,
Do I sense a pattern here?
Have those mischievous Gremlins of Travel Disruption hopped on our tail,
trailing us all the way from Brussels?
We had now been driving around the outskirts of the outskirts of
Overveen for a little more than an hour, and we were nowhere near our long
sought for digs. It was now approaching
dusk, our tummies were grumbling and we were later than late. Hitches, glitches and calamities of the
annoyingly disruptive kind had tripped up this journey from the Get-Go. What else was in the forecast for the
Clueless Duo? So glad you inquired. Looming ominously on the horizon was
inclement weather, sprinkled with a rush of storms and gales, not to mention
wind shear and golf ball sized hail.
Hail? Just wait. More on that later…
 |
| Somewhere in Overveen...but where? |
 |
| Starting out in Haarlem enroute to the Outskirts of somewhere |
Surely Mr. Taxi Driver could speed it up a notch, consult a
map or two and whisk us to our destination.
Was that too much to ask?
Apparently so, for the old chap hadn’t even an inkling as to which
direction to take, let alone go right or left or just continue to spin round
and round in circles, trapped in an endless cycle of confusion and
disorientation. On the road to somewhere
and on the path to nowhere with anticipated arrival at our destination not anytime
soon and most likely never! Should we
just jump on out right now and try our luck at pounding the pavement,
over-burdened luggage in tow? On second
thought, best to stay dry and snug in our snail paced cab, as we had neither
rain boots nor umbrellas and the darkened skies were threatening to unleash a
tsunami of a downpour. Nothing like a deluge
of hail to brighten one’s day! Hail, you
say? Just wait. More on that later…
 |
| Should we bicycle there? Nope. No bike. No helmet. No wheels. No direction. |
So, there we stood.
Two drenched rats pounding furiously on the guesthouse door, hoping
beyond hope that Miss Landlord will take pity and invite us on in. We could only hope and pray that our suite
was still up for grabs and not rented out in haste to travellers of a more
disciplined nature, respectful of check-in and check-out times and who rarely
were late. Yikes! Looks like the welcome mat had been yanked
out from under the gate, as the edifice appeared to be locked down and shut,
with nary a flicker of a light in sight.
Now what?
Do we hail a cab? No
can do, as we haven’t a phone! Do we
embark on a quest to search for another hotel?
Like, seriously? In the middle of
the outskirts of nowhere? Should we hop
back on the train to Amsterdam? A superb
idea if one only knew where exactly the station was located. Even Google and Maps were no help at all, as
WIFI was needed to connect to the Net!
And I had absentmindedly forgotten my handy dandy guidebook, which was
now collecting cobwebs and dust back home on the shelf. Useful or what?
 |
| Almost there!! Where?? In the Outskirts.... |
As luck would have it, whom did we see cycling up the path
but the concierge herself, out on a mission to search for the wayward Canucks.
The rain had temporarily subsided and so out she ventured, her initial fury at
her MIA guests replaced with angst and worry over their disappearance – or was
that non-appearance? And, after
explaining about the hurdles and roadblocks that we had encountered on our
disastrous journey, with forces beyond our control sabotaging our punctual
arrival, our initial misunderstanding now smoothed over and the key to our
palatial digs graciously presented.
 |
| We're finally here!! We hope. Really not sure... |
 |
| Knock. Knock. Anybody home? |
A celebratory feast was now in order – along with an
over-due scrub in the tub – followed with a quick change into dry attire before
scooting out for that much anticipated grub.
The closest eatery was a convenient hop, skip and a jump away, so off we
scampered, oblivious to the ominous rumblings far off in the distance.
A drop. And then
another! And, just like clockwork, the
floodgates burst open…
SPLAT! SPLASH!! DON’T FORGET TO DUCK!!!
Looks like those mischievous gremlins of travel disruption
were up to their hilarious ol’ shenanigans yet once again!
 |
| Hailstorm!! Stuck in pizzeria at least until breakfast. Yikes! |
Splish splash in the bath. Or NOT!
Just jump right into puddles the size of lakes as you dodge gumball
sized hail, and slip slide – or was that paddle? – the next couple of metres
into the closest pub. Pity then, that
the diner we were headed to was closed down and empty, leaving us stranded yet
once again. NOT singing in the
rain. AGAIN? Yep, as expected, we were living proof that
history does, in fact, repeat itself, oftentimes, more than once!
Next blog – In three weeks - Wednesday,
July 27th!!
Stay tuned for the continuation of the
escapades of the Clueless Duo. After
all, there are only a limited number of hours that one can remain sequestered
in pizzeria waiting out the storm. Let’s
hope they don’t run out of vino! The
saga continues, as does the incessant rain…
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| Yikes! They ran out of vino! |
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| Still in pizzeria languishing the evening away |
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| At least we won't go hungry! Pizza! Yum! |
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| Will the rain ever end??? And the wind....so much for a focused pic |
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