It just baffles me that:Originally Posted by cajunrevenge
1) Conservatives in general are so eager to spend such absurd amounts to bomb the Middle East.
2) People are so opposed to legalizing weed. I still can't believe we are stuck with Jeff ****ing Sessions and his one-man vendetta against marijuana.
Isn't it Meals on Wheels?
FFF - BB, BB, 2B, HR, 2B, HR, 1B, BB, BB, 1B, BB, BB, HR
You know if you look at the glass half full from a lefty perspective, then you should be happy about cuts to the wheels part of the meals on wheels program.
Don't worry about #2. Sessions is going to have a rubber band effect on weed legalization. The harder he pushes the more people are going to see the light.
"Donald Trump will serve a second term as president of the United States.
It’s over."
Little Thethe Nov 19, 2020.
AerchAngel (05-25-2017)
Seating of which. I'll be in Amsterdam in 2 days. Can't wait!
Where are you staying?
I'm in Cologne for work the next two weeks. I have no plans where I will be staying. Any suggestions?
I just say though....Cologne might be the most amazing place I've been to. Not that I've been many places.
Cologne/Bonn is a pretty cool area. I'm assuming that the Kölner Dom was one of your first stops.
As for Amsterdam, anywhere in the Centrum (except De Wallen - the Red Light district) is going to be perfect. The city is very compact and easy to walk (a little confusing at first, but you'll get the hang of it) or bike. Downtown hotels can be a little pricey, but it's worth splurging a bit if you are only going to be around for a night or two. I have recently taken to the Doubletree at Centraal Station, because it's new and I have status with Hilton, but I would also recommend the Radisson Blu on Rusland (cool Soviet themed coffeeshop right across the street) and the Swissotel right on Damrak (way too crowded for my tastes, but a good location).
If you are looking for something super cheap, check out the Best Western in Zaandam. It's one stop away on the Sprinter (commuter train) from Centraal Station but it's only like $45 a night. Clean, nice, quiet. You can rent a bike from the hotel, pick up a spliff, pack a picnic (ie Heineken, Cheese, and Stroopwafels) and take a little excursion out to Zaanse Schans (which most people visiting Amsterdam don't find time to do, and they should). Zaandam itself is a cool little Dutch town and everything is sooo much cheaper than central AMS. It's also just a few stops away from Schiphol airport (I don't know if you are flying out from there or going onward in Europe).
Make time to visit the Anne Frank House. Walk through Vondelpark. Visit a farmer's market in Haarlem. Albert Heijn is the best grocery store ... probably in all of Europe. FEBO is a fun little novelty eat ... try the kipburger. Grey Area is my favorite coffeeshop in the city. Pace yourself with all of that stuff, in general - I find it to be much stronger than anything you might have ever tried stateside. Just walk around the city, get lost. Rembrandtplein, Museumplein, Damstraat ... Amsterdam is laid back and just ... really ****ing cool. Never disappoints.
Edit: Oh yeah, vlaamse frites (belgian french fries smothered in mayo) ... drink lots of beer ... don't pay more than 35 euro for a blowjob.
Last edited by Hawk; 05-25-2017 at 01:55 PM.
Fantastic advice. I'll definitely take that last part to heart as well!
I haven't gone inside the Kolner Dom. It is certainly awe inspiring though. Should I make that a goal for the rest of my trip? I was supposed to go today but there was holiday in Germany today so last night we got pretty wasted and I golfed this morning. Came back and slept and now I'm doing work.
I will be driving up to Amsterdamn. I love to drive and wanted to make the trip. I have Marriot points from my PwC days. Do you know what parking is like in Amsterdamn? Can I cram all of those things into 1 full day and a part of the next?
I'll definitely take your advice on the strength of the goods in Amsterdamn. As I'm not an everyday smoker anymore I always moderate on the monthly (in some cases weekly) indulgence.
Natural Immunity Croc
Honestly? The only religious site in Europe that I can remember having felt good after having waited/paid to enter was St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Once you've seen the inside of one, you've seen them all. That being said, if you can go ... go. The stained glass at the Dom is remarkable.
It's really cool that you are driving. I did a Peugeot buy-back one summer and crisscrossed Europe. Gas was terrifyingly expensive and I didn't have a GPS ... but it was one of the most memorable trips I have ever taken. I have to tell you though, driving in Amsterdam is really difficult (trams are everywhere and rule the road) and parking can run you at least 50 euro a day - some places without in-and-out privileges. Most hotels have underground garages though. I'm sure that the Marriott does. I have not stayed there but know exactly where it is - great area.
