Dusseldorf to Amsterdam to Washington, DC
September 30 & October 1, 2006
 

President: Glenn "Wally" Faunce 2923-E Olney-Sandy Spring Road Olney, MD  20832 Phone: 301-774-4646 Fax: 301-774-3610   Return To Germany 2006 Main Page

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I had been debating all night whether to just take a cab to the train station but decided to save some money since I still had free tram use on the Dusseldorf Tourist Card.  I was getting tired of carrying my luggage around especially now towards the end of the trip.  I just gave myself lots of time to catch the train and took my time. 

I had the only scary portion of this whole trip on the train between Dusseldorf and Amsterdam.  First the train conductors almost had a fight with a Muslim family who had snuck into first class.  They were getting off the train as I was getting on and the conductor was screaming at the man that he owed 55 Euros for sitting in first class.  They wouldn’t let him leave until he paid.

Next there was a gypsy looking couple that didn’t have tickets that were sitting right in front of me.  As we got close to the first stop the conductors closed in on this couple to throw them off the train.  I guess they didn’t have tickets.  It got kind of scary when the girl was just acting really weird like she was trying to hide something.  The train was on the move and there was really nowhere to go.  Like I said earlier, it was definitely a little scary not knowing what was going on.  The train stopped and they forced them off the train and there were police waiting from them.  These police officers showed incredible restraint.  They didn’t beat the hell of the gypsy guy after he pushed them.  I’m sure and hope he paid for that little bit of idiocy after the train left.  I’m sure they didn’t want to beat the hell out of this guy in front of everyone watching out the windows.   When the conductor came by later I tried to joke with him that he had had a busy morning but he really wasn’t in the mood.  He just kind of shrugged me off and said yeah.

We pulled into Amsterdam about 1:00 PM.  I bought an Amsterdam 24 hour tourist card and took the tram to the Best Western Eden Rembrandt Hotel.  Like usual I knew the right tram stop to get off at but not how to get to the hotel.  The big problem is the street signs are all on the sides of buildings so it’s hard to see where you are easily.  I had four options from the tram stop on Rembrandt Square and chose poorly three times before I found the right road to the hotel.  Of course it was the closest road to where the tram stopped and I went completely around the square in search of the right direction.  I should have taken a cab with the luggage I had at this time.

They didn’t have a room ready yet so I wandered around Rembrandt Square for awhile.  I had never been to this area before.  I thought I had when I saw it on the map before I left but I hadn’t.  There is a huge statue of Rembrandt in the middle of the square with bronze statues depicting his painting the Night Watch.  It was really impressive but like usual it was hard to get a good picture of without a million people in the picture.  I had some time so I just waited it out for a good picture.  I walked behind the square to one of the canals and saw a cool bar with canal seating.  I walked over to the bar and found out every seat was taken.  It was another incredible day and Amsterdam was packed with people outside.

I went back to Rembrandt Square and had a beer at the Hof Van Holland Bar and St. James Gate.  There was a bunch of street performers around that I watched while enjoying my beer.  I went back to the hotel and finally got checked into my room.  They offered me a suite and I said that would be great.  Boy was that a mistake luggage wise.  It was a beautiful two story suite on the back side of the hotel overlooking the canal.  That was the good part of the room.  The bad part was It was on the 4^th floor and there wasn’t an elevator and the stairs were unbelievably steep, fit about a size 6 shoe and were made built years ago when people were not 6’8” tall and 350 pounds.  A bell hop helped me to the room but I realized leaving the next morning on my own would be a nightmare.  Also the ceilings were about 6’7” tall and the shower not the easiest to maneuver.

Oh well I enjoyed the view for the 12 hours I was there.  I chilled out for awhile and then decided to get to the task of packing my luggage for the flight home.  My backpack was 35 pounds on the way over but most of my souvenirs were heavy liter glasses.  I split it up as well as I could, hoping that I had under 50 pounds in each bag.  The hotels should have scales in them now since the airlines have become such a pain in the butt in there weight restrictions on luggage. 

After packing I headed out for the night.  Amsterdam is amazing.  It was a Saturday night so I should have expected it to be crowded but it was really crowded.  I first headed to Leidesplein Square as I wanted to get a Bulldog shirt.  Unfortunately they didn’t have a XXL.  I had dinner next door at the Sports Café.  I had been here before with Francis.  They used to have an Art Monk cutout outside the café but it was gone now.  They had a bunch of college football games on television.  Unfortunately they were both blowouts.  Next time I go to Amsterdam I’ve got to have the pancakes.  They are more like pizzas than pancakes.  Someone had one next to me and it looked great.

From Leidesplein Square I went down to the Red Light District.  It is truly an amazing place.  It was elbow to elbow of tourists.  The funniest thing I saw was the Casa Rosso which is the live sex show having a line of about 500 Oriental tourists waiting in line to get in.  At the end of the line were some elderly tourists from the United States.  I overheard one ask the other what they were in line for.  Boy was she in for a surprise.  I basically just walked around all night taking in the sights and having a beer here and there.  It was my last night so I did make it until about 2:00 AM hoping that since I had to leave the hotel at 5:30 AM my lack of sleep would help me sleep on the plane.  That didn’t work.

I got back to the hotel and Rembrandt Square was rocking.  I could hear people outside my window all night.  When I went to the tram stop to catch the bus to the train station I found that the party from the night before was still going strong.  Rembrandt Square was still rolling at 5:30 AM.  I got on the bus with maybe one other person with luggage along with about 20 drunks who had been partying all night.

My flight was at 9:30 AM and when I got to the airport they hadn’t opened up the Continental counter yet.  There were a bunch of people lingering around but I decided to just start a line myself so I didn’t have to wait.  The people were like lemmings lining up behind me. 

Everything from this point until I got home was fairly usual for a flight.  I did have to bust ass trying to get from the Continental International terminal to the Domestic terminal.  I got to my plane right before they were going to shut the door.  They even told me they had already booked me on the next flight.  I’m amazed my luggage made it home with me.

Overall it was a great trip.  Two weeks on your own is definitely a hard way to travel but you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.  I love Munich and Oktoberfest and will definitely try to make it back again.  This time with friends to play with.

Return To Dusseldorf
September 29, 2006

Return To Washington, DC To Frankfurt To Munich
September 16 - September 19, 2006