At the end of my last post M and I were sitting down to breakfast in the town square of Harlaam. This was a Monday and a national holiday in the Netherlands. Since the plant was closed we extended our weekend together.

We had planned to pass through Amsterdam on the way back home, so we saved our "tourist" shopping for the last day. That way we didn't have to lug around all the things we were buying for our families back in the States. We stashed our luggage in a train station locker (7 fricking Euros! For three hours!) and we went shopping. Well we spent a ton of money and it was worth every cent for the times we had and the memories we made together.

It kind of sucked that I had to work the week before and after this weekend, but we spent a bunch of time together and had a lot of fun.

After that M jumped back on a plane and headed home. Oh one small fiasco to report. Upon flying over to Europe we had been told we could take one checked bag and we could check two for free on the way back. During M's two weeks they changed that. No she had to pay for the second bag. She only had a few Euros on her and her debit card had not been authorized to be used in Europe. The second bag was all the items we had bought in Amsterdam.

Since I had dropped her off at the airport I didn't know any of this. So she tried to call me, on my cell phone, but forgot to dial the country prefix. Finally she got through to me and I had to turn around and haul butt back to the airport.

That little black car in the pictures is NOT meant to be driven that fast (130-150 kph) but I made it back in time to hand M a wad of cash and for her to make her flight.

Well I have to get back to work here soon. I'll write some more in the near future.

I'm Alive... So Far...