It Was a Good Run

It's become somewhat of a tradition for our little family to ride the rails to the nearest Starbucks store as often as we can.  We realize that we could take the train to many more exotic destinations, but the short trip to Starbucks at the Deventer Train Station is tried and true; we know from experience how difficult it is to travel long distances with the twins, and the Starbucks store is found just steps from the train.  Life with twin toddlers can be challenging enough (especially in a foreign country); we've learned to keep things simple.   Unfortunately, our frequent train rides to Starbucks may have come to an end after our last trip on Sunday morning.  The universe was certainly sending us all of the signs that it would be, anyway.

Jim had spent most of both Friday and Saturday traveling on the rails to and from Zurich, Switzerland, where he met our friend Matt for the Fitz and the Tantrums concert that took place on Friday night.  After crashing on an air mattress in Matt and Kerri's apartment that night, Jim turned around and hopped on another train to return home on Saturday.  It's safe to say that he had his fill of train travel, but he kindly obliged us by agreeing to a Starbucks run on Sunday morning. 

Once we were settled on board the train that would carry us to sweet, sweet coffee, Jim noticed that our quiet, empty train car was marked with a '1'.  He wondered aloud if we were in the first class car, and if we had been unknowingly traveled on the first class car each and every time we had ridden on the train with the twins.  Jim had mistakenly gotten on (and was subsequently asked to leave) a first class train car on his way to Zurich. 

Not five minutes after Jim asked his question, we were BUSTED!  For the first time in the many train trips that we have taken, we were asked to show our tickets and then told that we were indeed riding in the first class car and would need to move to second class.  Much to the twins' confusion, we gathered up our books and backpacks and moved to the next train car, which was dirty, dark, and crowded.  A few minutes later, we realized that the car was also SILENT.  The car to which we had moved OUR TWO TODDLERS was the SILENT CAR!  Of course.

After repeatedly shushing our children and ignoring the glares from the people who thought that they would be able to read or work on the Silent Car without being disrupted by any babbling and shrieking toddlers, we finally reached our destination.  A short walk through the train station, and we could unwind with our treats (as much as we can with two monsters wreaking havoc wherever we go). 

I lost some of my appetite for those sweet treats when a man hurried past us to a nearby sewer grate and VOMITED...twice. 

It was just as well that I didn't have much desire to indulge in my sweet, rich mocha; shortly after sitting down, Maddie grabbed her crotch and announced that she was going "poo".  I told her that I would change her diaper when we returned home...and then I noticed that a small puddle was forming under her chair.  She had not gone "poo" as she had thought, but was reacting to the feeling of urine seeping through her diaper and down her leg.  Luckily, I had stuffed a diaper and a changing pad in my bag on our way out of the Little Dutch House that morning.  Unfortunately, I didn't think to bring a change of clothes for either twin.  Also just as unfortunate was the fact that there is no bathroom at this particular Starbucks store. 

After pleading with the very kind barista, she agreed to unlock a stock room to allow me to change Maddie in there.  I fought the urge to steal flavoring syrups, and did my best to clean Maddie up before returning to tell Jim that it was time to leave.  We needed to put an end to the our trip.

We practically ran through the station to avoid seeing/smelling/stepping in the vomit on the floor, and boarded our SECOND CLASS car to make the trip back to the Hengelo train station.

The twins were surely oblivious to the flaws in Sunday's train trip, but for me, the "magic" of the experience has definitely waned.  I don't know that I can go without a Starbucks mocha until we return home, but I don't know that we'll be taking the train to visit Starbucks again. 

Sadness.

Sunday's train trip and Starbucks visit may have been marred by vomit and urine, but at least I was able to catch this shot of Maddie and Jim as Maddie looked out the window of our SECOND CLASS car.