A-Dam X X X II
Thursday was a quiet day spent trying to calculate bearing lifetimes to answer one of the JPs questions. I tried to go to the train station and buy some tickets to A-dam for Saturday. I got there just in the nick of time to be the last customer. As it turns out there were no more seats left on the trains that we wanted to take, only in the smoking car. I am a smoker, but I don’t want to sit in there for four hours. I went home and checked into renting a car from my car sharing program, but they didn’t have anything good left. I decided I would call the garage first thing Friday to reserve a car. I went to bed really early at 9.30p; feeling totally drained both physically and mentally. The house cleaning would have to wait till morning.
I got up and cleaned and reserved the car. I rented an Opel Astra diesel wagon with a six speed. The six speed diesels are great for long distance driving. I got to the airport a couple of minutes after Jen and Dianne’s scheduled arrival time to find that they arrived 30 minutes early and they were in turn already waiting for me. Oh well. We went back to my place and they took a nap. I went to the bank while they slept to exchange their money and deposit mine. I took them to Seeheim afterwards to the golden cross on the hill. We picked up Mari and went to Antik Lokales in Eberstadt for dinner. Helmut was supposed to meet us there, but didn’t make it.
We left for A-dam at about noon on Saturday, with it totally pouring outside. We made it to the A-dam at about 5p, parked and walked to the hotel. Apparently they were overbooked and had no room for us. The desk clerk was frantically trying to find us a room to no avail. Then this scraggly looking character with a black eye is pointing and gesturing to me from outside the front door. I ignored him. Then the desk clerk tells me that his friend knows another hotel and takes me outside to the guy with the black eye. He tells me he works at a hotel a couple of doors down that has a room available. We go with him to check it out. It all was starting to seem a bit shifty. The guy at the next hotel tells us that he has a room and it will cost us 300€ for two nights. I asked if I could see it first, and ventured up the stairs to find it. This place looked like a heroin flophouse. The room had writing on the walls, missing tiles in the shower, and was generally dirty. I felt like I would catch a disease if I were to stay in the room. We decided to get out of there and find something on our own.
We went to the Ibis near Centraal Station to see if they had anything. Rene the desk clerk informed us they were full, so I asked him if there were any of the other hotels in his chain with rooms available. He was able to get us in at a Mercur hotel on the south side of town for a rate of 109€ for a triple room. The normal rate for the hotel is 210€ per night for the same room. We greased his palm and off we were to the hotel. The hotel was a palace compared to the place I looked at earlier. We took a cab to Rembrandtplein and found a place to eat. Afterwards we went to Dampkring, my favorite coffee house, for some coffee. I was actually able to navigate the streets pretty well finally.
Mari had told me about a Lesbian bar but she was only able to describe the surroundings and the sign. I hadn’t thought much of it because I wasn’t able to picture the place she was describing. As we were waiting for our cab at Rembrandtplein I realized that the little alley that our cabbie had dropped us off at earlier was exactly the spot Mari had described. There was the green space, the alley, and the angelic woman on the sign. Funny coincidence? I was wondering if our cabbie had picked up on the fact that Jen and Dianne are a couple and decided to be helpful. When our cabbie was bringing us back to our hotel he took us by a tranny bar, and announced it as such. I just looked back at Jen and laughed. Could that cabbie be that perceptive? I chock it up to mere coincidence. We took many cabs between the hotel and the city during the weekend. So many that we were able to discern when the cabbie was taking us for a ride, literally. You really have to watch those slippery bastards. They count on the fact that the people they are driving are tourists and don’t know the city enough to know the most direct route. Our hotel had supposedly approved cab drivers that weren’t supposed to be ripping people off. On Sunday night we patiently waited for one, and he turned out to be the worst. We asked to go to Nieuw Markt and Jen followed his route on the map. He had zigged when he shoulda zagged and by the time I realized we weren’t anywhere near where we wanted to go, we reached a crucial intersection where if he went right, I would have given him the benefit of the doubt. He turned left. That was it. Jen and I looked at each other and decided we wanted to get out. Enough is enough. We just got out and didn’t say anything to him. In hindsight we should have let him have it and also give his license number to the hotel and tell them the story. Bastard!
