Netherlands 2004 - Day 8
Scott Andrew Bird
July 6, 2004
Leiden -> Amsterdam -> Edinburgh
The trip home is always a little anticlimactic, and I felt a combination of sadness and relief - I'd finally be able to sort through photos from the trip, which was largely the reason for its existence.
Early as always, I found myself arriving at Schiphol several hours before the flight, and checked in within minutes using KLM's automatic check in machines. As with everything else in the airport (and many aspects of the country in general) - the machines are fast and efficient. Once a boarding pass was sitting happily in my pocket it was time to do a little duty-free window shopping; the prices of larger items aren't all that wonderful, if you're prepared to spend a little time doing comparison shopping in the city itself. After spending what felt like several hours just looking in shops and wandering about the airport (Schiphol is massive), I headed to the gate to wait for the flight. This is the part of the airport that shows up any signs of stress a soon-to-be passenger has; almost as much as passport control. I keep forgetting that my passport photo (taken 8 years ago) has me with long blond hair, glasses and a beard - dark hair, no specs and clean shaven is always enough to get stared at for a while.
The flight itself was uneventful, with the sole exception of a man a few rows in front trying to act nonchalant as liquid began dripping from his overhead luggage onto his seat. His attempts to remain cool seemed to attract a good deal of attention anyway as passengers began to point to the leak, presumably wondering if it was something critical and indicating imminent disaster. Fortunately it was just his luggage.
Now begins the task of sorting through the several thousand photos I managed to take during the week. Should keep me busy for a while - probably until the next trip.
Portobello, Edinburgh (2004)
Cramond, Edinburgh (2004)
The Netherlands (2004)
Holyrood Park (2004-2005)