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May 28-30
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Tuesday, May 28 We left home about 4 pm and took the slow route (surface streets) to the airport. We found the parking lot readily enough and took the shuttle to the airport itself. After some wandering around, we finally found the signs for the hotel and checked in. We had left our car at Park DIA, which is easy to make reservations for, easy to locate, and wound up being one of the nicest airport parking lots we'd ever used. We dropped off the bags in the room and went back to the airport proper to scope out the route we'll need in the morning. It's a good thing we did. With the massive construction going on in the main part of the airport, it took a while to find the right door. We wound up having to go back outside and come in again... But, we got our main question answered – the Delta counter opens at 4:15 am. So, our morning tomorrow is planned. We went back to the hotel (airport Westin, which is walking distance to the terminal) for dinner (mahi mahi and roasted veggies for me) and a glass of wine. Carl had a beer with his mahi mahi and caramelized brussel sprouts. Then we went back to room and crashed. Tomorrow will come soon enough. Oh, I wondered what I forgot to pack. So far, the list includes miscellaneous small grooming tools (nail clippers, nail file, tweezers, etc) – but Carl has his packed. The bananas I meant for snacking on before boarding the plane – found some in the hotel, so that's taken care of. The snack bars I meant to take with us – guess we'll find some in Europe. My necklaces and earrings that I meant to bring. I'll do without (or, as Carl says, find some there....) Wednesday May 29 Our alarm set for 3 am.... And it went off on time. We got everything ready and checked out. Then we walked across to the Delta counter and, despite several signs saying the counter would open at 4:15 am, it was already busy when we got there a little before 4... The kiosk had problems reading Carl's passport for some reason or other. With the help of an employee, we finally got our official boarding passes and entered the very long baggage drop line... However, they had almost a dozen people working the counters, so we were soon on our way to security. My extreme thanks to whoever signed us up for TSA Pre-check. It was almost like going through security as it existed 30 years ago – don't have to take off shoes, belts, light jackets. Don't have to remove your 3-1-1 bag or computers. Really a breeze. Carl, of course, got a pat-down for some reason, but I didn't. We soon arrived at the gate and waited for boarding. We were soon on board and dozed most of the way to Detroit. Detroit?!?!?! WTF? Smooth flight however. And the Comfort+ seats were almost comfortable. We easilyn found our next gate, then went in search of lunch. We wound up at a taproom called Cat Cora's where they had some excellent English Breakfast tea (much appreciated). Carl had the roasted chicken pot pie then helped me finish my huge Shrimp Cobb salad. Yum! Then it was back to the gate area where we had another 3 hour wait for the plane. This next one will be a long one.... It was an eight hour flight. I managed to sleep a little on the plane. Don't know if Carl did or not. He says not. Thursday, May 30 We arrived in Amsterdam a little before 6 am local time! And an 8 hour time zone change. It's a drizzly day. We were through passport control and customs quickly. Then we met the Avalon rep at “The Meeting Point” as requested. They had brought a full sized bus to transport us into town! There were six of us on the bus, counting the driver and the escort... The other two were going to their ship directly. We were dropped off at the hotel (The Moevenpick) and were able to check in immediately. Oh, and the bus made record time getting from the airport to the hotel as it was a religious holiday in The Netherlands... Once in our room, we looked out the window and found docked just outside our window is the Seven Seas Navigator – the same ship we took to Alaska. Our fifth floor room is about level with the open deck of the ship... Between the drizzly weather and the jet lag, I think a nap is in order. Seven hours later, we're more rested. The day is still drizzly and overcast. Good thing we hadn't planned much for today. So, we cleaned up a bit, then went for a walk. There were lots of people around Centraal Station, which is in easy walking distance from our hotel. Of course, it's a holiday today, which is why the bus just breezed into town this morning. Everyone was on foot.... While Carl was showering, the Navigator pulled out, very sedately. When the crowds became overwhelming, we headed back to the hotel. We had walked about an hour by that time. Dinner wound up being here at the hotel. Delicious! I had a monkfish dish that they made dairy free for me and Carl had an asparagus special (with ham and poached egg) with white asparagus, which he'd never had before. Very good. We're calling it a day, however and crashing early. The room got warm in the middle of the night. Between that and the squeaky bed support, sleep was elusive for about an hour. Carl noticed I was restless and tried to solve the problem. It's definitely the bed support, not the inner springs, so, no luck. However, we opened the window (which only opens a couple of inches at the top) and the room cooled down. The rest of the night passed quietly and I did sleep. |