Utrecht

Spent a grand time with Kate in Utrecht.  She’s lived here for a year and has a lovely spot on the canal in town.  We met up with yet another expat Alaskan, Sara, and listened to Bach and ate rijsttafel.  Amsterdam is noted for its Indonesian food.  Yum.

I continued touristing by hitting Haarlem.  The Church of St. Bavo (yeah, I had to look him up to) has an amazing organ.  I wish I had been here in the summer so I could have heard it.  Instead I heard Crocodile Dundee’s voice saying, “that’s not a knife…”  Seriously, it’s a HUGE organ.  Went to the Frans Hals Museum too.  I like those Golden Age paintings.

I played in our backyard by climbing the Dom Tower in Utrecht and taking pictures of Kate’s roof.  At 417 steps, it wasn’t the hardest climb I’ve done.  Very pretty though.  And they have an interesting collection of bells.  In a nod to the modern they have a carillon player one hour on Saturdays who is allowed to play any tune she wishes.  She’d been known to work in the Rolling Stones and Lady Gaga.  Love it.

And now the great zigzag begins (I know, I know…I’ve been bounding around to so many places, but now I have to plan a bit more carefully).  My rail pass runs out today.  So I am back where I started on my very first trip to Europe – a train in Switzerland.  It’s taking me to the Geneva airport, so I can fly off to Malta.  Time for a little sun and, well, more archaeology.  I’ll report back.