I wrapped up my short trek around Amsterdam with a restless night. Comfortable sleep is difficult when I have something important coming up, and I knew my 4am wakeup time and 5:30am walk to the Amsterdam Centraal train station was too crucial to risk sleeping through. As I have done most of my life, the most reliable way to ensure I wouldn’t miss either of those things was to not fall asleep.
The early train ride took me to Schiphol International Airport for a 9:55am flight to Manchester, which was delayed two hours. This has been a consistent observation I have made all around Europe vs America–the people here are more accepting of things that happen that are out of their control. If this happened at one of our airports, the feeling of frustration would be palpable and there might be an “opinion” provided by a traveler to the nearest airline representative. I will expand on these thoughts shortly.
Our crowd of delayed passengers were scheduled to depart out of Gate H-1 on Easy Jet. My friend Rich referred to them as “Sleazy Jet” when I told him how I was arriving into Manchester, which had me prepared for some curveballs. We all knew the delay, but about an hour before the new flight time, the new departure gate of D-25 was posted. With zero emotion, everyone just grabbed their gear and started the long pilgrimage across the terminal. It was amazing to watch and it calmed me down as well. And let’s just say D and H are not as close at Schiphol Airport as they are in the alphabet.
If there is anywhere the Europeans are impatient and emotional, it might be on the roads. My Uber drivers and my friend Rich have convinced me this is a feature, not a quirk. Lots of acceleration, tailgating, and a general theme of just taking whatever piece of pavement you want. Incredibly, it works. I just took an action-packed walk to Tarporley in Cheshire County, and crossing the road on foot is like the old video game of Frogger. I mentioned in my earlier posts that the roads are quite narrow here. The sidewalks and pathways are even narrower. The survival flow of adrenaline in my body meant I only needed a double shot latte this morning, which I found at a quaint English cafe called Hollies Farm on High St. I am going to ask my readers to close their eyes for a moment and imagine what this might look like in The Shire. Then check out the photos below and see how close you came.
Now, let me share my thoughts on what I have learned on my counter-clockwise trip around Northern Europe. Despite what looks like chaos on the roads, there is a general acceptance that individual behavior should reflect what is good for the overall society. For instance, in Tarporley and other small towns around England, people just park their cars on both sides of the very narrow roads. This effectively reduces down to one lane for two way traffic. People in their own cars with their own agendas manage this challenge by yielding to one another. No horn honking, no finger flipping, no road rage. Just people working together instinctively for the good of the community–which thereby benefits each individual’s needs.
My opinion is this: I think we might have things backwards at home. If individuals successfully assimilate to the rules of society and treat each other with a sense of togetherness, we win. At home, you must have your personal needs met at all times and society must assimilate to ME. This just creates an air of selfishness that whatever we need or feel in the moment is the most important thing in the whole world. As a friend said to me once: feelings are not facts. Perhaps we just need to willingly yield to each other a bit more?
Enjoy this photographic visit to Hollies Farm on High St. in Tarporley, England!
