Boston to Amsterdam

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Waiting for a flight is as goode a time as any to start the blogging for this trip. I flew up to Boston on Air Tran from Ft. Lauderdale on 30 October. Air Tran was a surprise because not only did they serve a bag of pretzels, but also a beverage. Seeing as my flight went via Newport News, I had this pleasure twice. After picking up the rental car, I hesitantly went into the 5 PM traffic leaving Boston. Amazingly, the trip to New
Bedford took only 1 hr & 15 minutes. Weather my first day there was really Indian summer, but it went downhill the next two days as fall made itself clear. There was still lots of colorful foliage on the trees driving to New Bedford, but after 2 days of storms, those leaves were pretty much gone by the 30th of October. The parents are doing as well (mother was 92 in May and Dad turned 92 on the 6th of November) as can be expected….but its just a sad sight to see age deterioration. The nurses who look after them are angels.

On the 30th of October, I drove back to Boston, missed the correct exit to return the car (it wasn’t at the airport but way, way off airport property) and somehow still managed to get it turned in without incurring an additional day’s charge. Having 7 hours to kill once I got to the airport, I went to the Northwest Airlines counter to check in my bag. The girl who checked me in was a big tattoo fan and asked what I had been assigned for a seat, then immediately told me to wait a minute. She came back with an exit row seat assignment AND an empty seat next to me. With still plenty of time, I walked over to Legal SeaFoods and had a wonderful shrimp, scallop and clam dinner then waited some more to board the plane.

No sleep on the plane, of course and even tho it was an 11 PM flight to Amsterdam, they still served what passed for dinner…….but that normal pre-arrival snack was coffee and an energy bar !!!!!!!

Another 7 hour wait in Amsterdam, so I took the train for the 20 minute ride into Amsterdam, changed money, and went to world famous Hanky Panky Tattoo Studio to get some t-shirts for the guys at the shop. Amsterdam is always an interesting city so had a delightful walk about fueled by Dutch pea soup and thick bread for a very cool and a bit drizzly day.

Finally back to the airport, the gate for the flight to Berlin was changed 3 times and I found myself walking, walking and walking some more. We did finally take off at 6:30 PM and the cabin crew managed to serve sandwiches and beverages during the 41 minute flight in a full 737 (my new friend in Boston had gotten me an aisle seat!). In Berlin by 7:30 PM, I took a taxi to the apartment where I was greeted and given keys. My friend Stuart from the UK was supposed to also be in an apartment in the same building, but things got changed…..he was 3 blocks away and by then I was simply too tired to find him.

I’ll tell ya all about Berlin, and election day, in the next message..

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