On my way to Odessa in January, I had a long layover in Amsterdam and arrived in Kyiv at 12:20 am. Dima, my translator in Kyiv, arranged a taxi to take me to a hotel. He said no single-dollar bills and make sure I have a “crisp” five-dollar bill to pay the cab. They don’t like singles or old bills. Oh, the relativity of what’s important.
Airports are almost deserted now. When I flew to Nicaragua in December, Miami was packed. Yesterday, JFK was deserted, and today, Amsterdam is the same. Very few flights and a load of restrictions. I had to get an RT-PCR COVID test and a Rapid Antigen test 4 hours before the flight. I thought they just needed the PCR or the rapid test, but they said they needed both at the ticket counter. Luckily, I was there early enough to go downstairs to get the Rapid test. Many people show up for the flight, but they don’t get on because the restrictions change so fast. I missed my flight to Nicaragua in October and was delayed two days. Now, I check all the guidelines, but confusing updates still catch me off guard.
The Dutch language sounds similar to Norwegian, so every time they announced something over the intercom in Amsterdam, I thought about Linda Hesthag teaching us “Yay con ika fina ingenting for dey.” Jimmy Shannon’s famous line “I can’t find anything for you” in Norwegian. I’m amazed how clear the quote comes to me after all these years. You know how older people start losing their short-term memory but retain their long-term memory. One day, I can see myself on a nursing home porch staring into space, unaware of who the people are around me, but repeating “Yay con ika fina ingenting for dey” and “Meatbowl” over and over again.
Remember those stats that say northern Europeans are rated the happiest people in the world? I get the vibe from the Dutch. The flight attendants are incredibly accommodating and seem happy. Some suggest it’s the combination of a free-market economy and a socialist style government, heavily taxing citizens but taking care of all their needs. They have very little stress related to income or medicine.