Day 2

The alarm boomed at 9:00

Another night that proves alcohol aids sleeping.

No hangover either - it’s a winning day I thought, but I was being too optimistic as 3 things went wrong in a row.

Firstly, as I contemplated going to the loo and having to wipe my arse like an animal, I realised that not only was the loo too close to the wall so that my left leg was in full contact with the cold tiling, but there was nowhere to put my left foot as they’d strategically positioned a doorstop there, so I had to sit with my left leg stretched out.

Then, once I’d “finished the job” and reached round for the paper, I realised that its holder was broken, as I touched it and the paper rolled to the other side of the room. 🙄

Thirdly, the shower was even colder than yesterday’s tepid bath, so by the time I’d left the bathroom, I feared for the rest of the day.

However, the pod trip to the airport was, as always, excellent, and it didn’t even tell us we were too fat to use it.

Check-in and security were a breeze, and we went into the North Lounge, and it was rammed!!!

We did manage to find 2 seats, but Harriet was disappointed with the range of breakfast.

What she didn’t realise is that stocks were low as they were moving to lunch, so the next time she came back, she had piled pies and curry onto an improbably small plate to follow on from the croissant.

I did the same, but I added roast potatoes and red wine - mmmmmmm.

Not even the small child blaring cartoons out full blast on her phone could spoil the moment.

So, when we saw the woman opposite me miming to the girl to put headphones on, I thought I needed some popcorn.

And I was right as her daughter then came back from shopping and dumped some headphones on the dad’s table.

He said he was going but she said keep them as it was annoying - brilliant.

When they left we nicked their seats to soak up the ambiance.

The plane left about 15 minutes late but somehow we still got there before we were due.

The meal was a chicken salad and a chocolate mousse - 3/10 for the salad, but the pudding was lovely.

The route to get our baggage was weird because it passed through the main departures lounge with all the shops and everything.

Security was very laid back, and so we had to wait a good 15 minutes before the bags started to arrive.

Once through, we found the train station, and once we’d found what platform we needed and had found it, we bought tickets to central Amsterdam online.

Couldn’t have been easier.

Once we’d arrived and got to the outside of the train station, we could see the hotel - perfect.

We did have a couple of issues finding our room as we originally got in the wrong lift, but we soon figured it out.

The room was perfect for our needs, and the view wasn’t half bad either.

After a 30-minute breather, we headed off into town.

We had just crossed the bridge over the canal, and Hattie stumbled and crashed to the ground like she’d been shot by a sniper.

Luckily, she got her hands out of her pockets in time for a face plant, but her knees will feel that tomorrow.

We walked around and ended up in the Flying Dutchman - a nice bar over 3 levels. Really liked it there, but they didn’t do food, and we were both getting hungry.

So we walked down the road to what was billed as a sports bar, but it was decorated with rose petals all ready for Valentine’s Day.

Even the big screens were showing just a hearty hearth fire, but as we were the only ones there, we thought we were allowed to ask if the barmaid would put the football on, and she obliged on the 80-inch screen.

The food was also good, with Hattie having more chicken on a pizza than was imaginable.

Our viewing, however, was not without distraction.

For the first half, we had an American couple come in and start arguing. It got to the point where he said “fuck you,” and she said “fuck your mum” - to which both Hattie and I were in fits of laughter.

In the second half, a group of 4 Welsh couples of my age came in and sat right in front of the screen.

7 of them were fine, but the 8th, a pissed-up woman, kept standing up and singing— we didn’t make it to the end of the game— she was too annoying.

It was a shame because the place was good, apart from the stairs of doom leading up to the loos.

We finally went to the local supermarket for some essentials and then called it a night— it was a late one, and we were both tired— plenty more to do tomorrow

Although I doubt I’ll be using the communal ironing board in the hallway….