DAY 7
Saturday MAY 7 2005
Routines and Reflections
My day starts with what is coming to be a morning ritual. Sometimes it is nice to have a routine. I wake up about 4am in the morning, don't know why it must be jet lag. I then write up that day's journal entry and go back to sleep. Then I wake up again and go down to breakfast. This is usually about 8 am. I relax with the other guests talking, laughing, and eating.
By the way, some people at the breakfast table asked for my web site address. A very friendly and outgoing lady from Philadelphia wanted it. She was the one that went to Istanbul. I think she just wants to know the final outcome of whatever happens to me and my trip. Everybody thinks I am very brave and courageous for cycling this trip. I told them I think they are braves and courageous for driving in Europe. And I thought Alaska cab drivers were bad! :-)
My next step in my morning routine is to take a 30 minute walk to Hotel Amadeus which has the local internet. I post my journal, as I am doing now, carrying my 10 pound laptop, and then my morning is free for a "maintenance day" or sightseeing.
My view from the Internet Cafe.
Today I am looking forward to a canal cruise through Haarlem. As it is raining I will really get to see if this coat is worth the money or not. Then I am looking forward to going to the Saturday Market and eventually picking up my bike at the cycle shop.
If you come to Haarlem, remember to buy phone cards at the post office. I will be using those phone cards to make reservations at the next town I hit, which I am hoping will be Monday night. I felt like I lost so much control giving up my cell phone, it was such a relief to find a place that sells phone cards. Now I don't have to wing it too badly. Do not buy phone cards in the U.S., even if it says it will work internationally, they won't. I brought three phone cards with me from Alaska and tried six ways from Sunday to make them work. What is easiest is to buy the card with a computer chip and use the pay phones as the pay phones do not take cash, they will take your visa though.
One thing I did not account for was the constant sheen of sweat on my body. It is not just from the exercise, but also from the humidity. I am wet when I go into the shower and also when I come out. It makes me miss the dry air of Alaska.
Another thing that I did not anticipate is the sheer relaxation of this trip. Oh yes, RELAXATION. When I am on a two week vacation, we get to our destination, and hit the ground running. It is a feeling of 'come on hurry, go, go, go, we only have two weeks'. Well, knowing that I have eight months makes me take things a lot slower. I take long walks, just to soak up the local ambience. I don't really even plan my days. I have been here four days now and today will be my first official sightseeing day. The other days were just to get my feet underneath me, do maintenance, to relax and enjoy the differences in lifestyle. I move at a slower pace now, my own pace, not something forced upon me. This makes all the differences in the world. I am profoundly satisfied.
One thing I must mention that has made a world of difference for me is my laptop. It is such a nice feeling knowing that I am keeping in touch with friends and family. Although, primarily, for me, this journal is for myself when I am old and decrepit to look back on and refresh my memory. Shoot, maybe I should start now. :-) It is also for when I get back to Alaska and am working two jobs for five years to pay off the loans I took for this trip. I can look back and, hopefully, say yeah that was worth it. That's is why I don't stint on putting the bad and the good, both, in my journal. I want to remember as much as possible when the years have rolled on by.
The next thing that has made a major impact for me is my digital camera. Last vacation I took a $9.00 camera and had the lousiest pictures. So to my boyfriend, thanks for the gift of this camera it was certainly worth it!
The Saturday Market.
The following are pictures from my Canal Cruise. Yes, it is raining rather badly.
Well, I found out my jacket is more waterproof than my laptop carrier. Thank goodness for plastic bags. I went back to the place I bought my jacket from and looked over the selection one more time. I still came out with the same jacket! It really is the best they can do for me. At least it fully covers my neck and keeps it warm and I have a perfect place to put my digital camera for quick access.
I went to the bike shop to pick up the bike and I asked them what changes were made and to please teach what I did wrong. He said it was done beautifully and no changes were made other than lubing the chain. So I get a A+ for the day! Although, I did not get out of the shop without paying 78 euros. They said the bolts that came with my rack were too short, which they were. Sometimes, I wonder about that Seattle bike shop. Honestly the wiring on my handle bars alone is enough to make me question them. Not to mention the cheap seat stem. Anyway, the Haarlem bike shop fixed my racks and gave me longer bolts. They also sold me a bell for my bike and to LED lights for the front of my handlebar bag. All bikes must have lights in Holland or the cyclist is riding illegally.
One more thing I bought that was unexpected was a better lock. A huge, heave cloth covered metal chain. My Host Hans looked over my lock I had brought from Alaska and took the time to explain to me just exactly how easy a thief could knock it unlocked with a hammer. Jeez! I asked him if people would know that it was a very expensive bike and he said 'people may not know, but the thieves will.' I bought the new lock, screw the weight and besides it is large enough to bind around a tree and my frame, the other wasn't.
I anticipate spending a few more days here in Haarlem. I still have to sort my luggage out and mail off my suitcase and other stuff to Jeff. I also want to practice riding my bike in the city. The rules are different here. There are two or three more sightseeing things I want to accomplish and then I want to take a test ride to the Tulip fields and back, without my luggage. The fields opened up two weeks ago.
One thing I am really, really hoping to do is go to he Open Air Museum. I was there last time on tour and we spent only an hour there. Ever since, I have wanted to go back so badly. It is so large that a person could rent or bring a bike and ride through it. This would give me experience on bringing my bike on a train and what have you. That would be a full day trip from Haarlem.
This isn't so good, I wanted to get started actually biking the Rhine soon. At the same time, my sightseeing, now, is giving time for the weather to swing into full summer so I can start camping and cut my costs in half. Also, once I leave Haarlem I will not be coming back this way again or at least for many, many more years. So I feel I should see the things I want to now before I leave the area completely.
So my brain is in a loop. Bike, sightsee. Sightsee, bike. I have compromised by doing a little of both.
Favorite moment of the Day: A+ on the bike. Houston, we have heat!
Least favorite moment of the Day: The rain, and when the rain stopped and the sun came out, the wind started.