SLC to Amsterdam & Haarlem, Day 1 & 2; June 16 & 17, 2008

Hello, Everybody!
Here I am in the Netherlands with Shelley!
My plane was over 2 hours late leaving Newark, so I just waited at Shelley's gate to find her at the airport in Amsterdam. Lots easier than expected!
We had to find a red bus #300 to take us out to the town of Haarlem where our hotel was. We had only a 50 euro note to pay the bus fare, so the driver let us ride for free! It was a lovely ride through the countryside and lots of modern metal-and glass towns and the sun was shining and it was glorious! I kept hoping the inspectors would not get on the bus, because we were actually illegal because we did not pay for a ticket and I'm sure the driver would deny ever having spoken to us!
In Haarlem, we got off the bus at the central train station, and Shelley found the street to take us to the center of the old town, where our hotel is. Dragging our suitcases over the cobbled walks, we arrived at the market square after about ten minutes. It is so quaint and cute! Most of the buildings date to before the 1600's when Haarlem used to be a big commerce center for the tulip trade and wool. It has a huge old meat market building with carvings of bulls on the facade and they made leather on the second story.
Our hotel is right on the old market square. It's on the upper stories of an old building. Like all my other hotels, it is cheap and central and nothing special except for the location. It has a view over the red tile rooftops and you can see the church tower lit up at night. The church is huge and old and Flamboyant Gothic, probably dating from the 1500's.
Last night the Netherlands played soccer for the quarter finals in the European cup. All the bars were decorated in orange and full of people watching big-screen TV and shouting and cheering and smoking and drinking. Shelley and I walked around to several and enjoyed the hype.
Today we are taking the train into Amsterdam to take a walking tour. I chose the hotel in Haarlem instead of Amsterdam because I wanted a wholesome atmosphere. This town is quiet and quaint, not like free-wheeling Amsterdam!