h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Not that thing didn't go wrong before I got back but it seems to be more superfluous and irritating when things go wrong when you're at home.
So wednesday evening around half past nine in the evening I rang the frontdoor bell of my dad's house after a good days trip through Flanders Belgium. I had spent most of the late afternoon and early evening in the company of a young family of five. The parents had decided to sell their family car because their three kids were getting spoiled and discontented when taken out on a trip it. Whilst the mother, sitting on a chair in the garden, explained the reason for the sale of the car, I could watch the father cooking the evening meal in the kitchen and the kids stuffing themselves with the chocolate cookies that were laid out on the table in honour of the unexpected guest, ME taking advantage of the momentarily lack of attention by their parents. I declined their invitation to stay for dinner which was a hard thing to do since I was starving and well lets face it, I didn't get invited to stay for dinner in France as much as I would have fancied. I got asked to participate in a boozer many a time, but food NO!
So I left the carles but beautiful Flemish home in the conviction that everything is well in the world, and golly was I glad to be less then twenty kilometres from home.
Anyway, as soon as I entered my dad's house, my stepmum went to the kitchen and got out all the goodies and put them into a bag to take home with her. I got a glimps of cheese, mars bars, and gourmet desserts. My dad was downstairs in the flat, busy bringing in my lugagge. I exchanged courtesies with my stepmum in the kitchen while she stuffed her goodies in her bag and related one of the more outrageous adventures that had happened to me in France like spending an evening at a Gendarmerie where my fingerprints were taken for I was being accussed of trying to con the patron of a bar out of two beers and three packets of Marlboro I'm innocent, off course.
I noticed how bad she looked, huge bags under her eyes. I haven't talked to her since. She left half an hour later and I haven't talked to her since. I have the clear impression she's angry with me.
Next day I logged in on H2G2 and first things first, I searched out my old friends to say 'hello'. And, damn it, I found out that I forgot again how to spell 'off course'. I have looked it up in the dictionary one hundred times in the past and for some obscure reason I subsequently forget it again. I'm fed up with it, from now on I spell 'off course' as 'off course'. And yes, from next thursday on the dutch spelling of words is going to change again and I can't be bothered with that anymore as well. Just fuck it.
The good thing is my dad bought a brand new computer, everything I've written on the old one has been neatly transported to the new one. No problem there. So this evening I opened a nice story with the wish to add some more information and put it into PR. So the new computer asked me to store it into another programme because it doesn't have Windows '96 and so I did. Guess what, everything is lost apart from some odd sentence here and there.
I flew into a rage. Calmed down I rummaged through the drawers of the desk and ... found the notes I took. Now I have to start all over again.

what an adventerious week! hope it is more this week.

Hwadd blucjishic kmso;chkfdjfkdowe, dkjfkiwoo ldood ....kdkjfdowkjkjlsdkfiesls. ..... djfdjijeooeijkdm..... dieoojkdjksie. ....
I've must have overlooked that bit of delicacy ... found it this morning ... amongst the last pieces of clothing in the luggage ... that needs to be washed. I was looking for my hiking boots as well. It's getting colder I need to wear warmer socks and I can't wear those in my pumps ... Well, well, well. What a trip it was. Mind you I didn't get to smoke one of those cigarettes I was supposed to have conned out of the patron.

Well, Hati, I know exactly what you mean now when you remarked earlier in one of your threads that you don't eat much when you're traveling. Well, I got invited a few times to dinner, but what a frugal meals they were. Have you ever eaten frozen shrimps as an appetizer? I have. For a moment I thought I was in Japan. I don't want to sound ungrateful but it's dissapointing you know. The French and food and 'l'amour' is like the Dutch with wooden shoes and windmills.
Thank heavens, there are supermarkets in France as well. BIG ONES, HUGE ONES STUFFED from floor to ceiling with cheeses like Comte, St. Morêt and old Mimolette, bread, saucisson au poivre et garlic, chocolate, Boeuf Bourgingion, Lapin au Chasseur, coffee.

Takes a deep breath and lets air escape slowly. You're right, Pheloxi, I should know better and keep my cool. BUT, BUT the average French male is like the average Dutch male. They BREAK everything!!!! Two of the poles of my tent broken cause I offered my humble abode as a shelter to two Frenchies from Calais one rainy evening. You know what it is like when poles of a tent are broken?

of course...went camping in summer all my youth
...did not have many broken poles broken, but I saw a lot of them after (thunder)storm.

I was one time camping in my parent's 20 plus waddentent with heavy storm, because age of the tent the front was blown off, but rest stayed standing!

There you are.

Of course, with one f. Thank you, Pheloxi.

I usually don't eat because I don't have anything to eat but because I don't want to. I am all full with impressions and such.

Perhaps those impressions make me physically so hungry. I ate with a ravenous appetite. I ate well. The nice thing about the evening at the gendarmerie was that the gendarme who had to file the complaint against me, the one with the green hair. He offered me a cigarette and shared his evening meal with me. That was lovely.
So, one of your impression was sleeping one night under the naked sky in Amsterdam-West? What a good impression you must have our tiny Dutch patch of concrete.

Actually we spent most of the night on one of those boats that are restaurants in the daylight. It wasn't that bad. Actually even interesting. And all the rest of the places and people were just wonderful.

A restaurant!

Here we go... I just recieved an email telling that Estonian Air has cancelled direct flights to Amsterdam.

Now, now dear. Dry your tears. It isn't exactly the end of the world, is it. There will be a flight to Berlin or Warschaw or a remote somewhere else and from there to a city in Estonia. Besides, there are always roads and railways and boats. Hitchhiking across Europe might be fun. But I have to admit, it's a bit of a bummer. Was it a KLM-flight? They probably made some calculations and considered it not to be profitable.

Estonian Air. There might be a KLM-flight, still?

Yep, KLM is still there. EA was just much cheaper.

Al right, you're not cut off from western european 'civization'. It is just going to cost more. No surprises there.

Yeah...

It's expensive, isn't it, Holland.

Not worse than Norway. I am a bugdet traveller.

I am always glad to live in the Netherlands

holland would not able evacute in time if Katherine like huricane would go over!
plus renting a home there like I have now would not be posible with higher rents over there!

Good heavens, you're ranking Holland (sorry Pheloxi) The Netherlands with NORWAY! Of all countries, Norway!
Norway has the reputation of being terribly expensive! That bad, eh?
Never been in Norway myself, though. Would like to.

Yes, yes, I get the idea. I think we Dutchies should come over and visit you in Estland. Damn, Estonian Airways! I go and write a letter of complaint now. They just cannot stop their flights to A'dam from one day to the other. What about Zaventem, Bruxelles, is Estonian Air still flying to our neighbours?