I left Tulse Hill in London around 1am to pick up my flight to Holland which was leaving at 6:55am and still almost missed it. I took the correct bus going the wrong way and wound up on the wrong side of London. I ended up taking a cab which cost me $100 and still took an hour to get where I was going. When I arrived into Holland that was the first time so far that I really felt like I was traveling. Although everyone for the most part speaks English everything is in Dutch. Plus the accent for both ends is much harder to understand. To make matters worse when I arrived I was informed that the buses were on strike so I had to take another cab. Fortunately I met a fellow from South Korea named Alin who split the cab ( another $60) with me to the central train station. I got a great picture of him before we parted but can’t post anything until I get back to London.

In fact that’s basically the only picture I’ve taken so far since I got into Amsterdam yesterday. Because I didnt sleep the night prior by the time I arrived I was beat by 2pm and got a room at a hotel named old quarter in the red light district and went to bed. I woke up at 10pm and went out a bit to check things out. By that time most stores were closing but coffee shops and pubs were still open. I didnt really like the feel of the red light district too many people trying to sell you cocaine and such. It was pretty neat seeing half naked girls attempting to sell thier services behind a window on every corner. I had a pint or two, ate a pita with falafel, checked out a few shops and ended up going back to bed at about 1am.

This morning I made my way to the hostel I intended to go to in the first place which Eric reccomended named the Flying Pig. Its about $20-25 cheaper a night and it is a much better atmosphere plus it is on the other side of town. I am sharing a room with 5 other people but I dont expect to spend much time in there anyway. There is free wireless, computers to use, a pool table and a small bar with drinks and food.

It’s was raining here this morning which is one of the reasons I left my camera in the room. I also want to wander around a bit more and get a feel for navigating this area so I dont take my camera down the wrong alley. I ate a toasted sandwich with cheese, olives, peppers and pesto this morning. I know I dont normally eat dairy but I saw a number of people eating these sandwiches with copious amounts of ketchup on top and had to try it. To be honest it was pretty good.

I think the rain has stopped and I’m about to venture out. Someone told me today that the Hieniken brewery tour isnt going on right now because they are rennovating or something which is a drag. Also, my phone doesnt work very well here. I have a plan for minutes locally and internationally while I’m in England but traveling its a pay as you go thing. From what I can gather it cost me $20 to talk to Donnie in the USA last night for roughly 10 minutes and that was all the ëxtra’” money I had on that phone. I have to figure out a way to top it up but because its so expensive I’m just going to use it as an emergency thing. On the bright side the computers here have skype and even have a skype phone attached. I can log in to chat and even make calls if I put a little money onto it. Alright then I”m off.