Netherlands & Belgium 2022 - Day 12 / Amsterdam Schiphol

Travel in the Covid Era feels so extra complicated!

Yesterday, I did the online check in and it went smoothly however I could not access my boarding passes in the KLM app because I had to upload my vaccination documents.

So...  available, but not available...  whatever.

I wanted to upload them, however I could not because the form also asked for my ArriveCan confirmation which I did not have...  why not? Because as of tomorrow, the day we fly, ArriveCan is no longer mandatory.

So, what the Hell, I completed my Arrive Can application and promptly received an email saying that my application would not be processed because on the date of the flight, the documents are not needed.

Classic left hand not communicating with the right hand, but eventually someone clapped because I just happened to check again a few hours later and there they were.

I was not really that concerned because technically every person on the flight was in the same position, but the absurdity of it all was laughable. Still, I wanted to have all my ducks in a row because Schiphol  Airport is a hot mess now a days, with line-ups stretching for hours and even snaking outside the terminal! 

According to their website, they predicted October 1 to be "a normal day" traffic-wise, but.... is that new normal or old normal? 

We arrived at the airport a little over 4 hours early as recommended and waited in front of the departure boards for about 30 minutes waiting for our Gate Letter...  once we got it... The Great Line Up was underway. I set the timer.

Thankfully, it was not snaking out the door, but it did seems to snake all over the airport! As soon as you think you are done, you turn a corner and see just how much longer you need to go.  I will say however that it always kept moving and so we didn't feel that "stuck".

At one point, we went up an escalator into what I can only describe as a huge holding pen, with the lines moving back and forth and back and forth and back and forth.  Frank joked when the line passed the point where people were entering the room that we should tell them we got there 3 days ago! ha!

About an hour in, we took a selfie to capture the moment; it also happened to be our 19-year anniversary!

All in all, security and passport control took about an hour an a half and when we reached the other side the feeling of relief was palpable.

All worries behind us, it was time for some airport booze!

Then, time to fly home.

Great vacation! We were very satisfied; can't wait for the next one.

Today's map:

Netherlands & Belgium 2022 - Day 11 / Amsterdam

Steps today : 18 348 / 12.03km

Bye Bye Belgium!

We moved back to Amsterdam today for our last full day of vacation. Our flight was in and out of AMS and on the day we fly home, we like to wake up in the city from which we leave. Too many protentional mishaps if we have to travel far or change cities on the same day we leave. Our usual M.O. is to return the day before, store our suitcases at the train station so we can enjoy a last full day, then stay at a hotel near the airport for the final night.

There were 2 things left that I really wanted to do back in Amsterdam, one was to visit the Basilica of St Nicholas. It wasn't on my list at first because I'd visited in 2008 but as time went on I thought I'd like to pop in again. It wasn't open yet when we arrived so we moved on with the intention of getting back to it.

The weather was drizzly so I didn't take many pictures.

I remembered a place I went to eat on a previous trip so we headed out in that direction and arrived before it opened so we went to coffee across the street and that's when the sun came out.

The restaurant was nothing special, not as nice as I remembered, but the food was good enough - no big disappointments.

After lunch stroll...

The remaining item on my must-do list was the Canal Museum. It was very interesting but calling it a canal museum is a little misleading, it's more about the history of Amsterdam heavy on canal details. I suppose the two, Amsterdam and Canals, are so tightly linked that you really can't tell the story of one without the other.

We enjoyed more strolling around the city... 

....and stopped for my last Espresso Martini of the trip around 3PM

After, wandered around a bit more, heading back in the direction of the Basilica...  which now was closed by the time we got there! figures.

I got a kick out of this funny cow!

For our last meal, we went back to the Waag and had burgers by candle light

After this, it was time to change gears. Out of vacation mode and into get-home mode. Back at the train station, it felt funny not to get on the ferry -  this time it was on a train to the airport from where we caught a free shuttle to our hotel.

At first, I was impressed by the corner room, but we soon became unimpressed with how cold the it was! We fiddled with the thermometer on the wall, but it didn't really seem to work. In addition, there were no toiletries at all. No shampoo, bath soap, shower cap, all the little amenities I have come to take for granted and depend on.

We slept fine despite the cold room, but the cold toilet seat was a jolt let me tell you! The rest of the hotel was fine, as soon as we passed a particular section of the hotel, the hallways, breakfast room and reception areas were nice and toasty. It really was just our section.

The next morning when getting some pictures, I saw why the room was so cold. It was jutting out of the building and glass all around. When checking out I mentioned how cold the room was and the desk clerk asked: "Did you use the radiator under the desk?" ha! We NEVER saw it.  Turns out the thermometer on the wall was only for the A/C.

Today's map: