Amsterdam, and Back Home

Phew, that was a long last couple of days. Whenever I travel internationally, I have a hard time relating times. For instance, I consider "last night" to be the night I spent wandering around Amsterdam. But, in reality, that was about 32 hours ago.


Schiphol Airport

Anyway, Amsterdam was a blast. I'm not sure I've partied that hard in recent memory. There's something about the Red Light District that makes you do things you wouldn't normally do. (And no, I didn't get any pictures of the Red Light District--that's a *big* no-no. But I'm sure you could find some if you looked.)


View from Hotel

I'm not sure what else to say. A quick stop in The Netherlands is exactly what I needed after the last two weeks of hard work. I can't say it was "relaxing", but it's very hard for me to unwind and forget about my responsibilities. (damn type A personality) So, it's very good for me when it does happen.


Coffee and a Pasty--my ideal breakfast

This morning was actually a little relaxing. I had an early-afternoon flight, so I enjoyed a quiet breakfast--watching the morning commute in town.


Greenland

The flight back was uneventful except for a little sight-seeing. We got some beautiful views of the western shores of Scotland and (because of the great circle) some gorgeous scenery over Greenland.

Homeward Bound

After working a full Saturday at the office, it's Sunday morning and I'm enjoying a leisurely coffee in the hotel lobby. Work in Norway is done, and it's a relaxing feeling to know there's nothing between me and home other than some fun.

I've got to pack and head to Amsterdam this afternoon. After an overnight stay there, I'm back on a plane headed home. I'm looking forward to getting back to the states.

But since I won't be spending next week in Scotland, that probably means I'll be heading there sometime next month.

Norway: Week 2

Sorry for the lack of updates--there's just not much to say. I'm in the middle of my second week here and I still don't know if I'm coming home this weekend or spending next week in Scotland.

My days here have become incredibly routine. Wake up, go to work, go back to the hotel, eat dinner, read/surf web, go to bed.

I feel really guilty about this schedule. I'm in a foreign country, damnit. I *should* be doing/seeing things. I just don't know what to do/see. I've seen the "coolest" part of Stavanger. I've eaten all kinds of unusual food. I saw the fjords. I've visited the quiet little neighborhoods. I listened to live music and drank the beer. What's left?

Am I letting the inner introvert blind me to things I should be doing, or is there just not that much to do?

In any case, I've got a couple of more days here and then on to the next thing.

Norway: Landed

Well, that made for a very short weekend, but a comfortable trip. I left work a bit late Friday, went home and packed. I woke up Saturday, loaded the car and headed to the airport. The I landed in Norway "Sunday" afternoon. Traveling east steals time.

Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam

Lines at Houston Intercontinental were virtually non-existant for some reason. And the flight to Schiphol was only about 80% full, so I got a couple of seats to myself and was able to stretch-out a bit and get some sleep. The last hop to Norway was gravy--I just kicked-back and watched some Battlestar Galactica I brought with. (I gotta ration those--I only have 3 episodes left on the DVD)

It's been a very quiet day. It's Sunday in Stavanger, and the city is shut down. For lunch, I had to walk 15 minutes into downtown and fast food was the only thing open. (when I asked the lady at the check-in counter about somewhere to eat, she gave me a strange look and said "it's Sunday, I don't think anything's open")

Empty Hotel

The hotel I'm staying in is absolutely empty. There's a lounge and bar, but I've been through 3 times and haven't seen a soul. I even grabbed the lappy and headed down for a while, but after sitting in an empty hotel lobby for about an hour, I got a bit creeped-out and headed back up to my room.

Well, it's 7:45 PM here (that's 12:45 PM for most of you) and I have no idea if I'll get any sleep tonight. I'm getting much better at dealing with jet lag, but the first day is always rough.

Geek

77% Geek

Yeah, that's about right.