A few months after the Summer of 2015
From the time I received that call from my boss, telling me I might have to fly to Amsterdam on a short-term assignment, my mind had already begun conceiving this post. Occasionally, I would daydream about how I would write it. I would imagine myself sitting at a not-so-crowded cafe by the sidewalk, overlooking a canal, watching Dutch people cycle by and a gorgeous waiter would bring me coffee, while this post was coming to life on my laptop.
Though all the other things happened, I never got to actually writing while I was there. I am fully aware that I cannot contain all the wonderful sights, taste and feel of Amsterdam in a single post or in actual words. But what I’m about to do is to try and chronicle my select memories from the trip. Ready?
The One with the walk around Rotterdam.
Those days a luxury cruise ship was harbored at the port of Rotterdam, which our client office had a good view of. She was called the ‘Harmony of the Seas’. We happened to visit Rotterdam on the day she was setting sail, after a few days of being anchored, preparing for her next cruise. Our incredibly friendly client — Mr. M Van Der Graaf, proposed to take us (me and colleague D) on a walking tour of the city. So, after grabbing our free ice cream cones at the sample booth, we set out to explore. Rotterdam was a city built from a burnt down— much like a Phoenix city. Unlike AMS with its old charming buildings, Rotterdam has relatively newer buildings and very modern architecture, but in nooks and crannies, you catch a sudden glimpse of history that takes you back in time. M took us to his favorite cafe, and we had a nice glass of iced tea, beer and orange juice respectively, in the warmth of hot coals, overlooking his favorite canal. He talked about his family, his childhood, describing what it was like to grow up in Rotterdam and we nodded along, enjoying the banter and his pleasant company. Later we climbed up the Euro Mast, which has a revolving top that gives a 360-degree view of the city with an amazing history of the evolution of this port town. We walked through the parks, the medical college, old ports, new ports, wooden bridges, a huge indoor market and the architecturally intriguing yellow cube houses. When M asked me what my favorite cuisine was, I said ‘Italian’ very promptly. So, he took us out for pizzas in the evening after we watched the ‘Harmony of the Seas’ towing off to her new destination.
The One with the missed train.
On the last weekend of the trip, me and long-time school friend J, who was studying in Germany, planned to meet up. Few more people grouped in, and J made elaborate plans for all of us to meet at Munich. I was to leave office at around 5 PM, on Friday, catch a train to Aachen, meet up with J and friends and then board the overnight train to Munich. The stay was arranged, tickets were booked and an itinerary charted out. I decided to reach Aachen from Amsterdam by first taking a connecting train via Brussels. Our train to Munich was booked for 11 PM. For some fateful reason I reached Brussels station at 8.30 PM which I already knew was pretty late, as I ran towards the information center. The officer in-charge was closing for the day. He told me in broken English, that all trains have already departed, that there were no more trains to Germany or even back to Netherlands and the next train was only at 6 in the morning, next day. My heart sank. I fished out my phone to inform J about this disaster and saw that it had run out of battery. I ran around looking for a place to charge my phone only to realize that I forgot to bring my two-pin converter. I felt completely lost at this point and I sat down on the steps to take a minute to fully panic, fighting back tears. After 10 minutes, I pulled myself together and walked out of the station. I had exactly €400 with me for my last weekend in Europe, perfectly planned and yet so utterly ruined now. Next thing to do was to find a place to stay the night. I looked around and saw Hilton and Marriott. I walked back into the station and tried talking to a couple of tourists who told me that I could find more affordable places to spend the night at Brussels Midi. I took a tram to Midi and just as I got down, it started to rain. At this point there was not a single thing that could make the night more depressing. I walked around a bit and chose an artsy-looking hotel, which charged €60 for a night. Also, bought a converter from a vending machine I spotted on the way. It was already 11 PM when I finally got a call through to a very concerned J. J and friends had to leave for Munich without me. I decided I would go back to AMS the next morning. I bought myself burger and fries from a 24/7 restaurant across the street and went to sleep, extremely sad about my wasted weekend.
The next morning as I packed up to leave, I remembered vaguely that my old roommate S from Bangalore was currently living in Brussels. I have no idea how I remembered this trivial fact, but I logged into Facebook and messaged her. She saw my message and responded almost immediately. She gave me the directions to her home. I thought I would pay her a short visit and head back to AMS. She was super hospitable and welcoming. Her house was basically a building rooftop, and it was too lovely and gorgeous for words. She made me feel comfortable in her home and let me tag along with her gang for the European Commission fair. After a whole day of sightseeing Brussels, eating Belgian waffles and truffle butters, evening come, we settled in for some TV and a nostalgic home-cooked Indian meal. The next day, S suggested that I take a one-day trip to Bruges.
So, I embarked on my first ever solo European trip to Bruges, mildly excited, not knowing what lay ahead.
When I stepped down at Bruges, I had stepped back in time. Literally, I had to step back onto the pavement to let a horse-drawn carriage pass by. This ancient preserved breathtakingly beautiful town called Bruges, mesmerized me like no other place did. I walked around the city, visiting all the stars on the map. Towards the end of the day, this city had charmed me so much and I was high on happiness. It felt like my entire 3-month long Europe trip culminated to bringing me to lovely Bruges. I returned to AMS completely satisfied having collected memories for a lifetime.
Epilogue:
I thank God for giving me this unexpected travel opportunity at the most unexpected of times, when I needed it the most (God knows). And to my readers, I would leave this message — Life may seem to disappoint you at times, but have faith :)
Gallery:
Bruxelles
Markt, Bruges
By the river, Brugge
