EXCHANGE INTERFACE

Okay, I am absolutely going to post this today with pictures, DAMMIT.

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In Rotterdam the matter of how history, town planning, and architecture interlock is really visible.

A great deal of Western Europe was destroyed in the war. Bombed, blitzed, burned, pulverised, flattened. During the rebuild of Europe in the 50s and 60s, a large number of cities chose to rebuild in the same style - the 'traditional' style.

Rotterdam did not.

Instead, the city elders/council/planners of the time opted to go what I'm going to term "full modern". As a result, their architecture is extremely eclectic and varied, and very very modern. Oh, there are some old buildings, of course - churches and town halls and the like - but rather than an entire 'old city' zone that looks like it's a holdover from the 1400s, there are older buildings tucked in amidst the far more modern ones.

( Rotterdam: eclectic and modern )

So the reason I scheduled London into my trip was to watch a WSL football game, since there happened to be an Arsenal v Chelsea game on that weekend, and there are a total of four Aussies playing in those two teams.

Then rmc28 and I arranged to meet up and she's an Arsenal fan and so...

( off to the game we go! )

I've forgotten where I last posted.

Okay, since then, I have been in London, Rotterdam, Seattle, and now Portland, and I am leaving tomorrow on a train for a couple of days at a friend's house in Sacramento, before hopping on the cruise in San Francisco and heading for Hawaii.

Ooh, Sacramento weather might even be halfway to warm!

Anyway, met up with beatrice_otter today and we had a grand time wandering about Portland!

The place I'm staying in is very nice, but a bit on the chilly side. It's a tiny house, and while there is an HVAC heater, I should really just like another doona or blanket on my bed. The owner - one of those people who owns multiple properties - said she'd try to get her cleaner to deliver and extra cover. Alas, I doubt the cleaner will manage to deliver one this evening - we're out of daylight and I can't see them coming by in the dark.

So my options are wear extra layers to bed, or pile my coat and other things on top of me and hope they don't slide off in the middle of the night.

Tomorrow will be the overnighter on the Amtrak 'Coast Starlight'. I think I'm on the mountains side rather than the ocean side, which isn't where I want to be, but ohwell.

I was going to go out to a cafe tonight and do some writing, but I'm really tired. The bed here is too soft, and it develops really deep dips which isn't great for my posture, and so today I've been getting twinges along my back and hips. (The bed in Rotterdam was excellently firm, perfect for me to just straight up conk out on. The bed in Seattle was really soft but it worked.)

Early bed, I think. Maybe some writing.

Had the weekend in London, met rmc28, had a great time brunching, watching the footy, and wandering around north London!

Back in the Netherlands, slightly more south. Period is very much due, so tomorrow is 'taking it easy' day. By which I mean, I'll be going on a 2 hour architectural interest walk!

And then Thursday is likely to be Christmas Market day with the stepbro and SSIL.

Man, I'm tired, but waiting for the stepbro to get my luggage over.

ETA: not going to happen tonight. Issues with car hire. In the Netherlands, because everything is so well connected by public transport and cycleways, fewer people own cars, and they just hire a car for when they need it. Unfortunately, it seems that due to new requirements, the stepbro can't easily hire a car anymore. So I'm meeting him at the central station tomorrow morning.

Okay, I've had dinner, done 'dessert'. I shall wash up a few things, including myself, and take an early night. It's a rough time of the month for sleeping.

Finally got Part 2 of the story done. Now Part 3 and Part 4. Theoretically it should be easier. No guarantees, though.

Hong Kong: interesting but also tiring

( a few photos )

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Today, I mostly went to the HK Public Library at Central and tried to write. Failed a lot. *sigh*

Also had dinner with my brother and his daughter, ordered a new pair of glasses, and caught the bus back all on my lonesome. (Okay, so Dad and the brother put me on the correct bus, but small steps! SMALL STEPS.)

Tomorrow:
- hunt up a garden and a good coffee (nearby, opens early - not too much food)
- go watch the Matildas' game at an Australian bar (hopefully the local one is open and screening it)
- something with dad in the afternoon. I'm not 100% what. I wanted to do some wetlands and a permaculture garden, but neither are very accessible. I think he wants me to check out the outer reaches of HK Island. But maybe we could do the HK Museum of Art. They have a display or two that I'm interested in.

I'm hoping to get to see Macao, but I think that's a day trip and the best option for that would probably be Monday. Which means if I want to do a high tea, probably best to do it Sunday afternoon, which is also the busiest day of the week and the most expensive.

On the plus side, my tax returns for the '22 and '23 financial years are coming back and I should not be destitute when I return home.

I dreamed I went travelling and then realised I hadn't packed 90% of what I needed. Including underwear.

Still trying to work out what to pack, exactly. Winterwear for Europe and West Coast USA? I'm going to need to rug up something fierce - I don't do well with cold. I know inside spaces will be warm (at least in Europe and UK), but outside spaces will not be. Oh, and warm boots. Eek. That's going to

But then flip side of that is the Hawaii bit of the trip, and the Hong Kong bit of the trip, both of which are going to be "spring temps" by Sydney standards.

( travel stuff, mostly HK, which is the big fuzzy area of  )

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Picked the parentals up this morning from their 'Northern Europe' trip - eight weeks gone, lots of walking and seeing things and eating. Oy. Then on Sunday, stepdad is off to Tamworth to do grandparenting (childcare) for SB2's son, and mum will join him on Wednesday.

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7 more days of work. Less than two weeks. I'm still feel like there's precious little communication from management. Although I am solving issues right, left, and centre!

Still feeling subtly stressed about finances.