Saturday 7 May - Rotterdam

Yes, yes. I know I had intended to go to Amsterdam, but the price of hotels there is ridiculous and on reading about the city and doing some research on the Netherlands generally, Rotterdam appealed to me more. And I got a great deal on a 4-star hotel (even cheaper than the hostel/hotel I'd been staying at in Cologne).

Took some pics from the room balcony of the garden, and it's lovely to hear all the birds and he ducks.

Went for a wander in the rain (it's really light and you can still get around in it - not like the deluges we get in Melbourne). Seems I'm right across the road to the centre for shops, cafes, bars, clubs and generally pretty much most of the 'life' around town.

Then in the other direction I'm also close to all the museums, and off another direction isn't all that far from the docks area. So all-in-all I think I picked good again. Gotta love the Laterooms.com website. i've been using the to book accommodation all along.

Found a great little bar to sit and have a beer and an excellent salad - old art nouveau pub with different levels for seating areas. Frankfurt has a quite nice feeling to it - vibrant and alive, though I think that may have something to do with the fact there's construction work going on on a fairy big scale right as you come out of central station, so the first impression you get is of new things emerging.

Well off to explore the museums today - tomorrow afternoon I'll be meeting up with Dawny from OL which will be delightful.

Oh yes, I bought another mobile phone when in Cologne to replace the one with the cracked screen. Its good to just have that level of connectivity with the world.

I'll update this in the next few days.

Message for Vanessa if you're reading this. Thanks for the email. I wouldn't have noticed I'd left the pin there (at the Hard Rock Cafe) until I got home and unpacked. I've replied and given you my address.

Message for Zeb. I'll be home on the 19th and I'll be jet lagged, grumpy and tired and desperate for a cup of tea. A hug would be lovely too. Plane gets in at 6:15pm and I'll get the airport bus and a cab home.