Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Heading to Rotterdam and the Novotel
I found out a day before my departure, I would actually be staying in Rotterdam, which is about an hour outside of Amsterdam. The city is the size of Milwaukee, but very different than Milwaukee.
After my arrival into Amsterdam, I was picked up and we headed to Rotterdam. There are hardly any large cars or SUVs on the road. A matter of fact, most of the car makes are not sold in the US. The cars are overwhelmingly compact. GPS seems to be standard in all cars along with a manual transmission. It is hard to tell the difference between street names, city names, etc. It is easy to get lost.
We stayed at the Novotel Brainpark minutes outside Rotterdam, which considers themself a 4-star hotel. The idea of service and quality in the Netherlands is different than the US. This seemed to be more of a 2.5 or 3 star hotel. There were very little extras.
There is no fitness center, gym, pool, etc. Wireless was available, but cost 5 Euros an hour and you had to buy a t-mobile hotspot card to use it. Many times in a day the Internet would go down. The staff didn't think anything about saying "try back tomorrow." They even ran out of Interent cards one day.
There was a free breakfast, but for an American, it would not be too appetizing. The orange juice (same as on my flight) was fresh squeezed and the best OJ ever. Juices and coffee are delivered in very small glasses. Therefore, you end up having several refills. The food of choice seems to be bread, many kinds of bread, with butter, along with cold cuts and cheese.
Luckily, the hotel does have a bar, except we seem to be the only people ever at it. Wine was the cheapest thing on the trip, which you could get for about 4 Euros, which is about 5-6 uS. People do not eat at the bar like we do often in the states. People may order food at the bar, but then it is delviered at the table. The bartenders and waitresses were very nice. There is no tipping in Europe, so to leave a couple Euros is much appreciated. When ordering wine, you must request white and dry, which is usually a chardonnay. This is your safest bet.
Single and 2 Euros are in coins. There are no dollar bills. The smallest bill is 5 Euros.
After my arrival into Amsterdam, I was picked up and we headed to Rotterdam. There are hardly any large cars or SUVs on the road. A matter of fact, most of the car makes are not sold in the US. The cars are overwhelmingly compact. GPS seems to be standard in all cars along with a manual transmission. It is hard to tell the difference between street names, city names, etc. It is easy to get lost.
We stayed at the Novotel Brainpark minutes outside Rotterdam, which considers themself a 4-star hotel. The idea of service and quality in the Netherlands is different than the US. This seemed to be more of a 2.5 or 3 star hotel. There were very little extras.
There is no fitness center, gym, pool, etc. Wireless was available, but cost 5 Euros an hour and you had to buy a t-mobile hotspot card to use it. Many times in a day the Internet would go down. The staff didn't think anything about saying "try back tomorrow." They even ran out of Interent cards one day.
There was a free breakfast, but for an American, it would not be too appetizing. The orange juice (same as on my flight) was fresh squeezed and the best OJ ever. Juices and coffee are delivered in very small glasses. Therefore, you end up having several refills. The food of choice seems to be bread, many kinds of bread, with butter, along with cold cuts and cheese.
Luckily, the hotel does have a bar, except we seem to be the only people ever at it. Wine was the cheapest thing on the trip, which you could get for about 4 Euros, which is about 5-6 uS. People do not eat at the bar like we do often in the states. People may order food at the bar, but then it is delviered at the table. The bartenders and waitresses were very nice. There is no tipping in Europe, so to leave a couple Euros is much appreciated. When ordering wine, you must request white and dry, which is usually a chardonnay. This is your safest bet.
Single and 2 Euros are in coins. There are no dollar bills. The smallest bill is 5 Euros.
Getting to Amsterdam
Flying business class was very interesting. The international terminal itself was interesting. There was no line to check in and a very small amount of folks going through security. The whole international terminal seemed much more laid back and everyone seemed more pleasant. When I checked my bag they wrapped a special yellow tag in the luggage seal, which I learned means I get my luggage first through the baggage claim area, ahead of coach passengers. When I check into the flight, I receive a voucher for the first class lounge that I could visit once I got through security. There seems to be mostly international folks in the terminal, very few Americans. Security did not seem very rushed. There was no line to get to the screening, but there was a little delay getting through x-ray. The security area was very small and compact compared to other domestic terminals.
