Amsterdam

What a civilized airport!

I expected to find an outlet somewhere that I might avoid getting scolded. I envisioned sitting, sheepishly, on the floor leaning against a wall trying not to trip anyone. Instead, I was guided to the business center where I have a chair, a table, an outlet  and free WiFi all while John Meyer serenades me over the speakers!

They have a Dutch Museum that I hope will open soon, a library, a spa (complete with Oxygen bar) and a sleeping lounge with lovely comfortable chairs while a screen displays a bucolic drive down lovely country roads.

The flight was mostly uneventful. I could tell my seat mate was going to be loads of fun. He grunted at me once to get up to use the bathroom and that was the entirety of our conversation. Mr. Grunt managed to sleep most of the trip, but this is something that eluded me.  I got the distinct impression that my knitting annoyed him -- not that he said so in so many words.

I managed to work with the dreadful user interface of the Delta in-flight entertainment and I watched several "TED" talks, listened to some music and watched "Pitch Perfect." (Patti, you can cross that off your, "Jeanne, you just have to see that movie!" list.) I'm also going through my knitting project faster than expected. I hope this isn't going to be a problem. I only left one skein in my carry-on and an 11 hour flight ahead of me still.

Back home, the other day while looking for a luggage strap I found this "old lady" eyeglass string so that you can take your glasses on and off more easily without losing them. Oh, I wish I had been less vain! These are great! I can go from reading instructions, to knitting to watching the tv without the  constant... "where did I put my glasses NOW!"

I need to stop looking at what time it is at home. When I got here it was still yesterday at home. These are the kind of time distortion stories that vex David so I won't go into it much further. I will say that the sun is up and on the plane they simulated a "night" experience, but my body isn't going to be so easily fooled.

I have about two hours to kill before I can even go to the gate. Interestingly, each gate here has its own security so it makes it more inviting to spend time in the rest of the airport. I decided to get some coffee at a cafe here -- one of the best cups of coffee I have EVER had. It was wonderfully strong and hot. I sat near the woman behind the counter while I heard her greet customers switching from Dutch to English to Spanish with such ease. I am embarrassed to be so mono-lingual.