Insomnia and Amsterdam

Neither the red light district nor a dream

15 January 2013

With a free wireless connection in the hotel room, I finally had time to answer email from a friend I used to work with in the Brain Factory.  We both escaped, traumatized.  We've both been happily employed for three years elsewhere. 

I fell asleep just fine at midnight.  But some time around 3:00 a.m. I found myself wide awake.  This happens every overseas trip, in the neighborhood of one week in. Tonight's bout came early.  My phone, on a was next to the bed, so I decided to check my email.

Bad move.  There were messages from work that I felt compelled to answer, a fire that needed to be put out.  I got myself good and worked up, too, then switched off the screen and turned onto my back. This is what I thought next:

"Fuck me!  I just answered work email at 3:35 a.m.  On fucking vacation."

Note to self:  Don't do that again.

I drifted between not quite asleep and wide awake for the better part of two hours, waking Jack up multiple times in the process as I flopped around like a fish on the deck of a boat.  When the alarm woke us at 7:30 a.m., neither of us was ready to stand up.

But we had a train to catch, so up we got.

With Jack as my witness, I did drink a pitcher of coffee.  On a normal day, as Jack can attest, this will keep me awake until 11:00 p.m.  Today was not a normal day.  When we got back from breakfast, I fell asleep on the bed as Jack showered.

I was out of sorts all day long.  Fortunately for you, dear readers, we had a brief layover in the Antwerp train station, and, although I felt as if I might hurl at any moment, I was able to hold myself upright long enough to get pictures:

Neither the Ghent to Antwerp nor the Antwerp to Amsterdam train rides was scenic, although we did get a few glimpses of wind turbines and green countryside through the rain-soaked windows.

Again it was early evening before we were ready to explore (after a work email-check delay during which I attempted to put out another fire).

The first thing I noticed was that a great number of the great number of cyclists in the city ride the same kind of bike:

This one has two wheel sizes, which isn't the norm, but the frame and handlebar position are typical.  Only about half of the riders have front lights.  None signals turns.  None wears a helmet.  All are twenty-somethings.  Many are talking on their phones.  Some are texting.  It is up to us, the pedestrians, to look both ways and dash across the bike lanes to sidewalk safety.  We walkers need to look out for the ubiquitous trams, too.

This frame might be covered in a decal; I couldn't tell in the dark and rain:

This one was definitely done with a silver marker:

Just plain cool:

First impressions of Amsterdam:

The city center is trying to be the part of London that is trying to be New York.

Red light district: sex workers behind glass looking bored, talking on a cell phone, languidly putting on moves; live lobsters on ice; the faint smell of pot; seedy "seed shops;" bongs in the window; dildos in the window; is that a bong or a dildo?; nobody over the age of 30 on the streets; mist that isn't rain soaking our shoes

The "young" church dates from the 15th century.  The "old" church was built 100 years before that.

The baby doll in the window of the apartment across from our hotel room:

By 11:30 p.m., the day's lab fires had been put out.  If I could blog about work, I would, because it is, in hindsight, amusing.  Oh well.  Y'all will just have to ask me in person.

Tomorrow we have a full day to explore the city.  Friday is the day Jack gives his talk. I'm not sure if I'll stick with him all day or go out exploring on my own,