Amsterdam to London

1 May 2008: It was the day before we were to leave Amsterdam and the continent of Europe. We decided to check out of the campground we were staying at, Gaasper, get more goat milk (Kai drank it up fast) plus the AWESOME pistachio ice cream and check in at the campground we stayed at when we first arrived in Amsterdam 2 months ago, Zeeburg. We needed to return the camper in the morning and it was closer to the center of town, where B&W Campers is. We also know the route to get there. Unfortunately, Zeeburg didn’t have any openings. I suppose I should have expected this as this WAS the big holiday weekend. But, I thought I saw people “moving out” that morning at our current campground. Oh well! Fortunately, there was a sign pointing to another place right down the street. “Down the street” was a bit further than expected. Signs took us right outside the city to the countryside (lots of grass, goats, sheep, etc.) and right next to the bay coastline. We went past a long, little town with one street that was pretty much a one-lane street, even though traffic went both ways. They had the cutest TINY little cottage style homes lined up there! Just after that, we found the campground. It was not more than a mobile home park, at least right on the water, with a small lot for campers, mosquitoes flying around, dingy bathrooms and no laundry facilities or internet access, both of which I was planning on doing that day. We made the best of it and finalized our packing, dirty clothes and all. Like always, we had so much stuff that it would barely fit in our bags, but we stuffed them in there well. And STILL, we didn’t have any reservations for London…and it was a bit nerve-wracking in the back of my mind. Returning the camper the next morning was uneventful, except all the jokes about all our luggage, from both us and Rene at B&W. At least, with all our stuff, we got to the airport on the train. From there, we bought a new duffel bag, repacked everything and got online to see about London hotels. JUST as I was finding stuff, my time expired and it was time to get to the gate. Then, we found out that our flight was delayed by an hour. So, I tried to get back online, but couldn’t connect at the gate, nor would my computer cooperate with me (dead battery, kept wanting to install updates). After we landed in London, we were actually questioned through immigration. The lesson to be learned is to ALWAYS put down a place where you will be staying when filling out those immigration forms…and don’t tell them you don’t have a job! And, I thought they really never read that. Oops! So, after fumbling a bit, I finally told the guy that we are “Property Managers” and (a tiny fib) were going to stay at the Marriott, that we knew they had rooms available but I was just unable to go online to book the room. He let us through. We proceeded to the Hotel Reservation desk at the airport. The guy there had just as much trouble finding a room for us in Central London as we did. After 25-30 calls, I finally told him I’d settle for an airport hotel. It was getting late and at least the commute to an airport hotel would be shorter. I also figured, if we have to stay at an airport hotel, we might as well stay at somewhere nice. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve LOVED staying in our camper for the past two months. It’s been great to have the same place/bed to call “home”, a toilet if you need it, a fridge to keep food cold and the ability to cook what you want. But, we were also looking forward to having “our own” bathroom, one that you don’t have to walk outside to get to and a shower you don’t have to wear flip flops in. Once at the Sheraton, we laughed at the fact that we no longer have to walk sideways or duck our heads below the bunk anymore. (Not that we couldn’t fold the bunk away everyday, but it takes effort.) We ended ordering a feast from room service, took showers, Kai played in the bathtub and flopped down into a heavenly king sized bed for the night. It’s been a pleasant change, but we also need to leave. I was willing to pay more for a nice room, but our wallets are also getting thinner with the food and handy internet access right in our room. At least, I’m finally able to stay online with a reliable connection, book a room for the last two days of our four days here and update the blog with pictures. (Yea!) And, Sean’s catching up with the news and the Sharks on TV. But, we need to leave the building to see London!