Once through, I visited the lounge. It is clearly for male business travelers. The flight attendants greet you when you enter and take your voucher. There was a small area with newspapers, mags (none of which I cared for), non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages, and snacks. Beer seemed to be the drink, but there were also several bottles of red and white wine. The white wine was open and in the refrigerator. The red was on the counter next to the food, fresh fruit, dried snacks, mini sandwiches. I helped myself to a small glass of white wine (it appeared to be self serve) and some pretzels.
There was no mingling. Everyone was busy on their laptops or reading. A select few were on their mobiles. The flight attendants informed us the status of the plane and directed us to board when it was ready. Children and families were called first; then, business class and elite members were called. Again, it was a line of business men, but all casually dressed with many wearing jeans, nice shoes, and blazers or jackets.
When arriving upstairs in business class, there were only 24 seats. I sat in the very front aisle seat. The seat next to me was vacant for the trip. I put my bag in the overhead and settled in. For a tall man who needs leg room, this is an optimal seat. The seat had controls that could moved 6+ different locations of the chair. There was a remote that popped out on my left that controlled the light, the attendant call button, a phone, and the television remote. Where a tray table might be on my left was a private flat screen television where you had a choice of over 100 movies and tv shows. The tray table came from my right arm rest. There was a light attached to the top of my chair, including normal lights.
Immediately after seating, I was offered a champagne glass of what appeared to be orange juice. It was the best taking orange juice ever.
Then, the flight attendants handed out headsets immediately as well as a “care” kit with a comb, toothbrush, eye mask, socks (yes, socks), etc., as we watch the map of the world on the screen flashing our flight plan and time zone information.
The bathroom had included scented lotions and special soap. There were 2 bathrooms in the front of our section. I am not sure if there were any behind us. The galley was in the rear of us. We seemed to have 2-3 flight attendants just for the 24 of us.
One immediately handout out a menu with a list of meals and drinks, including a surprising selection of wine and liquors. We were being offered a 3 course meal that included a salad with shrimp appetizer, our choice of 3 possible entrees all appearing gourmet, and desert.
When the appetizer arrived they put a white napkin on your table and set a dining tray on top. It is quite large in that it fills the space on the table, unlike meals served in coach. We had two sets of silverware, one for the appetizer course and one for the dinner. Hot dinner rolls were served as well. The food was very amazing. For an entrée, there was a choice of beef, chicken, or fish, and I chose the beef, a beef spare rib. It was amazingly tender served with mash potatoes and baby carrots. Again, all the food was very gourmet and filling. Finally, we were offered desert which included a cake, fruit bowl, and cordial. I chose the fresh fruit and cognac and passed on the cake. By this time, I was just wrapping up watching “Baby’s Mama” (oh yes) and after a couple sips of cognac, fell asleep. The pillows and blankets are more quality than coach. They were quite comfortable. The chairs did fold down to almost 180 degrees making it easier to sleep than coach, but they still were not comfortable. The chairs are definitely made for a taller man.
As we arrived to Amsterdam and the windows were opened, it was morning (although only 3am in the states). We were able to deplane first and as soon as I got to the luggage carousal my bag was coming out.
Before gaining access to the baggage area, I had to walk through a small gate check-in where I had to show my passport. It was the easiest immigration I had ever seen. When leaving the baggage area, if you are not claiming anything, you can, walk right out into the waiting crowd who are anxiously awaiting their family members with cameras and balloons.
Tips:
Sleep on the plane. When you arrive, it is morning and the day is just starting. Try to get at least 4 hours of sleep on the plane, so you can take part in the activities upon your arrival.
There is a change exchange which is a pretty good rate. You might want to change your money at that time. Hotels usually can only change $100 traveler's check at a time and with the exchange rate and costs of things, you will go through that in no time. Most places do not accept credit cards. There are ATMs though that will give you a good rate as well.
The only starbucks is in the airport in Amsterdam, so make sure to get your latte. Once you leave the airport it is hard to find a coffee shop that serves coffee. Even harder to find a place that serves coffee in something larger than a 3 oz cup.
Car rental is fairly cheap, but only rent a car if you are headed outside of Amsterdam. If staying in Amsterdam, quickly learn how to take the subway (metro). You will need Euros to get a train ticket.
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