Are You Packing Yet?

Erin has been asked this question at least twice a day for the last week. There are still eight whole days, plus this evening, until the movers come to get our things from the apartment in Amsterdam. And technically Erin doesn't have to pack anything except the bags she is taking with her on the airplane.

And just in case anyone is unaware of Erin's timeline for packing, we can clarify: she usually just packs late the night before an early flight or a couple hours before leaving the day of a trip. In fact, it works out well for both of us since John's packing style is pretty much the same.

Speaking of bags on the airplane...does anyone have even the least clue how many bags or what the weight limit is on a flight, first on BA from the Netherlands to the UK and then on AA from the U.K. to the U.S.? Seriously, could airlines make it any more complicated to figure out what you can take with you when you travel? Before John's flight a week or so ago we even talked to a travel agent who spent 30 minutes calling airlines and then still was not sure what to tell John about his luggage!

On a different note, Erin went with some friends to see The Good Shepherd last night. Apparently this came out some time ago in the U.S., but it is a recent release in Amsterdam. One of the previews was for Freedom Writers (probably also already out in the U.S., but still waiting for release here in the Netherlands). Basically the entire trailer revolves around talk of gangs, shootings, and racial violence. Now Erin completely understands why at least four people in the last week have mentioned "all the guns" when she tells them she is moving back to the U.S., to Dallas. Honestly, with the way cities in the U.S. are portrayed in movies, it's no wonder most Europeans say they would be afraid to live in America.

It was also educational to watch a movie about the American CIA in a room filled with Dutch people. There was a quote in the movie when the main character is asked by an Italian American what Americans "have" since other people of various cultures and ethnicities in the U.S. (Italians, African Americans, etc.) have their own music, religion, etc. The main character answers, "We have the United States of America. The rest of you people are just visiting." There was a bit of laughter, soft gasps, and some sounds of disgust...not too much reaction, but noticeable. Can't help but wonder what the reaction is among audiences in America. Erin then realized that Europeans, even the Dutch, and probably some people in every country in the world, suffer from this same prideful, prejudicial nationalism. In Holland it's a dislike of all the immigrants from Turkey, Africa, even America, who refuse to learn Dutch. Perhaps the reaction of disgust over those "prejudiced, prideful Americans" was quick and rather tame because everyone knows it is not an entirely American phenomenon to think more highly of yourself than everyone who is different from you. In fact, it is precisely this pervasive human attitude that causes so much trouble around the world.

The movie raised the issue, but no answers were given. Guess we'll have to come up with those on our own. To be fair to the movie, the tidbit of the movie discussed here was not at all the main story line or subject of the movie. And for those of you who haven't seen the movie - be warned, it is quite long. Pretty good, but long.

Oh, and if you're thinking of going to a movie in the Netherlands, you'd better just wait your turn in line to get into the theater because the ticket-taker guy will admonish you for cutting in front of people. We don't understand much Dutch, but we did understand that much when some people in front of us were being chastised for not following the rules. Always, always follow the rules in this country!