Goedemorgen!

*waves* Greetings from Amstelveen! Sorry that I've not made it around to posting before now but I was out most of the day yesterday and had no internet connection when I returned. We spent most of the day out and about, the morning was spent at the COBRA Museum here in Amstelveen and the afternoon was spent wandering around Amsterdam, in the rain (bleugh), before we landed at the Amsterdam Historic Museum. I have a few pictures of the COBRA Museum (for those of you who don't know what COBRA is-- it's an art movement whose name is derived from the french terms for Copenhagen, Brussels and Amsterdam, the origins of the movement.) I didn't get the camera out in Amsterdam, the rain was just too hard to risk it. I'll try to post the pictures soon, but my connection isn't as stable as I had hoped and the upload is taking a bit of time.

Today, we're heading to the football club, or we were. It's still raining here and I don't believe there will be football! So, it might be another rainy day in Amsterdam, but inside the museums, we wont' know the difference. More tomorrow! Hopefully, with pictures!!

Oh, the flight was rough, by the way. We were held on the ground for an hour and then there was a lot of turbulence. It didn't bother me, it just made it difficult to sleep. Oh, and the three screaming German children in the middle aisle made it even harder. *eyeroll* Their mother slept through most of it though. The train ride from Frankfurt to Amsterdam was easy and comfortable, though it became a bit long, too. Especially after it was held up because of Passport Patrol coming onto the train and checking everyone's papers. But it is so fantastic to be here, that I won't complain a bit.

Next week at this time...

I'll be reporting from Amstelveen! Well, actually I'll be in bed because it will be almost 4am. I'm terribly excited! I can't stop talking about it. There have been a few bumps in the road this week-- tracking down a new coat for Dutch after he decided his old coat might be too ratty and a brief run-in with an old friend needing car parts brought in for his Mustang-- all very minor! All that matters is...we're going to Europe! Wheee!!

To tide you over, here are a few of the pictures from my first visit. Not the greatest resolution, but at least there is a taste of what's to come! You can find them here.

Oh, oh!!!! I have to report that the pictures on this trip will be taken with my brand-spanking-new Canon 40D! That's right! My beautiful and perfect husband (note that he's only and beautiful and perfect when he's giving me things?!?!?!?) gave me a digital SLR camera (that I've been lusting after for ages) for my birthday. It's fantastic and I love it! I can't wait to show you the results!

Obsessive??? Moi???

A friend has pointed out that I'm not being very fair to Dutch and I should show him some "love" on this blog. True enough. I have spent quite a bit of time pointing out his faults. Just because he doesn't have the attention to detail that I do doesn't mean he's wrong. It just means he's unorganized. Not everyone is meant to be orderly and neat. Not everyone has the discipline and dedication for fine detail. It doesn't mean I'm crazy, right?? I mean, who doesn't research a trip and find out all the information they can before booking a flight? Who doesn't research airports to find out who maintains the best schedule adherence? What is wrong with wanting to know, down to the last minute, how and when things will happen? So far, I have my packing lists started and update them regularly. I've already purchased by extra "supplies", i.e. new saline, toothpaste, extra contact lenses, makeup, medication...ya know, the usual. That's not bad, right?? After all, it's less than two weeks away. I've done a packing "dry" run of the beautiful new carry-on bag (yes, I know it's a fishing gear bag. I like it. Hush.). I've studied the TSA rules for carry-on items. I've made copies of all important documents and registered with the embassy in the Netherlands so that if a war breaks out in Amsterdam I'll be rescued! I still have to report to the credit card company that I'll be using the cards in Europe, but that's a last minute thing. I've been tracking the US Airways flights via a very cool website called Flight Aware (www.flightaware.com) To be honest, since the day I booked the flight I've been maintaining an Excel spreadsheet of scheduled flight times and actual departures. It figures out the average amount of time that these flights run over/under. It's absolutely fascinating! It's going to be so helpful! I'm gathering very valuable information that I can use to...well, to....*wilts*

ALL RIGHT!! I can't actually USE this information for any reason. It's wasted time and effort. But it's pretty! SEE??



Stop laughing. It's not nice to make fun of the mentally ill.

Three WEEKS.