BTW, if you decide not to drive, the express trains (Thalys or DB ICE) from Cologne to AMS are only 2.5 hours and cost $20 each way.
If you are going to only be in Amsterdam for 1.5 days I would recommend staying downtown entirely. You can do pretty much everything on foot without taking a cab or public transit. If you are thinking about the Anne Frank house, check the website now for reservations. It sells out early, and the line is atrocious. It might be something to save for next time if you want to make sure to see the rest of the city. Otherwise, you are going to find most of the other things I mentioned just by stumbling around. On that note, I would recommend saving the coffeeshops until the evening. That way you don't get too debilitated early. Haha.
Have fun dude. Were you at a conference in Cologne or are you doing work with a German company?
Last edited by Hawk; 05-25-2017 at 02:50 PM.
I work for a multinational company that has made acquisitions in Europe over the past 4 years. We are implenting a new accounting information system so I'm here to assist with that roll out. Additionally, one of my principle responsibilities is for the consolidation's of our European operations an therfore the face to face networking is integral for my role.
Again Hawk, thanks for this advice. I'll let you know how it goes.
Hawk (05-25-2017)
My former wife is from Duisburg, so when we visit family in the Nordrhein-Westfalen area we always make a trip to Zeist or Utrecht and hitting the club scene in Amsterdam (I was 21 when we dated so we went clubbing every chance we got). She lived in Koblenz when we met so going through Andernach Bonn, Duesseldorf, Koeln (Cologne) was an awesome drive. I bet Hawk did it many times and I would not doubt he hit the Deutsches Eck as well, great resturants and pubs along the front.
The best Donar Kebabs I ever have was in Neuewied which is right across from Andernach/Koblenz. To this day haven't found one as good and they are not like the ones you buy in the states either.
Thethe watch yourself in Amsterdam at night, some shady people do come out so stick to being with a group of people. But enjoy yourself. There is a lot of great towns in that region. Aachen, Monchengladbach are not shabby as you can spend days in middling towns (if you can call towns with 200 to 300k middling) just looking at sites alone.
My daughter will probably marry in the next few years so I will be going back to my old stomping grounds to visit family and I will most definitely stop by my favorite kebab shop if it is still there.
The best discotheques I visited were in Zeist and Amsterdam, the one in Neuewied called the Hippodrome was the best. Koblenz had a very nice one as well.
I am jealous that Hawk can see these places all the time and mostly at whim. I spent a good decade in Europe and wish I could do it all over. So different than here and probably even better today due to technology alone. Back in the 80's and 90's they were kind of behind of the times compared when I moved back to the states.
I wish I could remember all the places I been but it would be pages of posts. Oh Hawk, the lake near Remagen, between Bonn and Andernach, you see the bridge (WWII and a movie made about it) but Maria Laach See is a nice place and I am not talking about the Abbey which is nice. The water is like perfect.
Hawk (05-25-2017)
Need a programmer, SQL, Oracle, VB. NET, ASP.NET qualified but I dabble in other languages as well when work needs it.
Are you dealing with SAP or Netsuite for roll outs, we seen a influx of companies switching to them?
Another strong recommendation for that general area is Maastricht, Netherlands. It's fairly close to Cologne and it's centrum is as impressive as any I have been to in Europe.
But if you are going for a more traditional European experience, then you cannot do wrong by Amsterdam. I second many of Hawk's suggestion and add Keukenhof to that list. It's a massive tulip garden and this is a great time of year for that. It's fairly close to Amsterdam/Haarlem.
As for the Frites. I recommend Frites Oorlog. Belgian fries with mayo and sate sauce. Immaculate.
Enjoy your trip!
AerchAngel (05-25-2017), Hawk (05-25-2017)
Heineken brewery is cool as well.
I'm not privy to the needs from our IT function. We are actually moving to ax 2012 but I'd refer sap.
Thank you all for the advice!
Securing the stadium cost a small fortune I'd guess
So total, we are looking at $300K on the low side.
They wanted to cut Meals on Wheels funds.
$300K plus, extravagant ski trips for his kids, weekly golf outings and of course mis use / abuse of power by cabinet members ...
Any one want to cut meals for old destitute people today ?
Last edited by 57Brave; 10-09-2017 at 07:11 AM.
The best way to stop a bad guy with a gun is to make sure he doesn’t get a gun.
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