Packin' & Flyin'

That's Amsterdam by night.

There has been precious little cooking going on in my kitchen. I've been trying to eat or discard every fresh thing in the refrigerator. We're leaving today on a trip. Our son-in-law will still be here most of the time to watch over the house. Having helped us pack the cars getting ready to evacuate last Sunday, he knows what needs to be saved if, God forbit, there's another fire. Good timing, Todd! Hope it won't be necessary.

We're flying through Heathrow (London) to Amsterdam and will board a Viking river boat that will ply us from Holland to Budapest (down the Rhine then east on the Danube). The boat stops some every day so passengers can explore the villages and small cities en route. We're really looking forward to getting away - from the fires, the smoke, the ashes. The high temp in Amsterdam yesterday was 52°. Big, big change from our mid-80's here in So. California. The river boat has internet, but it's dial-up, so I don't know if I'll get in much blogging. I'm taking my laptop, though, so check back in now and then to see if I've managed to upload at least some pictures.

I made reservations in Amsterdam for a rijsttafel (rice-stoff-ull) dinner. That's an Indonesian rice-based dinner with many dishes. We've been to Amsterdam several times, but never planned ahead to have a rijsttafel dinner. Love this internet - was able to find a place very near our hotel with good reviews. Rijsttafel is kind of like Indian curry with condiments. But different. Hope to tell you all about it. And I'm looking forward to the paprikash in Hungary our last night aboard the boat. Mustn't forget my shopping list, either: buy paprika in many types at the spice market in Budapest before flying home. (photo from gate1travel.com)