can recognize. With pills, ointments, and balms all collected, we headed for the cheese case. There were an array of cheeses that made my heart flutter, but better was yet to come. Susan directed us to the better cheese case. I could have done back flips when I saw the variety of luscious cheeses from Ireland and beyond. Knowing that all our packages weigh heavily,

Yes, the last sentence ends abruptly and without end. To think I could keep up my notes while being in the home stretch of getting married, was beyond fantasy. That is where I left off and had not returned to until now.

Pin It Now!

Quito Finale and Farewell

Our last few days in Quito were really nothing exceptional. When you return to a city three times, there is a sense of comfort about it that does not propel you into wanting to do much. We didn’t want to leave with regrets, so we did push a bit.

The city government house has free tours if you are willing to wait in line. This is the same place that has the toy soldier guards standing outside that we walked into once before, but never got as far as the garden. This was our Saturday morning opportunity, but it seemed that the locals had similar ideas, creating a huge line with only 20 people admitted for a tour at one time. It was hot out creating an uncomfortably sunny line of waiting. While I held our place, Ron went to check out another cultural place we had ignored up to now. Twenty minutes later he returned as I was baking in the sun. Taking my place, I took respite in the shade, but then walked over to reread the sign of the building we were waiting entrance to. Good thing I did, because each person needed their national ID or passport to get in. We had neither and could have been turned away at the gate.

Giving up that idea, we went right next door to the Quito Cultural Center. Given that there are two guards standing in the doorway, it is intimidating to just walk in, but we did freely and without grief or harassment. In the extensive courtyard, the public is privy to a photography show of an Ecuadorian’s photos of people and places of Quito. As great as the photos were, the rest of the downstairs rooms had art from various artists with works of portraits or self-portraits that ranged from weird to incredibly creative. Exploring the 2^nd and 3^rd floors of this massive building, we discovered that it contains a library segmented room by room with divisions of books. One room held social sciences, another economics and so on. There were two rooms for the children’s books at two different ends of the long hallway. On the 3^rd floor, you can walk out to view the city, though the views are not spectacular, but interesting. We did witness some demonstration in the park, but never found out the reason.

This was our last chance to get to the Egas Museum, the work of a famous Ecuadorian painter. We had made attempts on our last two visits, but it was closed. The plan was to have lunch at Govinda’s, a full 3 course meal for $2 and then walk across the street to the museum. Foiled again, the museum was still closed without any posting of hours.

Shopping or at least window shopping took up the rest of the afternoon, before reading/writing time. Dinner was at a restaurant decorated with Harley Davidson and Coca Cola enameled signs on the wall. It was there I discovered that one of the arms of my designer sunglasses was missing. As we were leaving, we heard music in the nearby courtyard. Wandering over, there was a free public indigenous dance performance, an Ecuadorian ballet in traditional costumes with a man dressed as a shaman. I could have kicked myself for not bringing my camera.

Sunday, as we walked to the main square, we found all of the major streets were blocked from traffic. We found that on Sundays, this is the routine. It is to encourage people to ride their bikes and exercise. There are blocks and blocks of bike and pedestrian access. Children taking advantage are speeding down hills at velocities that would make me pale, taking advantage of the free access, though they are competing with the trolley buses still.

We had never made it to inside the basilica and thought to hire a taxi, but with the lack of auto access, it was not possible. We walked instead up some really steep hills that required step, step, step, rest… step, step, step, rest… step, step, step, sit down somewhere. We came across the vertical garden, the one we had seen from trolley buses only until now.

At the bus terminal, there is handicraft market that we have seen before, but never perused. There were some interesting crafts and some we could not make heads or tails of either. There was a local musical band playing and people were in the center of the booths dancing. There were a couple of really elderly women dancing alone doing some unusual movements. I would have loved to have seen them with partners.

