We headed to the train station at 7:45 to catch head to Amsterdam. The train was leaving at 8:30 and the hotel said for us to leave when we did. Unfortunately the hotel didn't know we had 8 pieces of luggage. The trolleys were at the other end of the train station so I was running. They moved people through security pretty quickly. We then had an escalator on an incline, so me pushing the big trolley and my mom with her walker, it was quite a struggle. The trolley started rolling back, but I stabilized it- then I hit the stop button at the top so Mama could make it off.
As soon as we got the luggage on- it took off! We had beautiful views of the Dutch countryside, as well as the 15 or so minutes in the chunnel.
Changing trains was crazy- our train got in at 11:35 and our connection was leaving at 11:55. We arrived and there were no carts. I ran down the platform and intercepted a worker who had a cart for getting boxes off the train. We took off and made it to the other platform, getting the bags on to the train just before the doors closed.
The train arrived in Amsterdam and there were no carts anywhere- information there said "carry them yourself!" I was able to carry 6 of them- thank goodness for roller bags!
The boat was nearby, and we got there- with the help of a cab driver who was a jerk.
Boyd Coyner and his wife Karin and their three beautiful children came and had some drinks on the upper deck of the boat. Boyd and I went to Hampden-Sydney together and then we worked together later in advertising at Goodby. It was great to see them as the last time we saw each other was 4 years ago.
We got up the next morning- a little later than the organized group as we decided to just go straight to the Anne Frank house. Mama made it all the way to the top- which if you don't know it's an Amsterdam house, which is very narrow and tall with steep stairs. It was a pretty amazing experience and I highly recommend going there. Floor-by-floor you are taken through her story.
The boat took off and we headed down the Rhine-Amsterdam Canal. The landscape was amazing. There were beautiful rows of trees along the banks and the countryside is pristine farmland. We started getting the acquainted with how things work on board. It's just like a regular cruise line, except on a smaller scale. The bar is great and we spent a lot of time on the roof looking at the scenery. This is where things really come together. On a normal cruise all you see most of the time is water- on the Rhine you get constantly beautiful scenery!
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