Tom's trip to Amsterdam

I asked Tom to write something for the blog, and this is what he sent.

As some of you know I was lucky enough to be in Amsterdam with Katie for 10 days and the following is my completely unbiased view of what I saw during my travels.

As I got out of the car from the airport (provided by Katie) a second story window opened and what appeared to wave at me could only be described as an angel. The ethereal vision that opened said window turned out to be my Katie. It may have been jet lag but I'm fairly certain I saw 2 doves fly out behind her.

I cannot believe how much Amsterdam (and Europe as a whole) agrees with Katie. She looked beautiful as always but the main thing I noticed was how relaxed she appeared. There is a calmness in her that I caught glimpses of in the past but now is there all the time. She looks happy and healthy and once again...beautiful.

Her apartment rocks completely! It has high ceilings in the living room and outside has all the makings of a kick ass garden. She immediately kyboshed my suggestion to put in artificial turf and a badmitton net. It has 2 floors and if she had the same apartment in New York it would probably rent for $5000 per month. In what must be described as a monumental effort of self control Katie has used a minimalist touch to the walls of the apartment. They are huge and white and when you sit on her furniture you get a sense of peace. As I stated before...the place rocks. I know where she will be when I call her on a Sunday afternoon...staring outside at the foliage.

Katie's friends from work are very very cool. Most of them Brits with the occasional New Zealander and the token American thrown in for good measure. They seem genuinely fond of her and that feeling is returned on her part. They can drink. And smoke (cigarettes). And drink. They are a lot of fun to hang around with. I met them at an outdoor pub after work (her workday - my days were spent getting lost on a bicycle) one day and they were funny, a little crazy and a lot cool. One girl even brought us to her favorite bar which she never took anyone else to. Katie called this the "Grey Gardens" bar. It was a trip.

In her previous blog Katie mentioned something about us going to a coffee shop. I have no idea what she is talking about. I spent most of my time at church.

I will not ramble on anymore but I will say this: In my opinion Katie made the perfect move going to Amsterdam. No matter where she goes after this her time spent in Amsterdam will be something that stays with her forever.

what a guy...