When the basilica was in view, I was almost tempted to thank a higher power. We could get in only because a mass was being conducted. Compared the gold and glitter of all of the other churches we have seen, this was a poor step-sister in comparison. I had my camera, but was not motivated to take a single photo. Outside was different. They had a roasted pig and were serving like an old fashioned American church dinner. We were not certain if this is customary or if there was a special reason. Ron happened to notice the gargoyles were indigenous animals like iguanas and turtles. Attached to the church is a crypt; it was very interesting as it resembled our bunk beds on the cruise.

On our way back we stopped one more time at the Egas Museum only to find it closed still. Back in the main square, we had to stop in the tourism office yet again. Ron had spotted a wall hanging that he really liked for the blue bedroom. After deliberating the expense, we returned to purchase it.

The rest of the day was reading and writing until 4 pm when we wanted to try La Ronda once again. The last two times we were there at different hours and different days, the majority of places were closed. Today turned out to be no exception. I can only wonder at how these places can exist or if there really is a business behind the metal barriers where a business once was. It was disappointing. Stopping for a coffee, I had convinced Ron he needed to try a hot chocolate. The chocolate here is supposed to be beyond compare as is the coffee. Neither my coffee nor his hot chocolate were worthy of mention.

Tomorrow, we fly from Quito to Panama City on Copa Airlines, followed by KLM from Panama City to Amsterdam and then finally Amsterdam to Budapest again on KLM. Until then…

Related articles

• Climbing churches in Quito - Quito, Ecuador
• Around Quito - Quito, Ecuador
• Ecuador A Dream Destination for Nature and History Lover

Pin It Now!

We Were KLM’ed

Leaving on a 6:30 am flight is never fun, but when you know the end of the day will bring you to Ecuador, it seems more than worthwhile. KLM was an exceptional experience starting from Budapest. I had giving the check-in person a card with our frequent flier numbers, but forgot to get it back from her. When we were boarding, she found me and held it out for me.

BUD to AMS is only 2 hours, but we only had 1 ½ hours between flights, which was barely enough. We have to walk a mile to the next gate, go through security all over again and by this time our flight was boarding.

The flight was direct from Amsterdam to Quito, 12 hours of flying time. KLM had excellent service. I have never seen so many flight attendants who continually smiled like they did. We had a surprise passenger behind me. One of the men was flying with his Bichon Frise dog in a soft dog carrier. He had a real doggie bag. Although I had not requested special meals, each one was healthy and nutritious as long as I stayed away from the desserts.

Our arrival in Quito was well structured. As soon as we deplaned, the Customs booths were immediately in the area. There was an electronic calling system, so we worked our way through quickly. The luggage carousels were immediately after Customs, making it all very contained and simple to get everything accomplished. The glitch was the luggage. We only had two carry-on bags and one small almost empty duffel bag that we had checked. In AMS, they asked that we check all of our bags since the plane was full. They promised we would get our entire luggage collection upon arriving. It was close to an hour before they were proven not to be liars. We were not alone. There were still a number of passengers that were waiting for their things when we left.

We were warned about a few things upon arrival. The altitude may do us in, so acclimate slowly. When we were in Peru, going to Cuzco they gave us cacao tea upon arrival to soothe the complications of altitude sickness. Quito is at an elevation of 9,350 feet (2,800 meters above sea level); it is the highest capital city in the world housing the administrative, legislative and judicial functions.

The other caution was to take an authorized taxi only, which we did. It was $12 to our hotel. Our hotel is an old Jesuit parish house that has been completely remodeled with 22 rooms. As lovely as it is, it is strange to see religious icons in the lobby. Our initial room was on the top floor, but with the jet lag and altitude adjustment, we knew we would not make it up and down those fifty steps to often, so we asked for another room. We are now on the first floor, which is a bit noisy, but perfectly fine otherwise.

After settling in, we asked the clerk about a place to eat close by. He gave us the name of a restaurant, but has not been as friendly since the room change request. After getting directions, I asked if it was safe to walk there and back. After a quick guffaw, he responded with “It is at this time of night.” This prompted me to ask, “At what time of night is it not safe?” The answer is by 9:30 pm, you should be asking the business that you are in to call you a taxi. Great! It was already 7:30 pm. Supposedly this restaurant was only 4 blocks away. Two blocks would get us to the wide avenue and from there a left turn and 2 more blocks would take us to dinner.  After four blocks, we passed a number of closed places; it was Sunday in a Catholic country.  However, 6 blocks did not turn up the designated restaurant. Neither did 7 or 8 blocks. Asking the private duty guards on the street gave us shrugs to “I have never heard of this restaurant” to “You have gone in the wrong direction. It is that way.”