That's right. We're entering the countdown phase! Three weeks from this very moment, I'll be in Charlotte Douglas Airport so excited I won't be able to stand myself! Who am I kidding? I almost can't stand it right now! My last entry, left everyone hanging-- did we get tickets? Did we not? Of course we did! We are flying out of Charlotte on September 10 on US Airways flight 704, departing at 4:30pm and arriving in Frankfurt, Germany on the morning of September 11th (7:00am). I would have preferred NOT to fly USAir but the price was great and it's a direct flight. No changing plans.

We've also procured train tickets! We'll be taking the ICE train from Frankfurt to Amsterdam. It's going to make for a long day, but we both figured we would enjoy the train trip much more than changing planes and chancing connections.

We're all set! Now, I just have to buy clothes. And shoes. And STUFF. Oh, and figure out how I'm going to pack it all. Don't worry about that though. I'm a compulsive list maker. I'll be ready. And so will Dutch. Even if he is crazy from my obsessive planning. *nods*

The tale of ticket madness continues...

Upon rising the next day, leaving my husband sleeping the peaceful sleep of innocents, I think that perhaps I over-reacted. My compulsion to check all the facts might have led me to make these flights out to be much worse than they actually were. I have been accused of melodrama before, maybe that’s all that this was—simply self-created drama.

I drive to work, get the day started and I sit down with my coffee, content in the knowledge that I have tickets on a great airline. Upon checking my email, I find I now have confirmations! Excitedly, I read. Yes, flying out of Charlotte, September 10th. Check. Flying into JFK. Check. One and a half hour layover. Check. Flying out of Newark. Check. Wait a minute!!!!! NEWARK!??!?!!? NEW JERSEY!?!!?!? ACROSS THE FREAKING RIVER???!?!?! There is no way anyone could make that connection! I was going to lose a day of mergpijpje madness! This could NOT be! I call Dutch. He created this mess and by GOD he wasn’t going to sleep through my panic. What does he do? He blows me off, he dismisses me. ME. The beloved thorn in his side. He says it will be fine and he doesn’t understand my panic. I immediately write Lufthansa begging to cancel the reservation. Dusseldorf was bad enough but into JFK out of Newark?? That’s impossible. For hours, everyone at work is treated to my tale, told of the horrors of my husband and our impossible flight. My friends get a panicked email that encourages them to sympathize with my plight. It is not a need for attention that drives me send these emails but the need to find validation that I have joined the most noble and long-suffering group of women who suffer from SSS, Stupid Spouse Syndrome. I refresh my email every few minutes. Nothing. Jiminy Cricket was singing “When you wish upon a star”. That’s it. I’m going home and sharpening the knives. It will all be fine, baby. Just go to sleep.

At 5:18pm EST, my husband is granted a stay of execution. Lufthansa sends me the following letter:

Dear Ms. Married to a Dutchman who Doesn’t Listen,

Thank you for contacting the Lufthansa Internet Service Center.

Currently the reservation that was made online is not ticketed and will not be until 27Jun08. So if you wish to cancel and re-try your online purchase you may and any agent at our reservations office may assist with schedules, fares and finding flights that best fit your travel needs. Currently the reservation that is on hold requires a connection between two airports (La Guardia, and Newark airport) which may not be suitable or comfortable for all passengers. Again, you may contact our reservations office and they will be able to cancel that reservation so you may either re-try your request online or our agent can give assistance. If you experience any online difficulties, you may contact our online support Desk at 1-866-583 8932 on Monday to Friday between 10am to 6pm Eastern Time.

We look forward to serving you online and in flight. Thank you for choosing Lufthansa.

I cancel the flight. I laugh gleefully. I have a celebratory drink. It is over.

Now, I get to start all over.

Coming up...finally getting tickets. The right tickets. With no help from my husband. Thank the maker.

Trip Planning 101. Or how to win friends and kill your husband.

A woman has to face reality and realize that there are things she will have deal with in her life. One is wrinkles, two, bloating and that not quite fresh feeling, and three, if you’re married, your spouse will screw things up and you’ll have to fix it. I’m old enough to realize the first in inevitable, the second is bearable and the third?? I just may kill him before our trip is over.

