Well, where
to begin...
Today was
really intense. My alarm clock burst off at 4:45 am. I somehow managed to close
my suitcase overflowing with random things that I could not leave behind. Then
there was a trip on a Tube. Kind of. I mean I even went down the escalators,
hoping to catch the very first train on that morning at 5:30 (according to tfl
website, or 5:26, as I found out from a poster at a station). And I was
patient: I waited until 5:38 before giving up and dragging my suitcase back up
the escalators. And ended up in a taxi. The good thing is I've reached the
train station on time. The worse was that it costed me 25 quid instead of 2.20.
Oh well. Better than missing a train costing over 80!
What
followed was probably the most relaxing part of the journey, to a point that I've
done some law reading. Honestly, I recommend splashing out on a Premier class
in Eurostar - the breakfast did not know me over (maybe that's actually good),
but it's so much more comfortable (two of me could fit into a seat) and there
are less people in a coach, meaning less shuffling (and cleaner toilets on a
practical side).
Having
reached Brussels, I've embarked on a journey to Rotterdam with Thalys. Comfort
wise - fantastic. Otherwise the experience was so-so. I mean, this was my first
journey in first class on a international train, right? And it could have been
nicer. I've only just boarded the train when one of the staff ladies rushed
after me, asking what coach I was booked on. And then I got a very evil eye
from a rather posh-looking lady sitting a few seat away. I don't know, I really
felt out of place then. But I got a muffin later, a muffin makes everything
much better.
The real
mess started after reaching Netherlands. First of all, surprise, surprise,
every one speaks Dutch. After over an hour at a station I've started to
understand all the announcements, but
that's about it. Though I'm quite good at reading, my knowledge of English,
Polish and little bits of German comes in handy. But no, speaking is not good
at all. Definitely something I need to work on.
I've
managed to buy my OV-chipkaart (like an Oyster card, but can be used in the
whole of Netherlands). Never ever have I seen such a queue at a ticket office,
especially given the number of ticket machines on that station. Then I was to experience
a terrible mess on the Dutch railways, combined with rather poor information.
Transport
issues continued into Leiden, with a bus being considerably late. I slowly
realise that the Dutch are not the Swiss - time is definitely not a strong side
of the Dutch. And then the buss driver completely ignored my request to stop by
the hotel and I had to get off at the next stop and walk over to the place.
Normally I wouldn't mind, but it's not fun with a big heavy suitcase. Point to
note: if you want to get off the bus,
indicate this will by almost forcing the doors to open while the bus is still
in motion. This should be a sufficient indication of our will to get off at the
nearest stop. Caution: merely pressing a 'stop' button is not enough.
And finally
I've reached a hotel. Quite frankly, I've never been in such a strange place
before. I've been in quite a few strange places in my life, but in terms of a
hotel, I think this Holiday Inn Leiden scores the top marks for strangeness.
When you
walk in it's as if someone crossed-over the Taj Mahal Palace with a Travel-lodge style
place and added some random pieces of furniture. Like a grandfather clock. I
really don't know what it goes with, but it's
there, standing near the patio. Yes, there is a patio. In the middle of
the building. And so is a children's playground, right next to a restaurant.
I'm not entirely sure the layout of this place was really thought through.
Even when
it comes to rooms. Have you ever stayed in a hotel room without any windows?
Well, here the window technically exists, but not in a form you would have
expected it to be in. The window faces the corridor! Yay! Only after another
metre of space there is a window actually looking out of the building. Really
bizarre. Like a rather poor holiday house. Especially that some of the rooms
actually face inwards. I really hope no one ever stays there, it must be rather
grim. On the plus side, at least the air conditioning works and there is a bath
in the bathroom!
It will be
a very interesting year, I reckon. I’m not sure whether to laugh at all this or
cry. It’s a funny place, Netherlands. But I’m slightly anxious about what
tomorrow (and the remaining year, for that matter) will bring.
Disclaimer: Please take this post in with a (rather substantial) dose of humour!
