In order to leave London with COSMOS, we had to have our luggage outside our doors by 6:30am and be on the bus by 8:25. We rode the comfortable COSMOS bus through the beautiful and lush English countryside. Our ride lasted about 2 hours and took us to the Dover Port where the ferry would take us to France. The Dover Port is directly under the amazing Cliffs of Dover which are adorned by magnificent castles. As recommended by an English man who was working at the port, we found our way to the top deck of the ferry, at about 5 minutes out, to take a picture of a castle on the chalky cliffs.
When we arrived at the Dover Port we had to wait an hour and a half in order for the ferry to be available to board. Once on the ferry, every amenity needed was at our disposal (food, drink, atm, money exchange, shopping…). On the ferry, Dusty and I enjoyed a Shepard’s pie with chips (French fries). The pie was absolutely delicious!! Grandpa, mom and Rachel enjoyed a couple of drinks from one of the bars on board…prices for food and drink were not too expensive and the quality was very nice.
We arrived at the port in Calais, France where we then transferred to a coach for our drive to Amsterdam. In Calais we met our COSMOS tour guide, Attila. Attila, come to find out, is from Hungary!! He could not believe that there were Americans on his tour, that lived in Hungary; and we could not believe that we had a Hungarian tour guide! In addition, in Calais, each person had to identify their luggage and wheel it to their coach in order to assure that everyone’s luggage went with them!
We passed through France and then Belgium. Belgium is beautiful with its lush green fields, quaint homes and barns, and pastures covered with livestock. The COSMOS tour stopped at the border between Belgium and the Netherlands for dinner. The restaurant, AC Restaurant, was extremely over-priced. The food however, was very tasty! Dusty and I enjoyed a salad, meatballs with French fries and delicious custard for desert. After dinner our drive to Amsterdam continued. The total road-time was about 3 hours.
Once in Amsterdam, we were taken to our hotel, NH Hotel. Attila assisted everyone in getting their keys, by handing them out himself. Everyone found their rooms, and our luggage was brought to our hallways, and each person found their luggage.
The NH Hotel in Amsterdam is gorgeous! The rooms are dark wood with red accents, and have a 1920’s vibe. The shampoo and body wash smelled heavenly! The bar soaps are glycerin and smell of fresh oranges. The beds are very comfortable, and the rooms are very clean. The NH Hotel also provides hair dryers, irons, and an ironing board.
Side note-Wi-Fi is available at a cost, 4.95 Euros for 60 minutes. There was also a Wi-Fi lounge where internet was available for free, after receiving the password from the front desk. Rachel and Grandpa had no problem using the Wi-Fi, however the password I received did not work.
Tomorrow will include a sight-seeing tour of Amsterdam, and then a drive to Germany where we will have dinner!
Something that I have not mentioned about preparing for our COSMOS Best of Europe Tour is that as a family, we went over the itinerary books, which we purchased from COSMOS, in great detail
Nincsenek megjegyzések:
Megjegyzés küldése