On the ground ...
dateline -- amsterdam ... (2:47 pm local time)
first of all ...
ARRRRGGGHHHHHHHH!
what a fucking day ...
I have to admit ... the trip got off to a rough start ... but thanks to a joint full of the rookies specialty the world is once again a better place ...
it started beautifully! it was sunny and warm when I left my place wednesday morning at 7 am. that wasn't the case in new york city (where I not only got soaked, but I also took a little tour of the new york subway system). once I found my sister, it was all good. nice pizza lunch near her new digs and then it was back off into the tunnels on my way to jfk. breezed through the aer lingus ticketing couter and heading straight to the sam adams bar where I grabbed some summer ales (3:15 pm), and thanks to the idiot bartender, I only had to pay for one. Then it gets a little hairy. The plane was late ... there was a Kuwait Air Cargo plane in our gate until about 5:30 pm. Um, our flght was supposed to leave at 6! Needless to say, we were about an hour late getting in the air. and I even got yelled at by the flight steward because you arenot supposed to video tape the crew at all. he wasn't pissed , he just wanted me to get the message, I really had idea idea, and everything was fine from there.
once in the air it was BUMPY for about the 1st two hours. this is about the time that I started worrying about missing my connection in Dublin (I think you can see where this is going). They did show the family guy on the plane, which is a positive! and I heard the funniest cabin announcement ever. the dude gets on and says something to the effect of, "Ladies and Gentlemen, could you please refrain from drinking your own alcohol on the flight, please only drink beverages purchased from the bar car." HAHAHAHAHAHA ... silly irish! the guy next me realized what I was laughing at and proceeded to take a swig of his pint of jameson (this guy was about 60, mind you!) there was also close to a full moon during the night portionof the flight, which was sweet, but I didn't have any kind of angle for picture, which was a bummer.
amazingly, we get to dublin on time (5:40 am local time), but I am held up in passport hell. at about 6:10, this aerlingus guy comes running around the corner looking for adam littlefield, and I am rushed through the passport line and to my gate. My flight was supposed to leave at 6:10, but this guy told me the flight was still there. and it was! but the freakin door was closed and they wouldn't let me on!!!! (this is not a joke) silly irish
by the way, i forgot to mention that it was about 8 celcius when we landing in ireland, that's about 45 degrees, and I was in shorts and a t-shirt, and it was one of those deals where they brought the steps out to the plane and you had to physically go outside to get to the airport (sweet!)
the next flight to amsterdam was at 9:20, so I had three hours to kill in dublin airport. if I had known that I was going to have that kind of time, I would planned an excursion into the city for a pint or two, but without and planning, there was no way I was leaving that airport, I wasn't missing another flight.
and of course .. the new flight was delayed as well!
So I finally got to amsterdam at about 12:05 pm local time, a full FOUR HOURS after I was supposed to. but now I am here, and after a little trouble finding the hostel, I'm settling in and things are starting to come back to me.
I cant believe the construction that is going on in this city. it is everywhere, and it's weird because it's like they are upgrading the city, but all at the same time. like, they are putting in real roads,instead of the cobblestone that is everywhere. anyone who has been here will know what I am talking. I would imagine that this is a major major type of project that is going to take years and years to complete. it's still awesome though.
as far as the world cup goes, the atmosphere is everyhwhere in this city, every shop, every bar, is decked out in orange, I am amazed. the satelitte sports cafe which is right around corner from where I am staying, is showingthe last three world cup finals on a continuous loop tonigt, I think I know what I am doing tonight! It seems like a lot of people are wearing their colors (lots of england jersey's), so I had to bust out my USA kit. I definitely stick out now, but it also helps because any american that sees me says something to me. probably a good way to meet people. plenty more to do today ...
fill you in tomorrow ...
first of all ...
ARRRRGGGHHHHHHHH!
what a fucking day ...
I have to admit ... the trip got off to a rough start ... but thanks to a joint full of the rookies specialty the world is once again a better place ...
it started beautifully! it was sunny and warm when I left my place wednesday morning at 7 am. that wasn't the case in new york city (where I not only got soaked, but I also took a little tour of the new york subway system). once I found my sister, it was all good. nice pizza lunch near her new digs and then it was back off into the tunnels on my way to jfk. breezed through the aer lingus ticketing couter and heading straight to the sam adams bar where I grabbed some summer ales (3:15 pm), and thanks to the idiot bartender, I only had to pay for one. Then it gets a little hairy. The plane was late ... there was a Kuwait Air Cargo plane in our gate until about 5:30 pm. Um, our flght was supposed to leave at 6! Needless to say, we were about an hour late getting in the air. and I even got yelled at by the flight steward because you arenot supposed to video tape the crew at all. he wasn't pissed , he just wanted me to get the message, I really had idea idea, and everything was fine from there.
once in the air it was BUMPY for about the 1st two hours. this is about the time that I started worrying about missing my connection in Dublin (I think you can see where this is going). They did show the family guy on the plane, which is a positive! and I heard the funniest cabin announcement ever. the dude gets on and says something to the effect of, "Ladies and Gentlemen, could you please refrain from drinking your own alcohol on the flight, please only drink beverages purchased from the bar car." HAHAHAHAHAHA ... silly irish! the guy next me realized what I was laughing at and proceeded to take a swig of his pint of jameson (this guy was about 60, mind you!) there was also close to a full moon during the night portionof the flight, which was sweet, but I didn't have any kind of angle for picture, which was a bummer.
amazingly, we get to dublin on time (5:40 am local time), but I am held up in passport hell. at about 6:10, this aerlingus guy comes running around the corner looking for adam littlefield, and I am rushed through the passport line and to my gate. My flight was supposed to leave at 6:10, but this guy told me the flight was still there. and it was! but the freakin door was closed and they wouldn't let me on!!!! (this is not a joke) silly irish
by the way, i forgot to mention that it was about 8 celcius when we landing in ireland, that's about 45 degrees, and I was in shorts and a t-shirt, and it was one of those deals where they brought the steps out to the plane and you had to physically go outside to get to the airport (sweet!)
the next flight to amsterdam was at 9:20, so I had three hours to kill in dublin airport. if I had known that I was going to have that kind of time, I would planned an excursion into the city for a pint or two, but without and planning, there was no way I was leaving that airport, I wasn't missing another flight.
and of course .. the new flight was delayed as well!
So I finally got to amsterdam at about 12:05 pm local time, a full FOUR HOURS after I was supposed to. but now I am here, and after a little trouble finding the hostel, I'm settling in and things are starting to come back to me.
I cant believe the construction that is going on in this city. it is everywhere, and it's weird because it's like they are upgrading the city, but all at the same time. like, they are putting in real roads,instead of the cobblestone that is everywhere. anyone who has been here will know what I am talking. I would imagine that this is a major major type of project that is going to take years and years to complete. it's still awesome though.
as far as the world cup goes, the atmosphere is everyhwhere in this city, every shop, every bar, is decked out in orange, I am amazed. the satelitte sports cafe which is right around corner from where I am staying, is showingthe last three world cup finals on a continuous loop tonigt, I think I know what I am doing tonight! It seems like a lot of people are wearing their colors (lots of england jersey's), so I had to bust out my USA kit. I definitely stick out now, but it also helps because any american that sees me says something to me. probably a good way to meet people. plenty more to do today ...
fill you in tomorrow ...
posted by littles: at 9:22 AM
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