Europe – “Riding the Rails” – To Amsterdam (4)

The day started off so well. We had a nice breakfast at Le Pain Quotidien, taxis were waiting right outside our hotel to whisk us to the train station, and, we easily found our train information. The train came on time; we were off to Malines, where we would change trains.

We arrived in Malines on time, found our platform for the train to Amsterdam Centraal. It arrived right on time, and, we boarded. We were seated, but then I noticed the train number did not match my information. Grabbing our bags to rush off, the conductor just looked at me and said, “too late, we are already moving.” This was all in a five-minute time span. Even though we were in the right place at the right time, we were still on the wrong train. So, we were off to Antwerp. Arriving in Antwerp (at least it was in the right direction), we checked the departures board, confirming the next Amsterdam departure, and we bought a few snacks as we had about 45 minutes.

We kept our eyes on the departures board, and, then instead of a platform number staying up, *** appeared next to the platform slot with the words “rijdt vandaag niet.” Watching the board and I guess, waiting for divine intervention to let us know what that meant, we stared at it for a while. When nothing happened, it was time for the cell phone asking for a translation, which quickly came up “does not run today.”

Back to the departures board to check out any other options, and, yes, there was another train, but, it required reservations. Time was getting short, and, by the time I found the ticket office and stood in line (and would you believe as it was my turn, the ticket official closed her window!, so, it was back to waiting). Eventually I got the reservations and back to Steve who is texting me asking if we will make this train. By now we had 10 minutes to get to the platform. But we did it, and, we finally arrived in Amsterdam Centraal mid-afternoon.

Amsterdam Centraal is huge! Just getting out of the station was a challenge. Fortunately our hotel was across the street, although across the street is further than one would think. We checked into the Park Plaza Victoria once we found the entrance and got to our room only to not have our keys work, plus, getting to the room was a take one elevator, get off and walk down a hallway and take another elevator scenario.

After getting situated, we walked to the Hilton and went to the Sky Lounge.

The views were spectacular, the waiter helpful (and cute), the music upbeat. This may be the hippest place in town!

The evening ended with dinner at a small charming restaurant on a charming street. We could not have asked for a better end to a long and frustrating day. Perhaps there was divine intervention after all.