When I was deciding where I wanted my next trip I was thinking about places I have been and videos I have seen on YouTube. I must admit that one of the videos on YouTube got my attention and this is what helped me decide on the Netherlands. The video is from a train driver in the Netherlands and one of the cities he went through was Zaandam. It has some really cool-looking buildings and this sealed it for me. I love architecture and this was a feast for the eyes.
I have been to the Netherlands several times and this also helped my decision.
I earnestly looked at Ryanair for flights to the Netherlands – well Eindhoven since this is the only place they fly to. I found some cheap tickets and then booked them and worried about booking accommodation at a later date. I left it for a few days and then looked for hostels in Eindhoven. They were out with the price I wanted to pay. I decided I should look a little further north to see what was around and Amsterdam was also out as the hostels there were even more expensive. On top of that, you have to pay a city tax (which is pretty standard now) and then a % of the booking. It usually works out to about an extra €5-6 per night.
I looked a little further north and found a hostel in Purmerend that was just about in the price range I wanted to pay. I looked at the area on the map and it looked nice. It was also close to a train station and it was easy to get the to station from Eindhoven which was even better.
I booked this and then booked all my train tickets and let the clock count down.
The time finally came to leave. I finished work at 06:00 and then had a couple of hours of sleep before I needed to leave for the airport. As I was waiting on the platform a family came and sat next to me and the kid was asking questions constantly and this continued for the entire train journey – even when he was looking at his tablet. It was doing my head in. I had a headache from lack of sleep and this kid wasn’t helping. I was glad to get off.
I got through security in no time and got my usual meal deals and then went to the gates overlooking the runway. It turns out that my flight didn’t leave from those gates. I had to ask for help to get back to the departure lounge. The woman who helped me said that it would take 40 minutes to get from where I was to the gate I needed. I informed her she was wrong and that I could do it in 15 minutes. She didn’t think I could and asked why I thought I could. I told her I knew the airport pretty well and knew how well I could walk. She just rolled her eyes.
I got to the gate I needed in 13 minutes. Some 27 minutes faster than she thought I would. Suck it, lady!!!
We boarded and then just played the waiting game. The pilot said it would be a bumpy climb but once we were at cruising altitude we should be fine. The guy knows his stuff. He wasn’t wrong. I tried to sleep but couldn’t because of the turbulence on the way up. The flight was only 40 minutes so there really wasn’t a whole load of sleeping that could be done anyway.
I got to Eindhoven and went to passport control and it seemed to go quick. They did query why I had a paper in there that listed the airports and dates I have been to in the EU – thanks Poland! I told him it was to make sure I wasn’t overstaying and he was fine with that. I left and then went to get the bus. The front of the airport was different from when I was there in 2019. They had revamped the front of it and it looks so much better.
I went and got the bus to the train station. The buses from the airport to the station run every 3-4 minutes so it didn’t matter if I missed the first one that I saw. It took about 20 minutes to get to the station and I had enough time to get a cold drink and then head to the platform.
I hopped on the train and had to change at Amsterdam Sloterdijk. This was a pain. I had to go from the low-level station and then across the street to the high-level station. It had started to rain too but luckily it was just a couple of minute’s walk and the platforms were under cover. The train to Purmerend was only about 20 minutes. I got off the train in Purmerend and had an idea of where I needed to walk to get to the hostel.
I just let my feet do the guiding though and it was cool. I got to walk along the lakes and the cool streets.
As I was walking down I came across a bridge that looked pretty cool a veered off to take some pics of that.
I finished here and then headed to the hostel as it was starting to rain. I got there and checked in. They seemingly didn’t get my request for a lower bunk and spent 20 minutes trying to find me one. They finally did and I went in and left my stuff and went to have a wander around by the river. It was pretty cool. It was windy and it was welcomed too. I then went back and headed to bed ready for an early-ish start tomorrow for heading to Zaandam and wherever else I wanted to go for the day. I had an idea of where I wanted to go but decided I would see how I felt after a little time in Zaandam.
I got back to Purmerend and decided that I wanted to go to the Milky Way bridge and climb it. It has 65 steps on either side. The views from up there are pretty cool. Whilst it’s not super high, you still get to see some of the rooftops.
I sat at the station for about 30 minutes first so I could check-in for my flight. I managed to game the Ryanair system and went through the process as if I were buying 11 seats. I selected all 11 middle seats that were still free and then went to the app to check in and I got an aisle seat. The gaming of the system worked. I’ll be trying it again for sure.
I then headed to the bridge to get some pictures.
