for W3c validation
Today, I’m finally leaving the Flying Pig Beach Hostel. I’ve spent about 10 days here total over the course of the past 2 1/2 weeks.
If you’ve been traveling long enough, you’ve come across one of those places you just can’t bring yourself to leave. The Flying Pig Beach Hostel in Noordwijk is one of those places. It’s not just me either. Every day, I see someone wander up to the reception desk and say something to the tune of…
Can I extend my stay one more night?
Any chance I can add three days to my reservation?
One more night please?
One couple from Hungary overstayed their intended departure date by a full 7 days. Why? It’s a low key, chilled out alternative to Amsterdam — just an hour away from the strippers and coffee shops of Amsterdam. Life is just comfortable. Get up, go hang out at the beach, chill out and chat with fellow travelers, smoke, drink a few beers, cook dinner. Many that stop here have been traveling non stop every 2-3 days for a month or more and just want a few days of doing nothing and NOT traveling.
I was here for 2 nights back on my first trip to Europe in 2005. It’s still the same great hostel it was back then, maybe even better. There’s a nice bar downstairs. And of course, a smoking room and deck out back (the closest place to buy weed is a 30 minute bus ride away in Leiden). Noordwijk reminds me a bit of Ocean Park, Washington where my dad lives. Sandy dunes, always a breeze, grey overcast skies, and not-so-warm water. But I still love visiting Ocean Park — it’s just not your 90 degree, always sunny, warm water beach.
What are the “can’t bring yourself to leave” hostels/destinations for you?