We never found it, but eventually settled for something close by. It was a fish restaurant where we had to buzz to get in after being checked out through a prohibition type door. We both ended up having soup as the entrées started at close to $20. As it was, our bill for 2 soups and 2 cups of herbal tea was $26, for a meal I did not even enjoy.

It is 9:45 and we are knocked out. Breakfast is only served between 7 to 9 am.

Related articles

• A Visit to Middle Earth - Quito, Ecuador
• So, what does a month in Ecuador cost anyway?
• Settled in Quito! Almost feels like home!

Pin It Now!

My Wings Have Melted

Just last week, I was writing about airline frequent flier programs and how they supported our need for travel like an addict's enabler. I also reminisced about my schemes to collect miles any which way that was available. So I was horrified not too many years ago, when a trip to the US for Ron cost 60,000 miles when it seemed not too far in the past, it had only been 35,000.

Ignoring changes had been my downfall, but knowing we didn't have enough collected for anything in the near future, I just did my best to accumulate as much as possible. When my Delta account statement arrived showing I had 89,000 miles, I thought I had hit the jackpot. I immediately went to their site and found that Europe to Ecuador, South America is 60,000 miles. 

I wanted to cheer, scream out the window, "We did it! We finally did it once again. We are flying for free." I knew that I could transfer some of my points from my American Express card over to fill in the gap between 89,629 and 120,000. Essentially, I wouldn't even need to transfer the whole 30,371 miles. We have been spending money like rich men furnishing the new apartment. Once those miles hit the statement, the transfer would be a lot less. 

Pardon the expression, but I was flying high. I was so excited to be able to take a trip far away and not to have to pay for the flight. What a savings. With Delta on my favorites list, I started checking flights. You cannot be too early for frequent flier tickets, though the maximum is 329 days ahead of the first flight out. 

I looked at every combo to get the least amount of traveling time. Some 'stop-overs' are 20 hours long. That is not stop-over; that is a mini-vacation. I really don't want it to take a week of our four weeks just to get there. Once over the Atlantic, we could make it faster on alpacas. 

What seemed like a clue was to go from here to Amsterdam on our own, then fly from AMS to UIO (the airport code for Quito). Still, these are routed through Minneapolis to Atlanta and finally as an afterthought getting to Quito. It kind of feels like the airline is saying, "Well folks, we have run out of options, so let's continue on to Quito...just for the fun of it..whatta'ya say?

After I found what I thought was the perfect fare, I went to "price" it with and without miles. For miles, it kept coming up with 220,000 miles for 2 people. Now I know math is not my strongest subject, but even can add 60,000 + 60,000 and arrive at 120,000. I did it in my head, but I did double check my calculations on the computer. Darn if I weren't right. So why is Delta telling me 220,000 where there aren't four of us going? 

Back to Delta's frequent flier program's list or rewards, perusing the list again. Europe to Northern South America is one category and Southern South American is another. Strange that they broke up the continent in this way. This is like saying Northern North America consists of Canada and all the states with 2 exceptions. Then  Southern North American is made up of Mexico, Texas, and Hawaii. Weird!! Whoever came up with that must have failed geography. I knew Ecuador is in the Northern South America category if you are going to be picky about it. There it is right there on the chart 60,000 miles, but that is where I must have stopped reading the first time. If I had continued, the next line states. These awards are for travel in one direction only.

Icarus, I commiserate. I flew too close to the sun and Delta melted my wings. We both came crashing down to earth, but I will live to fly another day.

