Guess that’s all the excitement over then, I have had my birthday lunch, which was a grand affair, and we have been to Amsterdam for a look at the tulips.

Turned out we were not the only people with that single vision, which when you think about it is not surprising.  Highlights for me were: seeing huge fields of riotous colour from the bus; eating poffertjies while watching avocets and spoonbills; seeing young gorillas and orangutans; and seeing the silverback running to scare off a tapir, beating his chest like a wee laddie in the playground.

The hotel was good, handy for the station and the scarily punctual trains. The staff could not have been more helpful and there was a posh lounge with beautiful views of the city skyline.