Alkmaar

The jet-lag isn't beating me up too badly this time around. I fell asleep rather late but once I was asleep it was a pretty peaceful night. No sleepless morning spent waiting for a Hawaiian sunrise on a beach that faces West (in my defense, I realized it before the sun actually rose).

I slept in a little and then went into the city of Alkmaar with Guy's mum. It's situated in Northern Holland--about an hour from Amsterdam--and looks just like Epcot. I realize that my statement may come across as ignorant or terribly American-focused but whatever. I was really just very surprised that Disney seems to have gotten it right. The city, its canals, and the blatantly Dutch-ness of it all are wonderful. I took a self-guided walking tour, visited a beer museum and a cheese museum, and was sufficiently exhausted by the time I finished about 3 hours later. I'm very grateful for this chance to see more of Holland--not just the "big city" that many people hit. I also very much enjoyed when Guy's mum asked me if I have "any serious boyfriends,"which I choose to interpret as a suggestion that I could perhaps have more than one serious boyfriend at the moment.