Once I was done here I went to the local Albert Heijn to get something to eat and drink. I then decided I would have a little walk around other parts of the city before I had to head back to the hostel.
I got back to the hostel and did some packing and then went to bed so I could try and get some decent sleep.
I got up and ready and headed out to the train station via Albert Heijn. I wanted some croissants and a fizzy drink. I got the train half an hour earlier than I had planned. I just wanted to get to the airport and chill until the flight. I was feeling sick (I think it’s the new meds I am on) so I just wanted to get there and relax.
I got to the airport and saw that there was a delay to the flight. The aircraft being used was delayed on the first flight of the day due to low visibility and it had a knock-on effect for the rest of the day.
It was shown as being delayed by an hour. About 30 minutes before it landed, passport control opened up and I went through and waited at the gate. As it was landing they checked us in and let us walk to where the aircraft was parked. The passengers were getting off and as they were there was a crowd of yellow vests around. I didn’t think anything of it. About 10 minutes later they started walking along the queue and told us we had to go back inside. I stopped one of them and asked why. He said that it had hit a bird inbound and they needed to fly in an engineer from Stansted to come and fix it. Better to be safe.
We went back to the gate and sat there for about 20 minutes before the border guards came in and said that we needed to go back across the border as they needed the space for the next lot of passengers. Those with non-EU passports had to have the stamps cancelled out before they could cross the border again. I have never had this happen before. It was a weird experience. I was more concerned that a new stamp would take up space that I needed for other trips.
After a couple of hours, I got a message in the Ryanair app to tell me that as the delay had reached the length it had we had a €4 voucher to spend at the airport shops. It wasn’t even enough to get me a sausage roll. I had to pay 70c towards it! I got it and then went to find somewhere to sit down. I found somewhere and then decided to go elsewhere as the seat wasn’t comfortable.
I sat next to this guy and just waited… and waited… and waited. The delay kept increasing. By this point, it was at 3.5 hours. The guy next to me kept asking if I knew what the issue was and what was happening. In the end, I had to tell him to go ask the airport staff. There was very little information being given to us. It was so annoying. We got very little information in the Ryanair app too. You can see in the pics below the information we were given.
By 19:00 the airport announced that the delay would be an indefinite one. I had to change my train tickets 3 times at this point. I had to change it to the 05:27 train the next morning. I had to message my boss and tell him I would probably be an hour late for work in the morning. He was fine with it thankfully.
By 20:45 they announced that we would be starting to board at about 21:00. They came and told us that the plane the engineer was on was also hit by a bird and had to go back to Stansted. A series of unfortunate events. They started to board us at 21:10. Once we were on the plane they told us the issue was sorted and we would be leaving soon. It was another hour before we left. I was tired. I was stressed.
As I got my seat, there was a passenger that told me he was in the middle seat so I got up for him so he could get in. Then about 10 minutes later the window seat passenger got on and said to the middle guy that he could have the window seat and we could all move down. I dutifully stood up and let the window seat guy get in the middle. I wasn’t voluntarily sitting in the middle seat. The guy wasn’t happy with me. Too bad. He shouldn’t have given up his window seat and he should have purchased an aisle seat if he wanted it.
We got to Stansted at 22:01 and luckily were at a gate close to the arrivals hall. I walked as fast as I could and the arrivals hall was empty – thankfully. I crossed the border and headed for the 22:30 train to London. I didn’t want to sit in the airport until the 05:27 train. I was way too tired and stressed for that.
I got the 22:30 train to Seven Sisters and then got the tube to King’s Cross. I got to St. Pancras about 23:30 and saw that the 23:46 train was cancelled. The next one was 00:46. I went and got something to drink and some snacks from a Nisa across the road from the station.
I got on the 00:46 train and was happy that I was finally on the train back to Peterborough. As we pulled into the platform the driver got on the PA and said there was an issue with the doors and it would be a few minutes before they could be opened. It turns out there wasn’t a door issue but he was waiting for the police. They walked up the entire length of the train and then cuffed a man in the carriage I was in. It was strange as the guy was quiet the entire trip. Oh well. I was glad to be back in Peterborough.
The usual journey from Stansted to Peterborough
The journey from Stansted to Peterborough via London
I finally got in and got to bed at about 03:00. Enough time to get a couple of hours of sleep before work in a few hours.
All in all, it was a great trip. I enjoyed the Netherlands. I enjoyed going to the different cities. I can’t wait to go back!
Total steps: 21,838Total miles: 10.09
Total kilometers: 16.24
You can view all of my Amsterdam pics here
You can view all of my Purmerend pics here
You can view all of my Utrecht pics here
You can view all of my Zaandam pics here