Related articles

• Yapta now tracks discounts by frequent-flier miles
• 6 possible outcomes if merger happens
• United alters course after frequent-flier backlash
• Extreme fliers: They love flying, they really, really do
• 9 Ways to Get Airline Status Faster
• How to get a free upgrade
• Delta Single-Handedly Ruined This Guy's Trip To See His Grandmother's Funeral

• Chasing the Sapphire (budgetnomad.blogspot.com)

Pin It Now!

Photo Blog Update

The following photo albums are now available for your viewing pleasure.

Thursday, April 21, 2011 - A short video of the spring carnival on Dam Square.

Friday, April 22, 2011 - Photos of Haarlem

Saturday, April 23, 2011 - Photos of Kuekenhof Flower Festival

Sunday, April 24, 2011 - Photos of the Amsterdam Zoo 

Monday, April 25, 2011 - A composite of Amsterdam photos taken from Thursday April 21st to Monday April 25th.

Pin It Now!

There is Something to Be Said for Murphy's Law

Murphy Law states "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong". As we were walking to the train station, we passed this young man who had a t-shirt that stated "Murphy was a damn cynic," which really made me chuckle until Murphy proved himself correct twice today.

In the Amsterdam train station there are innumerable lockers to store your goods while enjoying the last remnants of a vacation before moving closer to the world of reality once again. With hours to spare, we found a locker ready to be filled on a lower level while a German family found one near us, but up higher. They are asking me questions about the locker in German. Other than "is this the large or small locker", they lost me. The directions for operating these lockers are in Dutch and English. However, the English directions are severely lacking as are the computer generated flashcard directions that appear where you have to pay. Each section of lockers is controlled by one computerized payment center and it only takes credit cards.

I put our luggage in the locker and closed the door. It immediately locked. When I went to pay and pressed the button marked LANGUAGE, the door popped open from where the Germans stored their things. Opps! When I tried closing it again, it would not snap shut. Apparently now, they had the claim ticket for our locker since I slammed our door shut while they were busy paying. 

There is one attendant there for emergency use only. This qualified. The Germans had exposed luggage and although the Germans are known for exposing many things, the luggage that they usually let all hang out is of a different sort entirely. They had a claim to our luggage and theirs was left unprotected. After explaining this mess to the man in charge, after he swallowed a few aspirin, mopped the sweat from his brow, he had us fill in forms. He wanted to see our passports. Sure, but they are locked in the locker. Well, give a description of what is in the luggage in detail. Suddenly, I felt relief in not getting those sex toy joke items for friends. Twenty-five minutes later, he had everything under control except for my blood pressure.

Hours to kill, we had thought of taking a canal cruise, not for the sightseeing, but to spend the time. I had been on so many of these cruises, they awarded me an honorary captain's position. Instead, we walked the streets, looked into stores and found one of my old time favorite coffee shops that has gone from independent to chain; that was a major disappointment. The last stop was to look for a book to read on the plane. I had just finished The Highest Tide by Jim Lynch and want Ron to read it, so I would not leave it behind. I picked up a copy of Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier. Strangely, both have similarities, yet are different enough to be captivating. The latter is so good, I read half of it on the plane during an hour and fifty minute flight.

To backtrack a bit, we took the train from Amsterdam to Eindhoven without a hitch, though it was a longer ride than we had remembered. I started clock watching since Wizz can be a stickler with the 2 hours rule for being at the airport. Soon after the train was pulling into the station, we were running for the bus to the airport. We were told we could buy tickets on the bus, but the driver said "Not today, you can't" without an explanation. We had 6 minutes to run inside to get tickets before the bus left the station. I ran, Ron waited; I made it back with 3 minutes to spare. We make it on the bus, found seats; the bus takes off the minute it was scheduled. Being a local bus, we make stops along the way, I continue to monitor my watch like I am timing a sporting event. Actually, I was, it was the race to the airport.

