Holland Part Eight

Today was our last full day in Holland and we chose to spend it in Leiden. We took the train early in the morning and ran into large crowds that were taking the train to Amsterdam to celebrate Rotterdam winning the soccer match yesterday (which is strange because Rotterdam won against Amsterdam). When Marlene asked another commuter about the celebration in Amsterdam, she held up her hands in a cross as if to banish the name "Amsterdam." She explained that locals do not say that name, they just call it the 020 (area code).

Leiden was a beautiful town and we were lucky to join a walking tour when we arrived. It was in Dutch, but there were index cards with English so I was able to follow along. The highlight of the walking tour was the access to hidden courtyards around the city. You wouldn't guess that they are open to the public because it feels like you're walking into someone's backyard.

 

 

 

 

 

We got a little lost in the windy streets so we decided to have a picnic in the park (we packed a lunch) before we continued on. Most stores were closed today (because they are open Saturday) but we found a small coffee shop/ bakery that sold Oliebolen.

 

We made one last stop before we headed home. We stopped at a Dirk's to pick up some Hagelslag (sprinkles) for Allison. I bought 6 boxes and some Wilhemenia Peppermints for me.

 We had a traditional Dutch meal for dinner tonight and before we left we made sure to make our mark on the tourist map at our B&B.

Tuesday morning we had to be at the Schiphol airport for a 9:30am flight. Which meant we needed to be at the airport by 7am because I wasn't able to check in for my flight ahead of time (which really stressed me out the night before). Also, cabs don't run in Dordrecht before 6am, so at 5 am, Marlene and I pulled three suitcases, on cobble stone streets, IN THE RAIN, the 1.5km to the train station. We were both exhausted by the time we got to the train, then we had to switch tracks because a train wasn't running, and then we had to wait in line at the airport for an hour to see a customer service representative about my name issue. Luckily, they let me on the plane.

While we were going through security, a woman recognized Marlene and I. It was Martin's cousin! She was visiting family in Holland and was flying out at the same time as us. I took a walk while they had a catch up chat in the airport.

The flight home was uneventful and calm (because of my late check-in, Marlene and I didn't sit together) and it was a relaxing end to a great trip.