Utrecht, Netherlands, October 22nd 2008. After Berlin came Frankfurt, a few days of a kind of eh-city saved by some excellent people.  The Main River was nice, I’ll give it that, and the schnitzel with the city’s patented grune sosse was pretty solid comfort food.  The apfelvein (apple wine) was bitter but grew on me.  The schnapps smelled better than it tasted.  But, like I says, excellent people did I meet.

After Frankfurt I took the train to Utrecht to meet up with Ted, an old college chum old buddy old pal.  The chilling commenced.  Much Chimay blue and listening to the Streetly Street Vol.2 compilation of French hip-hop (badass!) and the Dutch hip-hop group The Opposites, whose “Dom, Lomp & Famous” (“Dumb, Lazy & Famous”) became a new favorite of mine.  We talked of starting a hip-hop crew, but I think we’re both a little too busy to make it happen.  Ok, so he’s too busy.  I’d do it.  For real.  Quit your job, Ted.  Let’s rock it old skool.

And speaking of old skool (how’s that for a segue), Utrecht: charming as a mofo.  Like all the charm and character of its hundreds and hundreds of years is captured in the cobblestone like settled dust and sediment, and released back into the air by the click-clacking boots of the pedestrians and by the countless bikes whizzing by, where the pressure of each heel and each tire releases some intangible feeling into the air that bounces off the walls and past the low roofs of the old houses and right up to the bells in the Dom tower that ring it right back to everyone.