Friday, September 15, 2023
The plane boarding was relatively efficient although it would go much quicker if they would just board from the back. Lots of stopping, with people struggling to get their luggage in the overhead bins. We took off at exactly 5:30.
The flight was fairly smooth with only a couple of bumpy moments as we made our way around Hurricane Lee. Everyone in the main cabin received a pillow, blanket, bottled water, headphones, and a sleep mask as soon as we sat down. Chuck and I had two seats together – he by the window, me on the aisle.
I watched Guardians of the Galaxy III, and we were served dinner about 7:30. Chuck had the chicken, and I had the pasta dish. We both thought the blonde brownie was the best part of the meals. Once the movie was over, I chose some soothing spa music from their music choices and put on my sleep mask. We both dozed on and off until they raised the cabin lights as we were nearing Amsterdam.
They served us breakfast of a hot egg and cheese wrap with a side of fruit. I chose orange juice and Chuck chose coffee. We touched down at 7:20 Amsterdam time but it was a long taxi to the terminal, so we were not disembarking until about 8:00 a.m. Of course, my body was still six hours behind, so I felt it was 2:00 a.m.
The last time we landed here, we were right at the terminal. Today, we had to walk down some steep metal steps from the plane onto the tarmac and then get on a tram that took us the rest of the way. However, the tram dropped us off right at the customs hall which was convenient. I wondered how they got the people who needed wheel chairs down to the tarmac. Maybe they replaced the steps with a ramp.
This Customs procedure was much smoother than the last time. Last time, we ended up in a big crowd in the terminal as the airport officials were only allowing a few people at a time to go downstairs to Customs and there was no organization about it at all. At least today, we were all in an orderly line, and it only took about 20 minutes to get our passport stamped.
We found our luggage at the carousel and went into the Arrival Hall. We finally spotted two men holding Holland America signs. There were also other cruise lines picking up people – Avalon and Viking. Both of them doing river cruises.
We waited about 20 minutes for our van driver to arrive and he took us directly to the Movenpick Hotel which is the hotel that a number of cruise lines use as their preferred hotel for their guests. Today, a Norwegian ship was docked where our ship will would be docked the next day. Really can’t get more convenient from hotel to ship.
Of course, our room was not ready since it was only 10:00, but I got some information about embarkation tomorrow from the Holland America representative at the hotel – included breakfast at 7:00, bags you want delivered to the ship out of the room by 8:00.
We had the hotel store all of our bags and we proceeded to walk into Amsterdam. Our route took us along the river and then through the shopping area of the train station which was pretty interesting. We walked down one of the main streets past the palace and then past stores and restaurants. I bought some crackers at a little grocery store. Of all the food the ship provides, they never have crackers to go with their cheese. Seems weird to me.
I was soon feeling more fatigued, and my phone battery was getting low, so we made our way back to the hotel, stopping once to watch the river cruises load passengers and other action on the river. We ate lunch in the hotel bar splitting a club sandwich and having two beers each – total of 39 Euros. Never had a club sandwich that included egg salad as part of the layers. Our fries were served with both mayonnaise and ketchup for dipping.
Our room was finally ready at 2:30. It was on the 18th floor and the view just breath-taking. But as beautiful as the scenery was, I was ready to take a long nap face down in the comfortable bed.
Travel Trivia
The Netherlands
Dutch men have come out on top as the tallest people in the world in multiple studies throughout the years, at an average 6’0”. The women were also found to be tall, with an average height of 5’6, losing as the tallest only to women in Latvia (5’6 ½”). Average height of U.S. men (5’9”) and women (5’4”)
The Wilhelmus is the country’s national anthem. Although it did not become the official anthem until 1932, the music dates back to approximately the year 1572, making it the oldest melody used in a country’s anthem. The origin of the lyrics is uncertain, but it is said that the words are at least 400 years old.
Carrots are known for their distinct orange coloring. However, they weren’t always this way. Dating back to the 10th century, the vegetable was originally white or purple. William III of England, who was often known as William the Orange, helped the Dutch gain independence from Spain in the 17th century. According to folklore, Dutch farmers turned their carrots orange as a tribute, and the new color became more popular than before, and continues to be the Netherland’s official color today.
The Netherlands is known for its tulips. However, tulips are not native to the Netherlands, but instead Turkey. A period known as “Tulip Mania” in the 17th century gripped the Netherlands, where the price of bulbs rose and fell. Tulips only became synonymous with the country after World War II when the Dutch used the bulbs as a food source. Today, the flowers have become a large part of Dutch culture, and tourists travel to the country every year to visit the Keukenhof tulip gardens, the largest flower garden in the world.
People are often confused about whether to refer to ‘the Netherlands’ or ‘Holland’ when talking about the country. To clarify, the Netherlands consists of 12 provinces, and Holland is an area that is made up of two provinces: North-Holland and South-Holland. Historically, Holland was the area that contributed the most to the Dutch kingdom’s economy and wealth; thus, becoming a common name to indicate the entire country, although used incorrectly. However, in January 2020, the Dutch government officially dropped its country’s nickname, ‘Holland’, referring to itself as the Netherlands, in an effort to rebrand its international image.
*Trivia provided by Wikipedia.