We are driving along when all of a sudden, the bus makes noises like we have just run over a Volkswagen Beetle. Our immediate thought was a blown tire, but since it was one of those extended buses, there should have been enough tires to get us to the airport. Regardless, the driver stopped to check, came back with the same blank look he left with and attempted to drive off, but we were not moving a centimeter. It was either the transmission or crankshaft that skipped out along the way, not leaving a parting gift when it deserted us. The bus was full of people and luggage. It was not like we were the only people flying today. No one seemed concerned but me. Even the driver looked like he only needed to finish his shift and then his worries were over. After 3 false starts of letting the engine rest and try again, he called for a rescue, but never said a word to anyone. Finally, Ron went up to ask him the plan, while once being enlightened, it was Ron who had to announce it to the bus crowd. No one applauded, which disappointed Ron, and he will probably never intervene again on public behalf unless accolades are assured.

A second bus finally arrived and we passed all scheduled stops until the airport. No one seemed to complain if they had a different agenda. We were 2nd in line for WizzAir's check-in only because they were late opening their counter. 

The flight home was uneventful; our one suitcase was the 2nd piece of luggage off of our flight. So there Murphy!

All photos will be posted in our photo blog. The link is to the right. However, I will alert you here when they are ready.

Pin It Now!

The Zoo Do

At breakfast at the hotel, we each found a chocolate Easter bunny by our plates. They also served hard boiled eggs, but since they were all brown, I think they were dyed by the chicken and not the Easter Bunny.


Our American friends who have lived in the Netherlands for as long as we have lived in Hungary, came to Amsterdam to spend the day with us. Audrey, Mike and Oskar were our playmates for Easter Sunday. Ron had to do his religious thing, Easter duty, going to church, so we met them at 11:30. What to do, what to do? What do you do when you have a chronological child and three adults who have inner children who all need entertaining? You do the zoo. Do the zoo; a zoo do was in order. 


After watching a BBC three part series on the London Zoo, I no longer complain about the cost of zoo admissions: Ron's was €17.50 and mine was €18.95. When you really consider the full day's enjoyment, it really is not bad at all. The animals are well cared for and there were a few I had not seen before. Others were familiar, but so robust and hearty, it was a pleasure to view them again. 


We said our goodbyes around 5:30 seeing off the family group at the train station and went back to the hotel. Ron rested, I wrote. We went exploring for a dinner place. I had remembered a number restaurants off a popular square where here by myself, but never tried any. We walked over there and found quite a few, but they were pricey, which was interesting considering the tram line that ran on that street is no longer. The restaurant that spoke bi-locationally to our stomach and wallet was a Mexican place. Alfonso's fed us well with Mexican food that was as good as what we ate in California. Who would have guessed it?


Tomorrow, we leave. There were things I would have liked to have done, but did not have time for, but you always need to save something for next time. 

Pin It Now!

Kuekenhof - When Your Tulips Meet Mine Eyes

One of the main reasons for this trip was to visit Kuekenhof again. We have both been here before, but the magnificence of the flowers draw us back yet again. We purchased our tickets online to avoid the hassles once there. Being Easter weekend, we knew there the crowds would be tremendous, but the fields are so extensive, it barely feels crowded. To get there, one option is to get to Leiden first and then take a bus, but there are also buses from the airport that go directly. We bought the combo ticket including round-trip bus fare and entrance into the gardens. My ticket was 21 Euros and Ron's was 18.50, really quite a bargain. Our train tickets round-trip from Amsterdam to Leiden were 16.50 Euros each.

A little bit of history of the event: In the 15th century, Jacoba van Beieren had a castle in this area, which was also a popular hunting area. Herbs were collected in the area for preparing food for castle kitchen; hence the name Keukenhof. Keuken means kitchen and hof can be translated as garden in Dutch.

Over time, the land passed through many hands, but eventually Baron and Baroness Van Pallandt engaged the services of the famous landscape architects of the time, J.D. and L.P. Zocher to design a garden around the castle. The two designers were already famous for their creation of the Amsterdam Vondelpark. Their inspiration was the English landscape style of the time and has remained the style of Keukenhof.

The estate is currently owned by a foundation. By the initiative of the Lisse mayor in 1949 and a number of leading flower bulb growers and exporters, an open air flower exhibition was organized here for the first time. Each year, this increased in size drawing worldwide attention and tourists to admire the vast beauty of the flower displays.

