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October 14, 2005

This internet cafe sucks

I am starting to recognize the regulars here at the internet cafe. One guy is smoking right now (in front of the "no smoking" and anti-spam signs) and I'm getting a headache. Another regular cybercasts some sort of chanting song for a sermon of sorts. Not something I'd opt to listen to on KEXP. Our connection supposedly will be installed on "Thuesday" which is either Tuesday or Thursday. Usually the Dutch have impeccable English but our landlord is the exception.

Anyway, I continue on with my adventure in Amsterdam. Last night I went out with a group of English speaking women. First course: Duck liver salad with salted chocolate. Second course: catfish and couscous. Main course: venison with gingerbread sauce. Dessert: chestnut cream. Not anything I'd chose to order on my own but the restaurant staff told us that everyone in the restaurant would be eating the same thing and that he'd cleared this menu with our group organizer last week. Our organizer wasn't present to refute this statement so we decided to stay and give it a try. A woman from Montana stated, "we shot anything that wandered into our yard growing up, so I'll eat anything." My upbringing was more along the lines of spaghetti from a jar but I figured "what the heck."

As the meal progressed I saw that other people in the restaurants had menus (we weren't allowed menus) and that we were the only ones eating duck liver salad. Oh well.

Today we hit Zaandam for a Rembrant moment. We climbed to the top of one of the windmills for our family Christmas card shot. The windmill was from 1675 and still working! The ladder was steep and long and the platform to walk around it was a little rickety. In America it would be considered a liability for sure. But this is not America. Definitely not America. We all thought it was pretty amazing.

Funny but I think the Socialists seem to have a better grasp on Capitalism than we do. I keep forgetting to bring my own bags to the grocery store and therefore am charged a fee every time I shop. I must have a collection of 100 bags by now but I still can't remember to bring my own! The other thing is that you have to pay to use the restroom. And for a true American moment, I tried to use the toy car shopping cart at the grocery store but it was locked up. I asked to use it and they told me 20 Euros. I thought that couldn't be right so I handed them .20. No, it is 20 Euros as a deposit. Karsten had to walk.

Oh, and here's the craziest thing, I couldn't resist a little shopping at H&M after my sight seeing tour. Everything was so cute and cheap that I was heaping things onto my arms. I wasn't sure what size I am in Europe so I had to have two of everything. I snuck into an open changing room only to find out you are supposed to put back all of the clothes you don't want where you found them! I randomly walked though the store putting things back where I could squeeze them on the rack. That is when I noticed people were just trying things on over their clothes. I walked through the plus size area and saw a woman with her shirt off, bra showing and all, trying on whatever she wanted just so she wouldn't have to remember where to put the clothes back.

Ok, cigarette smoker #2 is puffing away in the cubicle next to me so I'll be signing off for now.

Posted by jana at October 14, 2005 11:45 AM

Comments

Posted by: becca at October 16, 2005 8:35 AM