07 June 2011 – Amsterdam to Brussels (Tuesday)

This morning we got organized to head off to Brussels.  As we sorting things we read a sign indicating that the metro system is shut down today until 1:00 pm (a strike is happening) and we are stuck with an attempt to figure out how to get to the railway station.  Taxi it will be which worked fine.

We got to the train station earlier than we had expected and discovered that there was a train to Brussels leaving an hour ahead of what we had considered.  This means we will arrive in Brussels too early to check into our hotel but we decided to take the train and hope we can check in early.  If not, we will sit in the lobby and relax while we wait.

At Rotterdam we ended up sitting on the tracks for an extra 15 minutes while they fixed a door.  Then we were off.  As we go through Delft and Rotterdam I am able to point out several landmarks that I saw yesterday from the bus so Wes is getting a very abridged look at what I saw.  For the rest he will have to read the blog like everyone else.

We arrived at Brussels a little later than scheduled but we went as far as the Zuid station which is where we will be leaving next week for England.  Since we had checked out the metro system we had no trouble finding the tram to the hotel.  However, when we got to the hotel we found a sign saying that we could not check in until 4 pm (which we knew actually but thought we would sit in the lobby until 4). Since it was only 3 and there was no way to get into the lobby, we were stuck standing outside with our backpacks and a stunned look.  Actually we noticed that up the street was a park, so we simply went there, thankful that it was not raining, and sat on the bench.

Our studio apartment is really nice.  We unpacked knowing that we would be here for a full week, then headed over to a local grocery store to stock up.  It is our goal to eat in as much as possible.  However, as I started to cook dinner I discovered that the kitchen faucet is loose and every time I turn on the second burner on the stove the breaker trips.  This could be interesting and we are assured that tomorrow they will be dealt with.  I should point out that the apartment looks recently decorated and is very clean so we are not complaining.

Tomorrow we will see how Wes feels after traveling all day and likely head downtown to find an information center and consider our options.  I really hope Wes can relax and regain some energy.  Today wore him out but he is not feeling sick, just exhausted.