Sunday we went to the Stedelijk, the museum of modern art and also had more coffee. We had some really good Thai food at Nieuw Markt for dinner, once we finally walked there after the cabbie incident. It made me feel good that I could finally navigate the city with confidence. Monday we went to a flea market at Waterlooplein. I bought a couple of scarves and some silver jewelry. I bought a pair of silver bali hoops and a black onyx ring. We walked around a bit more and J&D did some more shopping for tops. We finally ended up at the same shop that I had found before that had all the best in terms of souvenirs and tops. I had forgotten about the place. We headed back to the car and left the wonderful city...for the moment.
I wish I could live in Amsterdam, or at least closer to it. I feel so alive there. The time before that I rented a bike there, I felt instantly that I was part of the environment. I stopped to fix my bag on the rack and people started to ask me directions. Now I feel that I could actually give directions, but without street names, I’m not quite that advanced yet. I want to try to make some connections there either engineering-wise or with fashion. I would probably have a better chance to find a job there after transition than even in Germany. The Dutch are so much more advanced when it comes to transgender issues in society. I feel like my creative juices flow much better there. I used to think Paris was the place, but A-dam and the Netherlands in general have so much more to offer. I should speak with an insider, Highmaintenancehussy at Recreational Use. She could probably help me out, or at least give me some basic info. I’ll give it a shot and see where it leads. Aside from learning another language, I think I could be totally happy living there. Dare to dream…
We drove back and were met with stop and go traffic the whole way back through the Netherlands. We stopped so J&D could take some pictures of Fresian horses. They’re horse people. We sailed through the border without pause. The rest of the ride home went relatively quickly. Tuesday was to be a busy day.
I got up at 7a to wake up J&D to switch beds because the guys were supposed to be there at 7.30a to lay the tile on the balcony. They didn’t show until 8.30a. I was a little perturbed that I got up so early and they were late. After they got there I got ready to go to work to hear the JP welcome to Horiba for all of us in DA. Our new top man actually gave his speech in German. That took a lot of courage on his part. It was a bit painful to listen to at times, but I was also there at one point. The meeting was really short, only a half hour. I went back to the office with Helmut and checked my email, then went back home and woke up J&D with coffee and cakes. Jen gave me my shots in a different place than where the nurses usually do it. I realized later exactly why they do it where they do. She gave me it a bit too low because I could feel it every time I sat down. Administering it a bit higher, closer to the waist avoids the sitting pains.
We went shopping in Ffm and Jen bought some furry moccasin boots. We had a coffee in a sidewalk café, but the weather wasn’t so nice, it is fall you know. We headed back to DA so I could make my ELOS treatment. I will write separately about this experience. Later we decided to go to find something to eat and ended up at the Lokales. Wednesday we went to Köln (Cologne) to see the Cathedral and go to the Chocolate Museum. The museum has a huge chocolate store with all kinds of goodies. I bought some extra bitter chocolate from Tobago, since it reminded me of sweet trini. I love bitter chocolate. We drove back to DA to have dinner with Mari and Christi at their place. They made Flammkuchen and served Federweisse with it. This is a traditional early fall dish served with young wine. It was very tasty treats. Thursday we went to eat at a café and then walked around DA a bit. I brought them to the airport and went in with them. Check in was quick, a miracle, and we were off to find a bookstore. We said our goodbyes at the gate and I watched them go through to make sure everything went ok. I stopped a bar in the terminal for a coffee.
I went to Linda’s in NI on the way home from the airport to drop off her jacket that I repaired for her. She had hurt her back earlier in the day and was trying to nurse it. I hung out with her for a few hours and then brought the car back to work to give it up. Once at home, I decided to call someone that I was reluctant to call. I should have followed my first instinct. It upset me and put me in a foul mood for all of Friday at work. I don’t think I will put as much effort in keeping up contact in the future. Enough of that negative stuff, I don’t need it..
I went to bed early Friday night as I was convinced that I was overtired and should get some rest. Saturday morning and into afternoon, I responded to some email that I had been procrastinating. I had planned to go to Walmart and then Karstadt to get some fleece for vests, but I only had time to go to Walmart. I guess I can go to Karstadt during the week. I want to make a sporty vest to wear at work and also a more feminine one. I want to start experimenting with edge finishes on the serger with some fleece and polo knit. I also wanted to try to make some Dutch apple pies. I bought all the stuff to make them yesterday at Walmart. I was thinking if they come out good I may give them to Helmut, Mari, Klaus, Magda, and maybe Jens for breakfast break. I’ll be winging it on the recipe, so we’ll see how it goes. I think all I need is butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. I was wondering if I need vanilla extract. I should have asked Lizzy for a few tips, since she is the apple pie queen.