Here are some facts and figures to give you an idea of why this is so incredibly exciting.

• As.one of the most popular attractions in the Netherlands, it has had more than 44 million visitors in the last 60 years.
• It is the largest bulb flower park in the world.
• It covers an area of 32 hectares 4.5 million tulips in 100 varieties.
• It is the most photographed place in the world.
• There are 15 kilometers of footpaths. 
• It is the largest sculpture park in the Netherlands.
• The bulbs are supplied by 91 Royal Warrant Holders; 7 million flower bulbs are planted by hand.
• There are more than 2,500 trees in 87 varieties.
• There is a Walk of Fame with tulips named after famous people.

This year was dedicated to Germany with the theme "Land of Thinkers and Poets", and a replication of the Brandenburg Gate was recreated with over 100,000 flower bulbs. They also had created the famous Van Gogh self portrait in flower petals.

We arrived at 11:45am brimming with energy and full camera batteries. After 5 hours and camera cards bursting with photos, we were starting to feel a bit punk. We just about covered every square inch of the place. The only major disappointment was my favorite pavillion where they usually have thousands of bulbs and other plants in bloom like tablecloths of color that have been spread out for a visual feast. However, due to the heat, most of the tulips and daffodils had already perished, leaving the space looking like a bad case of alopecia. 

By 5:50 pm, I started getting nervous about the bus schedule to return us to the train station. No one seemed to know for sure if the buses were continuing after the park closed at 7:30. The line for the bus was out on an open field, but roped off like the lines at the airport, causing us to walk up one line and down another until we reached the butts of those who made it there before us. There were two lines actually: one for those going to the airport and one for those of us going to the train station. Keukenhof depends on the city bus line to provide the services, but the city service was not servicing us expediently. We had to wait a hour and forty-five minutes for our bus. It was almost forty minutes from the time we arrived in line until the first bus arrived to haul off people. The park employees were great about distributing water to everyone.

Once back in Leiden, we walked to the main canal and had dinner there, before getting our train back to the city. Although the day was exhausting, it was fulfilling at the same time. All photos will be in my photo blog in the next couple of days.

Related articles

• Keukenhof 2011 season opens March 25 (gadling.com)
• Did You Know Flowers Were Born in Dutch Land? (kinneyforyourthoughts.wordpress.com)
• It's Tulip Time in Holland (blogs.forbes.com)

Pin It Now!

Haarlem, Not Harlem

It is always a strain to write while away. Time has to be divided between actually doing things and writing about them. The more we do, the more there is to write about, but then again the more we do the less time there is to write about it. What a cycle of indecision. Some day, I will just sit in a hotel room and write only about the experience for 20 hours to live the difference. 

With that said, Ron wanted to investigate outside of Amsterdam and had Haarlem in his bag of alternatives, so we took the train there. Tickets are only €7.50 each for a round-trip, quite the bargain. As with many cities and towns, when you arrive at the station, you wonder why you bothered coming at all. It took about three blocks walk to discover this city was charming. If one is into architecture, than Haarlem is a delight. I took dozens of photos of buildings that captivated my imagination. If only I could use a ruler and draw, I would have been an architect. Superior imagination would have helped too, so I guess I missed out all around.

We explored for about an hour, just wandering aimlessly, but that was only because we couldn't find the VVV, which is what the tourism office is called throughout The Netherlands. It is situated very deeply in the downtown area, so much so you can cover a good deal of territory before getting inside the door. I had thought there would not be a need at all, since the city is small and only 14km from Amsterdam. What could possibly be to do here? After the tourism woman gave us the brochures and the list and a pile of brochures, for which we were charge 1 euro, we would have needed to stay for 3-4 days to cover it all. Ron did a typical Ron thing. He loves tourism offices and getting the nitty-gritty details on everything under the sun, but then does not want to be bothered carrying any of it with him. She did give us a coupon for a complementary cup of coffee for 2 people at the V and D department store across the street and said they had a rooftop that overlooked the city. That was our first official post tourism office visit stop. 

