Thursday, January 18, 2024

Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands

[Throwback] Schiphol airport is the main international airport of the Netherlands and is also the hub for KLM airline.
There are quite a number of Chinese passengers/travelers transiting thru Schiphol that some airlines (I believe is China Airlines, stationed some their Chinese staffs on the ground to help out with the communication). These staffs diligently walk-around the airport waiting area/boarding area to 'personally' approach and remind the Chinese travelers on the on-boarding time. Such a great service. One of the staffs even approached me and asking (in Mandarin) if i'm taking flight to 'so-and-so Chinese city' via 'so-and-so airline' coz the boarding gate is about to close soon😂
Anyway, good job to these Chinese staffs!
Meanwhile, i was taking a connecting flight back to KL via KLM. So, i only lingered around the transit area (without having to check-out). The transit area is a busy hall for stranded transiting passengers and there is no door to exit. I can only see the outside from the glass panel.
There are restaurants, cafes, Heineken bar, gifts & bookshop, perfumes & cosmetics shops, candies & chocolates shop and liquor shops in this huge hall. But what caught my attention is this shop that sells plant seeds. There are a variety of plant seeds sold here.....flowers, veggies, decorative plants, melons, pumpkins...
[Below] The packaging shows an introduction of the plant and the best method to keep it alive (in various languages).
5 Euro each. I wonder who would buy these in the airport. Some countries forbid traveler from carrying seeds into the country and impose heavy penalty/tax/summon. Unless you are certain that the next disembarkation country does not impose such penalty then feel free to buy and carry along. I don't think it is even allowed on plane without proper documentation in place.
Anyway, this shop also sells fresh and fake tulips.
The transit area is huge and there are plenty of seats to rest your feet and quietly do your work. Most tables/benches have charging plugs. And one can choose to do their work in the airport library apart from those long benches in the boarding area.
a grand piano for those who want to flex out their musical talent.
You can also sit here to admire the porcelains....
nice eh?
After 7 hours in the transiting area, it's time to board the next flight back to KL.
I was served with chicken ham roll, fruits and yogurt as breakfast a few hours before landing.

2 comments:

  1. Ah, your 7 hours transit in KLM airport reminds me of transit in Melbourne airport from kl to nz. Like living in the airport for 7 hours.

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  2. What a cool feature ie the staff providing free translation services!
    Do you think the airport is bigger than Heathrow?

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