I got up and cleaned and reserved the car. I rented an Opel Astra diesel wagon with a six speed. The six speed diesels are great for long distance driving. I got to the airport a couple of minutes after Jen and Dianne’s scheduled arrival time to find that they arrived 30 minutes early and they were in turn already waiting for me. Oh well. We went back to my place and they took a nap. I went to the bank while they slept to exchange their money and deposit mine. I took them to Seeheim afterwards to the golden cross on the hill. We picked up Mari and went to Antik Lokales in Eberstadt for dinner. Helmut was supposed to meet us there, but didn’t make it.
We left for A-dam at about noon on Saturday, with it totally pouring outside. We made it to the A-dam at about 5p, parked and walked to the hotel. Apparently they were overbooked and had no room for us. The desk clerk was frantically trying to find us a room to no avail. Then this scraggly looking character with a black eye is pointing and gesturing to me from outside the front door. I ignored him. Then the desk clerk tells me that his friend knows another hotel and takes me outside to the guy with the black eye. He tells me he works at a hotel a couple of doors down that has a room available. We go with him to check it out. It all was starting to seem a bit shifty. The guy at the next hotel tells us that he has a room and it will cost us 300€ for two nights. I asked if I could see it first, and ventured up the stairs to find it. This place looked like a heroin flophouse. The room had writing on the walls, missing tiles in the shower, and was generally dirty. I felt like I would catch a disease if I were to stay in the room. We decided to get out of there and find something on our own.
We went to the Ibis near Centraal Station to see if they had anything. Rene the desk clerk informed us they were full, so I asked him if there were any of the other hotels in his chain with rooms available. He was able to get us in at a Mercur hotel on the south side of town for a rate of 109€ for a triple room. The normal rate for the hotel is 210€ per night for the same room. We greased his palm and off we were to the hotel. The hotel was a palace compared to the place I looked at earlier. We took a cab to Rembrandtplein and found a place to eat. Afterwards we went to Dampkring, my favorite coffee house, for some coffee. I was actually able to navigate the streets pretty well finally.
Mari had told me about a Lesbian bar but she was only able to describe the surroundings and the sign. I hadn’t thought much of it because I wasn’t able to picture the place she was describing. As we were waiting for our cab at Rembrandtplein I realized that the little alley that our cabbie had dropped us off at earlier was exactly the spot Mari had described. There was the green space, the alley, and the angelic woman on the sign. Funny coincidence? I was wondering if our cabbie had picked up on the fact that Jen and Dianne are a couple and decided to be helpful. When our cabbie was bringing us back to our hotel he took us by a tranny bar, and announced it as such. I just looked back at Jen and laughed. Could that cabbie be that perceptive? I chock it up to mere coincidence. We took many cabs between the hotel and the city during the weekend. So many that we were able to discern when the cabbie was taking us for a ride, literally. You really have to watch those slippery bastards. They count on the fact that the people they are driving are tourists and don’t know the city enough to know the most direct route. Our hotel had supposedly approved cab drivers that weren’t supposed to be ripping people off. On Sunday night we patiently waited for one, and he turned out to be the worst. We asked to go to Nieuw Markt and Jen followed his route on the map. He had zigged when he shoulda zagged and by the time I realized we weren’t anywhere near where we wanted to go, we reached a crucial intersection where if he went right, I would have given him the benefit of the doubt. He turned left. That was it. Jen and I looked at each other and decided we wanted to get out. Enough is enough. We just got out and didn’t say anything to him. In hindsight we should have let him have it and also give his license number to the hotel and tell them the story. Bastard!
Sunday we went to the Stedelijk, the museum of modern art and also had more coffee. We had some really good Thai food at Nieuw Markt for dinner, once we finally walked there after the cabbie incident. It made me feel good that I could finally navigate the city with confidence. Monday we went to a flea market at Waterlooplein. I bought a couple of scarves and some silver jewelry. I bought a pair of silver bali hoops and a black onyx ring. We walked around a bit more and J&D did some more shopping for tops. We finally ended up at the same shop that I had found before that had all the best in terms of souvenirs and tops. I had forgotten about the place. We headed back to the car and left the wonderful city...for the moment.
