From 257f47fb9bc8156edcd6befe2153f101f99b900a Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Eshel Yaron Date: Wed, 16 Aug 2023 23:17:16 +0200 Subject: [PATCH] New post (Starting out in Amsterdam) --- .../2023-08-16-starting-out-in-amsterdam.org | 81 +++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 81 insertions(+) create mode 100644 source/posts/2023-08-16-starting-out-in-amsterdam.org diff --git a/source/posts/2023-08-16-starting-out-in-amsterdam.org b/source/posts/2023-08-16-starting-out-in-amsterdam.org new file mode 100644 index 0000000..aa96422 --- /dev/null +++ b/source/posts/2023-08-16-starting-out-in-amsterdam.org @@ -0,0 +1,81 @@ +#+TITLE: Starting out in Amsterdam +#+SUBTITLE: Notes from an eventful arrival +#+DESCRIPTION: A post from Eshel Yaron with notes from an eventful arrival in Amsterdam +#+KEYWORDS: life +#+DATE: 2023-08-16 + +@@html:
@@Created on [{{{date}}}], last updated [{{{modification-time(%Y-%m-%d, t)}}}]@@html:
@@ + +I finally got to Amsterdam. Of course, I've been here before, but +this time's different. We've arrived in Schiphol on Sunday morning +after a tense flight. It's not a long flight, but we were flying our +dog over with us, and he was flying in a cage with the luggage. + +I've been training Dudi for this flight for a couple of months now, +feeding him snacks while he's lying in the cage and--in the week or +two prior to the flight--even leaving him locked in the cage for half +an hour after we'd get back from an evening walk. + +I honestly don't know what that sweet huge dog experienced during +those long hours after we sent him away in his cage in one airport +until we got him back on the other side, but when they brought him +through that door next to the "odd-size baggage" signs, he looked +fine. A bit shook up maybe, definitely not at ease. But he seemed +excited to see us (and eager to leave his cage), and all in all we +were relieved. + +We just had to get the rest of our luggage and walk past customs +before we could let Dudi stretch his legs out of his cage, but there's +always something, you know. No worthwhile undertaking ever goes +completely smoothly because there's always something that you didn't +think that you'd have to think about. For our arrival at Amsterdam +last Sunday, this something happened to be Dudi's birth date. We had +a rough idea about when Dudi was born, since at the adoption service +where we got him they told us that he was around three months old. +They didn't know the exact date, though, because they got him from a +lady that found him abandoned near a village up north. We just +figured he was probably born in November 2020, and that seemed good +enough for all intents and purposes. Dog don't really mind it if you +miss their birthdays, after all. + +Now, to get your dog to the Netherlands, you have provide proof that +he has effective antibodies for rabies. You also need some papers +from a veterinarian at your home country that states the dog's +physical condition and history. Apparently, they write down the dog's +birth date on both of these sets of papers, and apparently we had +November 1^{st} written on one set papers and November 15^{th} on the +other. Two equally arbitrary approximations. + +That led the unwary custom officers to suspect that these two sets of +papers actually refer to two different dogs. One two weeks older than +the other. We tried to explain that nobody probably gave these dates +too much thought and that we don't know Dudi's exact birth date, but +they wouldn't budge. Our papers were "not right", they said. This +anomaly led to extreme scrutiny of our papers by the airport's vet, +that had to be rushed from the other side of the airport. I don't +know how big Schiphol airport is, but it took that guy a long time to +get to customs. All the while, we weren't allowed to open Dudi's +cage. While the veterinarian examined our dog's recorded history, the +custom officer tried to comfort us by saying that "the worst case is +that he'll go straight to quarantine," which was naturally met with a +calm and relaxed response from my part. Something along the lines of: +"great, but can he first take a piss?" + +After nearly an hour and a half of Dudi sitting in his cage and us +sitting stressed beside him, the vet came over and said that we're +good to go. He said they apologize, but that they must be strict on +these matters so they had to ensure our papers are correct. I didn't +care. I wanted to hug that guy, and I probably would have if I hadn't +feared he'd arrest me on the spot for excessive affection and Dudi and +I would both end up spending the night in the cage. + +After getting the good news, everything fell back into place. We let +Dudi out of his cage right away and took him for a walk outside the +airport. Our driver was kind enough to wait for us outside the +airport all that time, and the traffic on our way to the city center +was light. When we got to our destination, we were greeted by another +kind fellow that waited for us an extra couple of hours with the keys +to our new apartment. + +You see, what makes this visit to Amsterdam quite different is that we +don't have a ticket back home. But more on that some other time. -- 2.39.5