Day 1, part 2: hotel and heading to Eersel

...with a nod to Mr Charles at the end.

Arrival Dorint Hotel Amsterdam (07 August) - relocation to Koningshof (08 August)

The pink zone is for...

...ladies only.  Yes, really.

but is it organic?

inside the room

Not just a convenient place to keep your room key, but practical, too!
...the power doesn't work without it.  No key = no lights.

Sort your trash, but aluminum cans are considered trash (really).

It's both a command and a slogan.

View from the room (that's a canal beside the street)

We don't have a basement,  we have floor -1

Lane or exit closed?  Just tape over the sign.

Authentic

Out!

Truth in Advertising

Standard size: 0,2 litre (a can is 0,33)

ZOMG OM NOM NOM NOM

in Eersel

Truth in Advertising, part 2
("smoking is deadly")

Quitting assistance information

My room in the Koningshof

My view

Look out below

Even the pigeons look cool here

Pest? No, pets! The bartenders feed the mice.

Holland has lots of Great Tits

...and finches

As advertised: pictures.

Here. Let me show you them.

Somewhere over Greenland.  It was never completely dark.

Dinner time.  Sort of.

This is what happens when you are vegetarian.  I still don't know what the hell it was.

Coming in for a landing.

Welkom

One of the busiest airports in the world

For the most part everyone speaks perfect English, but occasionally you'll come across some Nederlish.

Side road in Amsterdam. Bicycles and scooters only.

Another side road

Apparently seen as the PBR of Holland

Entrance to a park

Houses in Amsterdam all have beams with hooks at the end on the roof.
They are used for moving furniture to the upper floors.

Breath testing station in the parking lot

Canal somewhere near the Red Light District

Speaking of which...

OMSI would be proud

Haute couture for the most discriminating of the fashion-conscious

Column in Amsterdam Centrum

Heh.

"The Beehive" in Dam Square.  Makes Nordstrom look like K-mart.

Hehehehehheh

The end.

Still alive, but slow going

I'm settling in and adjusting to the pace of life here (shopping alone is a long post in itself) and trying to get some of the 200+ pictures uploaded. The trouble is I'm obviously not going to do it from work, the hotel I'm at charges €70 per week for internet access, and the "free" wireless is in the lobby only (which is literally a five minute walk from my room).

Until then, here's the quick summary so far:

Holland is more humid than I expected.

Amsterdam is insanely busy and full of drunken fratboy tourists

Yes, the coffee shops have two separate "menus"

Taking pictures of the ladies will get you into trouble.

When in doubt, the answer is "of course it's legal, this is Holland"

It's difficult to actually learn Dutch here. Everything is in English, and the locals insist on English once they learn that's what you speak.

You need a licence to golf here. Yes, really.

Everyone is very friendly, polite and helpful. Except in Amsterdam.

The drivers are courteous, use lane discipline and keep pace. Except in Amsterdam.

People will go out of their way to help you, and do it happily. Except in Amsterdam.

Almost everything is closed on Sundays. Except in Amsterdam.

Yes, they really are that tall. I haven't seen so many women my height before. Even in Amsterdam.