I'm writing this while trying to sleep in my hotel room to cure my jetlag. I don't really think I'm suffering from much jetlag other than the fact that I feel I need a really good sleep. It's my plan to rest and recharge the first day I arrive in Amsterdam so that I'll have enough energy and spirit come the next few days. I think I need all the energy I can get in preparation for more "lost" time in the coming days. Haha. What better way to navigate Europe right?
First things first, the almost 17-hour flight from Manila to Amsterdam (with a short stopover in Taipei) is no joke for someone like me whose idea of a long flight is 2 hours max (alright Davao City to be exact). The farthest place I've been to was Singapore. I also don't travel alone. But here I am, traveling to Europe for the first time, all by myself. Again, the flight is probably one of the more challenging parts of this trip. It didn't help that we encountered lots of turbulence at this time of year. In any case, I've arrived safely at Schiphol Airport Amsterdam. (Btw as a sidenote, I find it amusing how the KLM crew keeps referring to the women as "madame." It seems so formal and I felt like Queen Elizabeth II's tea ladies everytime I'm being referred to as madame.)
Anyway, here are some random thoughts so far:
1. Wow it's really fucking cold here. I thought my trench coat would take care of the cold business but when I got out of the airport, I could feel the cold sipping slowly but surely into my insides. The airconditioner back home now seems like summer weather. Boy it's too cold. I could see the blows of cold air coming out of my mouth every time I breathe. At this time, I pulled my scarf and bonnet out of my "still-locked" luggage. I did this in the middle of a sidewalk as I aimlessly walked the streets in search of my hotel. Prior to that, I kept following the crowd in the train stations. I kept asking the stranger beside me in the train whether the Station Lelylaan would be the next stop etc. All this searching and walking was done by me in heels while lugging around two heavy bags. But I couldn't muster any ill feelings. I'm in fucking Europe, y'all! This is the type of stress I dream of having. Europe, baby! Europe!
2. The streets are wide. There's not much people out in the streets. A lot of people are riding their bikes in the cold morning. I even heard one singing as she rode her bike. Their train system is pretty organized. There's no shoving - well that's as far as I've seen today. Maybe tomorrow it'll be busier.
3. I finally found my hotel, Best Western Premier Hotel Couture located in Slotervaart. I've never been so happy to finally get inside, to feel warm again. As I processed my reservation and check-in, the receptionist started speaking to me in Filipino. I had an inkling she was a kababayan but I didn't want to assume immediately. It made me smile and it was comforting to talk in my native language, mainly to whine about the cold temperature.
4. My room is beautiful. Spanky. I couldn't be more satisfied. The view from my room includes big red/brown buildings with the red fall colors in the background. If you look closely, there's a graphic street art on the wall at the bottom of said building. The feel is just so different, so foreign and beautiful at the same time.
5. I ordered room service because I had no intentions of leaving my room for today. Turns out the breakfast spread they served was good for four people. It was too indulgent. I felt like taking a shower after eating (and of course not finishing) all that food. I also noticed that a lot of the staple breakfast items from the hotel resembled the food I ate on my flight. The Dutch seem to like their scrambled eggs and tomatoes separate. Back to the breakfast spread - it includes yoghurt and muesli, an assortment of brown bread and four delicate pastries, crispy bacon, sauteed mushrooms, cold-cut ham, cheese, sliced pineapples, an assortment of fruits, freshly-squeezed orange juice (I know it's fresh because it was bitter and sour with only a slight hint of sweetness, and coffee. I really felt a bit dirty guilty with all these delicious food.
I took a long hot shower before I popped one sleeping pill. Now I'm just groggy after watching Before Midnight for the nth time. I decided to just write about my first few hours in Amsterdam. So there you go. So far so good. I'm starting to really like Amsterdam. More to come in the next few days. ;)
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