NEWCASTLE TO AMSTERDAM VIA THE NORTH SEA

This morning we said goodbye to The Shoes.  Although further from the downtown area of Durham, it was a great place to be.  The host of the small B and B was very kind and helpful when we needed to ask things now and then.  He cooked us a delicious breakfast and set a lovely table.  Along with a B and B, The Shoes is primarily a neighbourhood pub.  Regulars (all men) come in to chat, have a draw and watch sports on the telly.  The bell behind the bar rings for last draw at 11:00 and then the boys all leave.  It was quite quiet.

The room was not ideal.  The beds were only 1 foot off the floor, the mourning doves were constantly calling very early in the morning and the room décor left a lot to be desired.  I can only imagine that there was a buy 1 get 1 free sale on the artwork.  Otherwise, WHY?  Even if it was a deal…WHY? 

High on the plus side was a heated towel rack in the bathroom – oh and did I mention the wonderful breakfast and delicious coffee all served by the friendly host?  The different shoe pictures and shoe ornaments that adorned the pub walls were quite fun.  However, in thinking of the clientele being all men…the artwork in the rooms upstairs would seem to be a better fit downstairs in the pub..  Really though, The Shoes was quite charming in its simplicity.

Today was a day of travel again.  We needed to get from The Shoes down to the train station so that we could make our way to Newcastle on Tyne.  A quick UBER ride and we were right where we needed to be.  The train from Durham to Newcastle took only 15 minutes and then as we were very early for the bus to the ferry we had time to see at bit of downtown Newcastle.  We walked up to the large town square where there was an enormous statue of the Earl Grey.  Of course I thought of Matthew right away as that is his favourite tea.

We wandered around and had coffee, then a few hours later we ate some lunch and soon it was time to get the bus to the ferry terminal.  The timing couldn’t have been better!  When we were let off the bus, we checked in and then it was right onto the ferry from there and into our cabin for the ride across the North Sea to Amsterdam. 

Upon entering our very small cabin on Deck 9 the first thing I noticed was many… no make that lots of sea sickness bags.  I counted them.  There were 45.  Hmmm is this a precursor of what is to come?  Well I guess we will have to wait and see.  We were to move our clocks ahead to The Netherlands time which is one hour ahead.  So now we are 9 hours ahead of home.  Dinner was delicious.  I have been wanting roast chicken – and the choice on the menu included Guinea Fowl – close enough.  I finally had my “chicken” fix. 

So now, it is about 8:30 and we are on the water somewhere in the North Sea.  We will sail overnight arriving in Amsterdam around 9:30 tomorrow morning. Below is a model of the ferry we are on.