Breakfast In America

My tradition is to take a picture of the windmill across from my apartment building whenever I leave Middelburg; this marks the third occurrence of this tradition. Eventually I'll make a collage or something!

Well, I'd thought about doing a Q&A post for the final installment of the year; but for that I need questions, which I've only had three of. So expect this whenever I receive ~8 questions, hopefully the first post of next year. So ask more! The questions I've received so far: 

How do you manage being so phenomenal seem so effortless?  

With seawater rising what will keep The Netherlands afloat? 

What do you think the biggest cultural differences are between NL and USA? What (if anything) do you like about those differences, and what is frustrating about them?

Instead of this you'll hear about my journey from Middelburg back to Saint Peter, via Amsterdam and Philadelphia. By plane, train, and automobile, I covered that in about 48 hours with a LOT of waiting and sightseeing. Beginning on Thursday morning, the 12th...

The train from M'burg to Amsterdam Centraal takes about 3 hours in ideal conditions; but due to a defective drawbridge outside of Rotterdam this took longer. I always travel to the city one day before just in case of trouble like this; the trains can really derail travel plans sometimes. 

On the left, FEBO, a classic Dutch fast-food chain with vending-machine style service. And on the right, the giant new bike garage beneath Centraal Station.

I dropped my bag at a very small hostel and started my exploration of Amsterdam, the Dutch capital city where you won't hear very much Dutch. An example: I asked if there was a discount for students at my first museum of the day, and was promptly replied to in English: "Yes, that will be €7.50 please." 

That museum was the KattenKabinet, a collection of cat-related artwork on the Prinsengracht. As a human of two cats back in Minnesota I was impressed! It's in an old mansion, and the collection isn't that large, but it's an excellent museum for the price. 

Some of the collection, artwork from all periods, and an excellent quote by Charles Bukowski.

I took the long way over to the Museumplein, a sort of one-stop-shop for museums in Amsterdam. I've been to the Rijkmuseum and the Van Gogh museum, but not the Stedelijk. This one has a collection of mainly modern art; focusing at the moment on sculpture. I have the feeling it's terribly overshadowed by all the world-famous art just a few hundred meters away, but I enjoyed it regardless. 

A collection of posters from protests and rallies; one of my favorite galleries. 

"Indoor car wreck"

A classic Dutch Railways poster and the grand staircase.

The sun sets very early, and I found my way over to a Surinamese restaurant at 5:30. This cuisine, from the sparsely populated nation and former Dutch colony in South America, is outstanding. It's a combination of Indonesian, Indian, and Africa flavors; stemming from the slaves and laborers the Dutch brought there. And I'm hooked! 

Pretty lights and saoto, a sort of chicken soup, and coconut juice. Not pictured: coconut-chicken-sticky rice rolls!

After a strangely quiet night of sleep at my hostel (it must be an in-between time for them; a weeknight before the holidays) I woke up way earlier than need be and took the train out to Schiphol airport; to allow extra time for plane spotting and a tradition of mine: a stop at a terrible Dutch restaurant in the terminal. 

This is about how much daylight there is at 8:30 AM... consequently, I tend to sleep in! 

I got an over baked gevulde koek and a bad coffee for €6. Overpriced and busy with glaring staff. On the right, my plane waiting at the gate. Schiphol is located 15 feet below sea level, one of the lowest spots in the entire country. 

Impressively, there was no trouble with delays! Thankfully I didn't spend more time than needed in the Philadelphia airport. The highlight of the journey was overhearing some other Americans at the gate in Amsterdam: "You guys really should have gotten cheese here at the airport, it's so much cheaper than that shop we were at yesterday!" The words of a victim, I'm afraid... I get my cheese at about 1/4 of the airport prices, so I'd hate to hear what they paid in a cheese shop! 

As I write this, it's a cool and windy day back in Minnesota, where the damp weather has followed me. Like some sort of voodoo curse... regardless, it's great to be back! Thus begins three weeks of good eatin' and deep sleep. Happy holidays and see you next year!