...but again, I find myself getting used to it and not, I hasten to add, penning an angry Trip Advisor post. In many ways, the cheaper hotels in this world are so much better than the corporate brands and the cosseting they offer with their concierges and porters and "this way, sir" and all that jazz just because you're paying through the nose for a room. I'd rather give my money to the homeless. It's all so false, like business class on planes. I flew Club (or whatever it's called) to Vienna a few years ago and I sat on the border with Plebland (only a grey curtain separating me from the proletariat for heaven's sake)... but beyond the grey cloth divide they were being served their tea in paper cups (I had bone china) and nobody was calling them sir. I wonder if they're told that in training, "In economy, no reference to sir or madam." I think if I was cabin crew I would go out of my way to be hospitable to those in 'coach' (as the Americans call it). I would even go as far as calling them 'sir' or 'madam' in the hope that some pot-bellied, golf-loving CEO with an unhealthy-looking paunch would blow his top and have to be escorted from the plane.
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| No, not one of those statue people, a proper non-human statue! |
So the hotel, an easyHotel, is basic. So basic that there's no wardrobe or desk or chocolates on the pillows in my room; or even a common area downstairs where, like the Moxy Vanderbilt in Nashville, I could sit and write and read or listen to live music. But I know what easyHotels are all about and besides, when I booked my stay in Rotterdam, the only alternative was a bed in a hostel dormitory of, say, eight or 12 other beds. It wouldn't work, put it that way. The easyHotel was bang in the centre of town, there was no cosseting, no, 'yes, sir' – nothing so vulgar – just ordinary people in jeans and tee-shirts on the front desk, a vending machine by the lifts selling all of life's necessities and that was it. My room, room 607 on the sixth floor, was fine. The shower wasn't brilliant but it did the job, there was a pillar between the bed and the window, and the ceiling, I noticed, was high, but only when I was lying in bed, it was a little closer when I stood up, but still fairly high.
With easyHotel there was no compunction to 'engage' with anybody, it had a certain anonymity about it, which is what I like; I can come and go as I please, no questions asked, and being bang in the 'centrum' I wasn't far from restaurants and, like now, a Starbucks. In fact, hats off to Starbucks, a coffee retailing brand that has an established offering, it does what it says on the tin and loyal customers know what to expect. I've been in here answering emails and doing stuff that needs doing, in addition, of course, to drinking a couple of large mugs of English breakfast tea. I'm glad that Starbucks exists because, like other coffee retailers, it provides a service, it picks up where hotels without desks left off and it helps people when they're in nomad mode, like I am at present. I'm on the later train home to London today, leaving Rotterdam at just before 5pm and getting home around three hours later (there's no headwind with a train). Unfortunately I've got to change in Brussels, although it's good in many ways as it means I don't go through passport control until I reach the Belgian capital. I suppose that means I could leave Rotterdam now and seek a different Starbuck's, but in all honesty, I love this place and the easyHotel where my suitcase is stored in a locker, and I'm happy to leave it there until I'm ready to head home.
I haven't been to Rotterdam for a very long time. I flew here the last time and I remember the aircraft, a Dart Herald, had difficulty unlocking its landing gear (there were emergency vehicles on the tarmac but all was fine, thank God!). And by that I mean the plane landed without incident, thanks to a member of the crew who somehow managed to hand-crank the undercarriage into position. It was an old plane, but not, I hasten to add, a Sopwith Camel.
A couple of days ago, walking nonchalantly along a darkened street full of restaurants, I spotted, to my surprise, a huge rat lolloping along and heading straight for one of the eateries on this particular stretch of road. I was going to bring it to the attention of those al fresco diners, who were blissfully unaware, enjoying the early summer heat, but decided not to. Fortunately, I'd eaten earlier, but it kind of put me off so I vowed never to eat in any of the restaurants – there were lots of them – along that stretch of road close to the easyHotel. A rat for heaven's sake! Not that I haven't seen them before. I remember once in Chicago I saw a few of them darting from one sidewalk flowerbed to another and they weren't small rats, they were huge, like the sort of thing you see in horror movies (and on the streets of Rotterdam).
Rats aside, I've rather enjoyed my short time in Rotterdam. Being as there was no hotel restaurant and, therefore, no breakfast offering, I consulted my Microsoft Co-pilot (AI at its best) and asked if there were any places offering the most important meal of the day. The robot on the other end of the line said yes, there were some interesting establishments I should check out. One of them was a place called Lilith Coffee, a café with that female touch that makes the world a better place. By female, I'm not saying 'girly', that wouldn't have worked at all. This was more Kate Bush than Doja Kat. There were old typewriters and other bric-a-brac, not forgetting a painting of a naked woman with a snake, that lent Lilith Coffee a bookish vibe that I found calming and joyful. I liked it so much I came back for more the following day, choosing exactly the same dish from the menu – a 'mango bowl (EUR11.50) consisting of bananas, strawberries, berries and oats and, presumably, mangoes. Very tasty, very healthy, and I left with a skip in my step (on both occasions).
Lilith Coffee opens at 0900hrs and being as I've been going to bed early (around 2000hrs) I was up with the lark and ready to stroll along Nieuwe Binnenweg to this fantastic place, but each time arriving too early. Not a problem because Vlahmsch Broodhuys was open at 0800hrs so in I walked and ordered an English breakfast tea with an almond croissant on my first visit and a different kind of bun on my second. What a chilled establishment it was, and even more so when you realise that they sell jars of white chocolate spread. White chocolate spread! I've never seen it in the UK, but it's alive and kicking here in Rotterdam so, after tasting some, I bought a jar and a smaller jar of forest fruits jam.
The vibe in Vlahmsch Broodhuys was different to Lilith Coffee, but both establishments had the calming feminine touch and, therefore, what it takes to make my life that little bit better. They both get top marks for all the usual stuff: good service, happiness, decent food and, with the former, of course, that white chocolate spread. I forgot to ask them whether to 'refrigerate after opening'.
Check out from the easyHotel was (ahem) easy and soon I was a nomad, a temporarily homeless person wandering the streets. I should have taken the earlier Eurostar home but because there was uncertainty surrounding my meeting, I opted for the later train and now, here I am, in Starbucks, writing this article with plenty of time on my hands.
One quick mention of another excellent restaurant needs to be made. Super Mercado, a Peruvian restaurant where I dined last night before strolling back to my hotel for yet another early night. What an excellent place. If you find yourself in Rotterdam (it's so easy to type 'Rotherham') then I would recommend this place. Try the grilled salmon with asparagus.
There's lots to say, loads in fact, but I'm thinking it best to sign off and get on with whatever else I need to be doing, like checking emails 'and sich like' (as they say in The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists).
