day eight: paris / amsterdam

Not much in Paris today. We were up very early to grab the VERY expensive traditional cold buffet in the hotel restaurant. The "American Hot Buffet", which included eggs and meats (not for us of course), was an additional 6 euros a piece. We got quite full on wonderful breads and couissants, fruits, cereal, juice, and some of the best hot chocolate ever (made with dark chocolate)! We then checked out and took the Metro to Gare du Nord, the train station where we depart for Amsterdam.

The sun finally poked out of the clouds as our train left the station, but then stayed behind clouds till we arrived in Amsterdam. The trip was comfortable and very smooth and we both managed a couple brief cat-naps. In the 4 hours we cruised through lovely sheep-filled country-side and made very brief stops in Brussels, Antwerp, Rotterdam, and The Hague before reaching the end of the line at Centraal Station.

We were off the train and on on atram towards our studio flat in under 15 minutes. We arrived and were met by Dennis who let us in and welcomed us from the to top of the 1st flight of the steepest steps we have ever laid eyes on. We had 3 flights to climb to get to our week-long home. After settling, we...

• Head down all three impossibly steep flights of stairs and hit the streetmarket right outside the front door.
• We found a MAOZ falafel shop very near the studio. FINALLY chips/fries with curry sauce. YUM!
  
• We took a little tour of the immediate neighborhood and did some grocery shopping for basic supplies. We got food for some meals in the studio as well as a couple treats for Christmas morning since there would be no coffee cake.
  
• Dinner was soup, salad, and bread in the studio with a little music on the iPod travel speakers.
• We watched a little television (CNN International) and then CRASHED.

We are here for a while so we are going to take it a little easier and hope Robin's cold improves.

Gavin