Pauline Arrives!!
I can’t guarantee that I have all the correct events in the correct places for the next few entries (when Pauline visited) because it went very quickly and – out of character – I took very few notes :).
Her flight arrived to Schipol at 8pm from CDG in Paris. I anxiously waited at the arrivals gate, thinking I should have gotten a balloon to make myself more visible or just told her to meet me at the Burger King to avoid any disasters involving hours looking for each other in an unfamiliar airport. Turns out I got a front row spot at the gate and I wasn’t competing too much with anyone for a good view of people coming out of baggage claim / immigration.
After a little negotiating with the map and public transit (I’m not that familiar with Amsterdam at this point, since I spend most of my days in Utrecht), we managed to get ourselves on the correct train towards the Citizen M hotel in Amsterdam Zuid. The place was NICE. Greeting us at the front entrance was a cluster of computer kiosks and nicely dressed receptionists. A receptionist helped us check ourselves in at one of the kiosks, and we arrived to the coolest hotel room I have ever stayed in. The entire room was white and glass. The toilet and shower were in glass “tubes” – the doors opened and closed by being pulled together and apart to enclose the tube. The tracks on which the glass ran had LED lighting beneath the surface, which could be customized by the nifty remote beside the bed, and soft, futuristic light glowed through the white walls. The bed was HUGE, and the curtains electronic. It was really awesome (assuming everyone in the room is comfy with taking a shower in a clear tube in the presence of their roommate – the toilet tube was at least frosted glass).
Due to a miscommunication, we ended up not meeting Geoff this first night, after all, but the two of us headed to Leidseplein on Tram 12 for a late dinner. The first place we saw was an all you can eat ribs place. We looked at each other and shrugged: something to the effect of, “let’s find better food; we’re in Europe.” About 20 steps later (and after passing a steakhouse, chinese restaurant, and an Italian place), we realized – who were we kidding – all-you-can-eat ribs could not be ignored.
In Dubai, pork is hard to find, so Pauline enjoyed her ribs thoroughly. I really missed spaghetti, so I had pasta bolognese instead. After explaining to Pauline how casual tableservice is in the NL and waiting a long time for the bill, we paid and went to have a beer at one of the hundreds of al fresco tables on the Leidsplein. A lovely way to kick off the trip.
Her flight arrived to Schipol at 8pm from CDG in Paris. I anxiously waited at the arrivals gate, thinking I should have gotten a balloon to make myself more visible or just told her to meet me at the Burger King to avoid any disasters involving hours looking for each other in an unfamiliar airport. Turns out I got a front row spot at the gate and I wasn’t competing too much with anyone for a good view of people coming out of baggage claim / immigration.
After a little negotiating with the map and public transit (I’m not that familiar with Amsterdam at this point, since I spend most of my days in Utrecht), we managed to get ourselves on the correct train towards the Citizen M hotel in Amsterdam Zuid. The place was NICE. Greeting us at the front entrance was a cluster of computer kiosks and nicely dressed receptionists. A receptionist helped us check ourselves in at one of the kiosks, and we arrived to the coolest hotel room I have ever stayed in. The entire room was white and glass. The toilet and shower were in glass “tubes” – the doors opened and closed by being pulled together and apart to enclose the tube. The tracks on which the glass ran had LED lighting beneath the surface, which could be customized by the nifty remote beside the bed, and soft, futuristic light glowed through the white walls. The bed was HUGE, and the curtains electronic. It was really awesome (assuming everyone in the room is comfy with taking a shower in a clear tube in the presence of their roommate – the toilet tube was at least frosted glass).
Due to a miscommunication, we ended up not meeting Geoff this first night, after all, but the two of us headed to Leidseplein on Tram 12 for a late dinner. The first place we saw was an all you can eat ribs place. We looked at each other and shrugged: something to the effect of, “let’s find better food; we’re in Europe.” About 20 steps later (and after passing a steakhouse, chinese restaurant, and an Italian place), we realized – who were we kidding – all-you-can-eat ribs could not be ignored.
In Dubai, pork is hard to find, so Pauline enjoyed her ribs thoroughly. I really missed spaghetti, so I had pasta bolognese instead. After explaining to Pauline how casual tableservice is in the NL and waiting a long time for the bill, we paid and went to have a beer at one of the hundreds of al fresco tables on the Leidsplein. A lovely way to kick off the trip.
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