The Summer of 2015

This summer is probably the easiest summer I have had since before I had my driver's license. I don't have a job, I get to relax, all until August 16 when I move to Colorado. I quit my job at the bar and restaurant a few weeks ago with zero plans to get another job while I'm still in Wisconsin, and I have saved up thousands of dollars for the big move.

My boyfriend's mom, Diana, travels a lot for work, but particularly likes to travel to Holland where she has a very good... uh... friend. She just so happens to be traveling to Holland for... er... work, and I am going to be taking her to the airport today. I stand in the living room just outside of the kitchen as I watch her frantically pack her bags for her flight later today. She's standing in the kitchen shoving items into a small makeup bag, when she suddenly looks up at me and asks, "Do you want to come with?"

"To Holland?!" I ask incredulously.

"Yes, Holland! Where else?" She asks, humored by my shock. I stare a little bit longer, but she breaks my silence. "You better go downstairs and pack if you want to come with!"

I run down the stairs to wake up the boyfriend and tell him to pack. Sleepily, Jason looks up at me, and asks why. I fill him in, and soon enough we are rushing around the room throwing stuff into suitcases. Luckily, my camera backpack relatively stays packed, so I just ensure everything is in there before lugging everything upstairs. Diana is now on her laptop, changing her flight and booking ours, and we now have a little more time to breathe since the flight is a little bit later than Diana's original departure.

Flight to Amsterdam

Diana's daughter, Tiffany, comes to drive us to the airport. Tiffany only lives a few minutes away from Diana and her husband Jim. Diana drives to the airport with Tiffany in the passenger seat, and Jason and I in the backseat. We make it to Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport, where we thank and say goodbye to Tiffany who hops in the drivers seat to drive the two hours back home.

We get through security smoothly, and make it to our gate. Jason and I will not be able to sit next to Diana on the plane since we booked last minute tickets, but we are able to sit next to each other, which I think is nice. Jason takes the window seat, and I settle into the aisle seat. We are on flight DL160 and I am sitting in seat 17B, which is a two seater spot, so it's just Jason and I in our little row.

This is the first international flight I have ever been on, and it is my first flight that has a television screen built into the headrest of the seats. I immediately start to scroll through the options only to discover that they have The Hobbit trilogy and The Lord of the Rings trilogy available. I quickly decide to watch The Hobbit trilogy on the way to Holland, and will watch Lord of the Rings on the flight home. I get comfy in my seat, and with my headphones on, I watch The Hobbit trilogy. I'm much too excited to sleep. Jason fell asleep long ago, I honestly have no idea how he can sleep so much.

I am watching the final movie of the trilogy when light begins to fill the edges of the window cover. Jason is now awake and eating snacks, watching whatever it is he's watching on his screen. I tap on his shoulder and ask him to lift up the window cover.

The light of Eos greets my eyes in such vibrancy and defiance against the thick wall of clouds, that I am awestruck. I quickly reach down to my camera bag which is at my feet and pull out my camera and snap a photo of the morning light.

Amsterdam to Hillegom

The flight starts its descent right when the end credits started rolling for the last Hobbit Trilogy movie. The screens are all cut off by the airline when we start the descent, I think it is for safety reasons, but I am not entirely sure.

We land in Amsterdam, and Diane goes to retrieve the rental car. Diane drives, Jason sits in the front seat, and I sit in the back seat as we make our way from the airport to our destination. We make it to Rob's townhome, which has a beautiful garden in front of it. Rob greets us at the door, and tells us that he has prepared the top floor, his home office, as Jason's and my bedroom for our stay.

Rob's Townhome

When you enter the townhome, there is a steep staircase on the left hand side. A short hallway leads you to the main floor toilet room, and the living room. The toilet room is straight ahead from the front door, and the living room is to the right. The dining room is on the back of the living room, and the kitchen to the left of that. There is a back door that goes from the kitchen to the backyard.

The second level of the home has the main bedroom and master bathroom. There's also a small little office type room and a storage closet where the laundry and cleaning supplies are.

The third level of the home is a large room that Rob uses as a home office. There's a futon-turned-bed on the side of the room under the windows, and some desks on the other side of the room. Jason and I leave our luggage on the top floor and wander back down the stairs. I use the restroom on the main floor, and realize that just about everything in this condo is from IKEA. IKEA has some wonderfully charming pieces, and Rob did a wonderful job furnishing and designing his home.

Rob's Garden

I had grabbed my camera before coming down the stairs, and I walk out to the backyard to take some pictures. The first thing I notice upon going through the screen that opens up into the backyard is a pair of clogs hanging on the door of the garden shed. The clogs are the stereotypical wooden clogs that you may think of when you think of Holland, and I am overjoyed to see them here in the backyard.

Rob, Diane, and Jason join me in the backyard. I ask Rob about the clogs and he tells me that those are an old pair of his and that is why they are nailed to the door. His newer pair is sitting on the ground near the backdoor.

We are all sitting on the patio furniture when I notice all of the snails for the first time. I look down to my right and one is right next to me on the bench I am sitting on. I pick him up, and immediately Diane says, "Gross!" I don't mind the snail's slime though, he's really cute. I name him Fred, and take a few photos of him before setting him back down.

The Evening

Rob admits that he did not have time to go grocery shopping before our arrival, which is completely understandable considering he didn't know that Jason and I were coming over until about twelve hours prior to us showing up. We all decide to go to the grocery store together. We buy several things, including Ranch Doritos, which are called "Doritos with Bold American Flavor!" over here. I find this very amusing.

We spend the rest of the evening eating dinner, resting, and watching television before calling it a day.