(From Brian and Lindsay)
Friday was an expensive morning. We checked out of Nixe Palace (and found out about the 15 per day parking fee), drove to airport (found out that our quoted rental price excluded all kinds of taxes and airport fees that we had to pay) and flew to Amsterdam (where everything became much more expensive). In good news we quickly found that we were in Futbol Country!! By the time we had collected our bags from the airport and piled onto the train it was clear that Holland soccer support was everywhere!
Everywhere we looked there were fans in orange, airport signs about the team, endless discussion of the game that was about to start, etc. HUP HOLLAND! “Hup Holland” would likely translate to “Go Holland” and it’s their national cheer. We embraced it and said it constantly (side note – this actually hasn’t stopped since our return so if you are at the Hampton Household don’t be alarmed if you year one of us yell “Hup” at a random time). In Amsterdam our hotel was very close to the main train station so we had an easy time traveling from the airport and getting checked in.
We settled into a hotel room that was about the size of our second bedroom at home and set out to find somewhere to watch the Holland vs Brasil game. One of the guys wearing orange on the train had said that Dam Plaza was the place that 10,000 fans were expected to turn out for the game so we set out straight for the Plaza. The guy on the train was wrong, though the street performer in the plaza did have about 25 people standing around him. Not seeing any substantial flow of foot traffic on the move to a similar location or hearing any nearby roars of 10,000 Hollanders, we decided to pop into a bar and accept a smaller crowd for our Dutch viewing experience. Of course most of the bars were packed so we finagled a couple of seats at the largest place we could find until halftime and then found a bar with just a little space for us to watch the 2nd half.
It just so happened to be the hottest day of the year so far with plenty of humidity to go with it. We asked around and confirmed that it is not normally that hot. This was the kind of weather that would lead a person to shower and change clothes every few hours. The bar might have had air conditioning but it wasn't apparent at all. The place was just about packed so air or not we were going to be sweating with the locals while watching the game. Holland came back against super-power Brasil to win which led to some chants and songs from the locals that appeared very well rehearsed. The bartender actually had songs ready up to play at various points of the game. Afterward there was a lot of honking and cheering in the streets which would continue throughout the evening. Finally, the futbol experience we’d been looking for!
We settled into a hotel room that was about the size of our second bedroom at home and set out to find somewhere to watch the Holland vs Brasil game. One of the guys wearing orange on the train had said that Dam Plaza was the place that 10,000 fans were expected to turn out for the game so we set out straight for the Plaza. The guy on the train was wrong, though the street performer in the plaza did have about 25 people standing around him. Not seeing any substantial flow of foot traffic on the move to a similar location or hearing any nearby roars of 10,000 Hollanders, we decided to pop into a bar and accept a smaller crowd for our Dutch viewing experience. Of course most of the bars were packed so we finagled a couple of seats at the largest place we could find until halftime and then found a bar with just a little space for us to watch the 2nd half.
It just so happened to be the hottest day of the year so far with plenty of humidity to go with it. We asked around and confirmed that it is not normally that hot. This was the kind of weather that would lead a person to shower and change clothes every few hours. The bar might have had air conditioning but it wasn't apparent at all. The place was just about packed so air or not we were going to be sweating with the locals while watching the game. Holland came back against super-power Brasil to win which led to some chants and songs from the locals that appeared very well rehearsed. The bartender actually had songs ready up to play at various points of the game. Afterward there was a lot of honking and cheering in the streets which would continue throughout the evening. Finally, the futbol experience we’d been looking for!
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