Amsterdam

After a long nine hour flight I am here in Amsterdam. The flight itself actually wasn't that bad and KLM has lived up to its reputation for being a great airline. They kept us fed and hydrated (non-stop beverage service), the wine was free, there was lots of leg room, they brought around hot towels periodically and the food was actually pretty good. I even managed to get a few hours of sleep which will help immensely. At the moment I don't feel overly tired (although I'm really hot!) but I do have a leg-ache so I know my body is protesting a bit.

Once I arrived in Amsterdam I went searching through the shops at Schipol to find a small purse because I didn't want to lug my insanely heavy carry-on around the city. Then I bought a roundtrip train ticket and came into the city. I got into Amsterdam proper at around 9am and the first thing I did was take a canal cruise. Definitely worth the 8 euros! I saw a lot of amazing architecture and actually managed to relax in the breeze coming off the water. Surprisingly the harbour and canals in Amsterdam are fresh water because of the locks that block off the sea. Now I'm trying to decide what to do for the next hour. I wanted to go to the Rijksmuseum but it's pretty far away so I nixed that plan. I was also thinking about going to the Anne Frank House but we passed it on the cruise and there was a huge line-up. I think I'll just find a nice cafe and sit outside in this amazing city.

My flight leaves for Dubai at 2:35pm so I should be at the airport around 12:30 or 1:00. Hopefully that flight goes as well as the one over here. I'm kind of nervous about traveling all the way on my own (the guy I was supposed to meet up with was delayed) but I'm sure it will be okay. As long as I can find a place in Dubai to shower and change clothes I'll be happy.

My love to you all.