The food hall is typical of many large department stores in Western Europe. They are really multiethnic restaurants catering to many tastes and cuisines. This keeps shoppers in the store longer too, with a better chance they will buy more merchandise. The prices are comparable with restaurants, so it is really convenience and not bargains that make the masses flock here. 

With the tourism guide in hand, we did a self-guided walking tour. One of the highlights strangely enough was visiting the almshouses. The oldest, non-religiously associated was built by Wouterus van Oorshot, a wealthy man who felt compelled to help those less fortunate after he passed on in 1769. There was no mention of his generosity toward the poor before he died. The almshouse consists of a courtyard where there is a central building and two wings, one on either side of it. Each of these wings have small apartments for those who are financially impaired, generally women over 60 years old who are not married. Visiting 5-6 of these almshouses took up a good part of the day. I felt a little creepy playing voyeur at almshouses. They are open to the public, at least the courtyards are, but the Dutch are so open with their living space. Large windows are common, yet they do not cover them with shades or curtains that are not sheer. They dare you to look in because they are never doing a thing in public view that they are ashamed of, so it is like a game. Peek in why dont'cha?

Image by harry_nl via Flickr

The Teylers Museum

For lunch, we sat in the central square at the old meat packers' plant to eat the sandwiches that we brought with us. Aside from the almshouses, we went to the old druggists where the yawning facial figure is gape mouthed; this is a traditional sign. They sell Haarlemmerolie or Haarlem Oil here which dates back centuries as a cure all for anything that ails you. This chemist shop dates back to 1849. Ron was overwhelmed with the Haarlem Oil and bought a small bottle, but when I asked him why he wanted it, he said "It cures gout." My response was simply, "Neither of us have gout.". He then proceeded to ask the woman if they shipped to various countries. Maybe he knows someone with gout who I have yet to meet.

The counts of Holland once occupied the building that is now city hall. Count Floris V stayed here when in the area to collect taxes. It was almost completely destroyed in a fire in the 14th century and when rebuilt was used as the city hall. The Teylers Museum is the oldest museum in the Netherlands. It is home to much of the collection of cloth merchant and silk producer Pieter Teyler van der Hulst. Past here is the Gravestenenbrug, a white draw bridge. Across the street from here are two monumental stepped gables dating from 1630. The building behind these gables was the De Olyphant brewery that dates back to 1550. A famous Haarlem beer called Jopenbier was recreated starting from 1994 using an archival recipe from the old brewery.

We didn't go into any museums as there was too much to see on the outside. After five hours of walking around the city, we had about had it. We stopped for a piece of 'pie', which actually was like a cake with raspberries, but delicious nevertheless. Had we known the city was so delightful, we would have planned our time better. As it was, we were just planning a half day visit, but the city's spell drew us in for longer than anticipated. This is a definite place to add to any trip to Amsterdam.

Then it was back to Amsterdam in what seemed like minutes on the train. We had no plans for dinner, but every restaurant's outside seating was filled to the brim. I cannot imagine Budapest filling so many restaurants seats so consistently. We walked blocks trying to find an outdoor table because the temperature really warranted sitting outdoors. Like in Budapest, most places do not have air conditioning. The weather has been spectacularly warm, so sitting indoors would be stuffy and uncomfortable. 

Finally, at one of the pancake houses, we found seating. Then it occurred to us why. It was run by Muslims, so no liquor, which meant no beer with dinner. Well, we could forsake beer with dinner, but the selection was limited. The chicken casserole was made with chicken wings. Wings in a casserole? I could not imagine. Then something else was prepared really out of sync with anything we could imagine, so Ron went for the fish platter and I had a 'gourmet' Dutch pancake with tomato and Gorgonzola cheese on it. It was tasty and different at the same time. 

 

A couple of blocks away, we stopped for a beer before doing our mandatory walk through the Red Light district. I had wanted to stop for a beer at some of my old haunts to see how they have changed, but they don't open until 10pm and would not start to fill until after midnight, long after we were tucked into bed. The memories will have to last me.

Pin It Now!