Sounds like a good time!

I will be looking for your review of Paris, as that is on next year's list (first time)

Your Hairless Nut Friend
LML

Me too, get going Pal

Sounds great, would love to hear about the night train to Venice, where did you catch it from. Heading to Europe Nov 2013 and thought train would be good for kids (7 & 10).

Hey man, I left my Let's Go Anywhere in a Ute hostile in Amsterdam in 1969. If you find it, send me a brainwave. Peace and over and out.

It could have been Ibiza. They say that with like a spitting sound.

Or it could have been London. I really don;t remember.

I don't think many who live in Europe have called Eurostar the Chunnel train since about the mid 90's.

Did you really make this trip or is this some kind of put-on similar to what justwishin gives us in the Lounge? I'm asking sincerely, I honestly can't tell if you are serious or merely fooling around on a boring day.

LL what part of "TGV Train to Paris - ah gay Pare" did you think was serious....?

PalenQ, far to few smiley faces and exclamation points to make this a great thread, I also think you missed towing a 'fridge with you the whole way.

LoungeLizardwaa - yes I just did this trip but yes I am being a bit tongue in cheek about it so it may seem faux. It will not be your average trip report.

Really LoungLizard, I thought this was real. Wow, what a bummer. You must be the center of fun at funerals.

Pal..the old saying.."you can take the boy out of Central Michigan, but you can never take Central Michigan out of the boy!!" Small town humor will never be understood by big city folks. Give 'em hell, Palenky-man!
stu

and remember, "whatever plays in the old time Roscommon barbershop, stays in Roscommon."

Hey, I was born and live in the biggest of cities. Ususlly I only get UP humor though.

tower - thanks for the encouragement! Shave and a haircut two bits!

Song birds - did you perhaps go to London earlier in the year in the past? Or maybe you spent less time in the parks this time.

ARRIVING - AMSTERDAM SCHIPHOL

Always like landing in Amsterdam - kind of like going home to a city I have visited for many years and previously spent a lot of time on business in. And Schiphol is such a neat airport - a perpetual favorite in polls of passengers.

I have various traditions like when landing at Schiphol regardless of time of day I always have a Heineken, a tin straight from the supermarket near the Customs exit - and I always sit outside on the plaza in front of the train station, no matter how cold or rainy and welcome myself back to Holland with a Heinie.

And getting into Amsterdam from the airport is a snap - but I was heading not to Amsterdam but to my cozy and cheap B&B in nearby Haarlem - to get there I hopped the express public bus - a bus that rolls like a train largely on a dedicated right of way most of the way. Yup a tram without wheels!

Customs are always a breeze at Schiphol - never been stopped or even acknowledged going thru. Stamp my passport upon entering the Schengen Countries and bam on my way. For Amsterdam the trains are just a few steps from the Customs exit - there is an ATM smack outside Customs too - not having to hunt and peck for ones like in some airports that seem to hide them and only have regular bank exchanges outside Customs (with lower rates than ATMs, always IME the best way of changing money - no need to change at home like in the US with terrible exchange rates always it seems - just wait until landing and head for an ATM - never fails.

Tot Ziens - next my cozy B&B in Haarlem and a bit about Haarlem, a great day or half-day trip from Amsterdam if you are not staying in Haarlem itself - one of the nicest oldest-looking Dutch regional towns - yes Dutch as opposed to a very cosmopolitan Amsterdam where in the tourist center English does seem to be the Lingua Franca.

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/amsterdam-my-favorite-things.cfm

Another thread I am working on about Amsterdam, combining things from my many many trips there.

It's not Customs, unless you're declaring something. It's Immigration.

http://www.botbedbreakfast.com/bed-breakfast-rooms.asp

Anyone looking for a great small family-run B&B in nearby Haarlem may want to look at the Bot family's B&B in the heart of Haarlem, lovingly set on a canal in this neat old regional town - I love day tripping into Amsterdam for the day and much of the night but I love coming back to quiet Haarlem for the night and the friendly environs of the Bot B&B - 40 euros for a single room with unlimited buffet breakfast - clean and safe and you will never ever touch this price in Amsterdam itself - even place much more costly may not be so nice!

Haarlem is just a 20-minute train ride from Amsterdam but in many ways is a world away from cosmopolitan Amsterdam where in the touristed city centre English seems to be the lingua francs!

It's not Customs, unless you're declaring something. It's Immigration.>

tisk tisk!

Well I think it is really Immigration first then Customs (Douanes on the sign you pass thru to finally get out I think means Customs but you know how dicey my French is!

There are bored looking Customs (Douaniers) sitting watching folks as they finally clear Customs - and they do pull folks over for baggage searches - is that not Customs?

tsk, tsk!

More, please!

PalenQ
I have been reading all of your trip reports and you seem to travel a lot and it seems that you go from city to city quickly. I was going to ask you to look at topic I posted along with the two itineraries I made after thinking about what people had said. But then I saw you had looked at it, and all you said was ttt??

ttt for marking for later comment - I'll look it up and thanks for the nice words!