I wish I could live in Amsterdam, or at least closer to it. I feel so alive there. The time before that I rented a bike there, I felt instantly that I was part of the environment. I stopped to fix my bag on the rack and people started to ask me directions. Now I feel that I could actually give directions, but without street names, I’m not quite that advanced yet. I want to try to make some connections there either engineering-wise or with fashion. I would probably have a better chance to find a job there after transition than even in Germany. The Dutch are so much more advanced when it comes to transgender issues in society. I feel like my creative juices flow much better there. I used to think Paris was the place, but A-dam and the Netherlands in general have so much more to offer. I should speak with an insider, Highmaintenancehussy at Recreational Use. She could probably help me out, or at least give me some basic info. I’ll give it a shot and see where it leads. Aside from learning another language, I think I could be totally happy living there. Dare to dream…
We drove back and were met with stop and go traffic the whole way back through the Netherlands. We stopped so J&D could take some pictures of Fresian horses. They’re horse people. We sailed through the border without pause. The rest of the ride home went relatively quickly. Tuesday was to be a busy day.
I got up at 7a to wake up J&D to switch beds because the guys were supposed to be there at 7.30a to lay the tile on the balcony. They didn’t show until 8.30a. I was a little perturbed that I got up so early and they were late. After they got there I got ready to go to work to hear the JP welcome to Horiba for all of us in DA. Our new top man actually gave his speech in German. That took a lot of courage on his part. It was a bit painful to listen to at times, but I was also there at one point. The meeting was really short, only a half hour. I went back to the office with Helmut and checked my email, then went back home and woke up J&D with coffee and cakes. Jen gave me my shots in a different place than where the nurses usually do it. I realized later exactly why they do it where they do. She gave me it a bit too low because I could feel it every time I sat down. Administering it a bit higher, closer to the waist avoids the sitting pains.
We went shopping in Ffm and Jen bought some furry moccasin boots. We had a coffee in a sidewalk café, but the weather wasn’t so nice, it is fall you know. We headed back to DA so I could make my ELOS treatment. I will write separately about this experience. Later we decided to go to find something to eat and ended up at the Lokales. Wednesday we went to Köln (Cologne) to see the Cathedral and go to the Chocolate Museum. The museum has a huge chocolate store with all kinds of goodies. I bought some extra bitter chocolate from Tobago, since it reminded me of sweet trini. I love bitter chocolate. We drove back to DA to have dinner with Mari and Christi at their place. They made Flammkuchen and served Federweisse with it. This is a traditional early fall dish served with young wine. It was very tasty treats. Thursday we went to eat at a café and then walked around DA a bit. I brought them to the airport and went in with them. Check in was quick, a miracle, and we were off to find a bookstore. We said our goodbyes at the gate and I watched them go through to make sure everything went ok. I stopped a bar in the terminal for a coffee.
I went to Linda’s in NI on the way home from the airport to drop off her jacket that I repaired for her. She had hurt her back earlier in the day and was trying to nurse it. I hung out with her for a few hours and then brought the car back to work to give it up. Once at home, I decided to call someone that I was reluctant to call. I should have followed my first instinct. It upset me and put me in a foul mood for all of Friday at work. I don’t think I will put as much effort in keeping up contact in the future. Enough of that negative stuff, I don’t need it..
I went to bed early Friday night as I was convinced that I was overtired and should get some rest. Saturday morning and into afternoon, I responded to some email that I had been procrastinating. I had planned to go to Walmart and then Karstadt to get some fleece for vests, but I only had time to go to Walmart. I guess I can go to Karstadt during the week. I want to make a sporty vest to wear at work and also a more feminine one. I want to start experimenting with edge finishes on the serger with some fleece and polo knit. I also wanted to try to make some Dutch apple pies. I bought all the stuff to make them yesterday at Walmart. I was thinking if they come out good I may give them to Helmut, Mari, Klaus, Magda, and maybe Jens for breakfast break. I’ll be winging it on the recipe, so we’ll see how it goes. I think all I need is butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. I was wondering if I need vanilla extract. I should have asked Lizzy for a few tips, since she is the apple pie queen.
posted by Christine Cormier @ 1:25 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home