Why, Nicole? What has brought you to the harrowing intersection of homicide and self-inflicted bite wounds?? I’m glad you asked.

The Dutch boy and I are planning a trip to the Netherlands. He wants to go home, to see family and friends. My needs are more simple and direct. I want to go so that I can eat my weight in marzipan and mergpijpjes. As is always the case, it fell to me to book tickets for this excursion into pastry paradise. For months I perused the pages of various sites, hunting down the best price. I study airport reports and statistics to determine who had more cancellations, which airline had the worst delays, misdirected luggage and customer complaints. I researched every aspect of air travel, immersing my self in the exotic world of trip planning. At last, I came to the conclusion, I had to buy direct from the airline for the best chance to avoid being bumped. Fifty dollars more or less wouldn’t matter but a lost day would mean less mergpijpjes. To keep this story short and interesting, I will tell you that I settled on Lufthansa airlines. Instead of changing planes in Philadelphia, New York, or O’Hare, we would fly non-stop from Charlotte to Germany. Oh, the pleasure of an uninterrupted nine hours in a metal cylinder with nothing but air, ocean and occasional stray bird and migrating fish beneath you! But I digress. Dutch, feeling the need to get involved, decided to follow up on the tip I had uncovered that sometimes a person can call an airline and the representative could get a better rate, or uncover a better flight. Unfortunately, not so with Lufthansa and the very nice young woman directed him to the website for the best fares. I tried to book the tickets on Lufthansa via their website. No dice! Site wouldn’t work. I tried twice and got bumped out both times. So, Dutch decided to be helpful and call them yet again! Helpful twice, in one night! It’s a record! Hooray!! Maybe this marriage thing isn’t overrated! Unfortunately, Dutch may have been willing to help, but Lufthansa wasn’t. The only flights available through the telephone representative were much more expensive and he couldn’t find the flight we wanted, even when I gave him the flight numbers and times. The rep did, however, offer us the number of Tech Support to help figure out our website woes. Dutifully, Dutch hung up the phone and called Tech Support. Which was closed. Yes. That’s exactly what I thought, too.

So, our magical mystery trip was off to a rollicking start! At this rate, we would be strapping ourselves to an oil barrel retrofitted with a homemade guidance system consisting of a rigged up TomTom, a Rand Mcnally atlas and sharpie marker, all carried by a couple of hundred crows tied on with curling ribbon. It is at this point in my story, we reach the point that leaves me at that fateful intersection I mentioned earlier. Dutch decided that I should NEVER be this upset over anything and he takes over. He heads to his PC and types www.lufthansa.com. He selects our trip dates. He selects leaving from Charlotte. He selects the first airport in Germany that he sees. I am standing behind him repeating, in an unending litany filled with mild panic, “Do NOT book a flight flying out of, or into, O’Hare or JFK! Watch the connection times! Allow time for delays! There are always delays!!” He gleefully continues punching keys, ignoring my ever- growing urgent pleas. He clicks the first flight he sees that looks reasonable to him. As he is entering our seat selections and flight information, I ask him, begging, “Where exactly are we going to fly to?” He waves me away saying, “It doesn’t matter! We’re going to Europe! It will be fine. It’s always fine!” I’m spitting and sputtering, pleading for him to NOT book me into a connection or return through O’Hare or JFK. He clicks away like a mad, clicking thing. And….the site accepts his reservation. Just like that. We’re going to Germany. Not to Munich. Not to Frankfurt. But to Dusseldorf. Not by direct flight but with layovers. The outbound flight has an hour and a half layover at JFK. And the return flight, a two- hour layover at O’Hare.

Now, gentle reader, I ask you, who would NOT be willing to commit murder under such a circumstance? Who would not stand behind their husband and scream like a banshee before stomping into the bathroom and locking the door, only to unlock it and come flying out again, spitting the vilest of epithets? Yes, I can see gentle reader that you understand my plight.

But time, Xanax and tequila can calm down the most restless of souls and I finally drift off to sleep, his apologizes and assurances ringing my ears, allowing myself to be lulled into thinking that this may, indeed work out. After all, we’re going to Europe!

Or, are we?? There’s more to this tale, but that will come tomorrow.