Well if you hit up the DAM over new years myself and a couple friends will be there. Our schedule looks something like this:

Dec 28 Amsterdam
Dec 29 Amsterdam
Dec 30 Amsterdam
Dec 31 Amsterdam
Jan 1 Rome
Jan 2 Rome
Jan 3 Pompei/Naples/Sorrento
Jan 4 Rome
Jan 5 Amsterdam
Jan 6 Brussels and Antwerpen
Jan 7 Amsterdam
Jan 8 Leave for home

Let me know where you will be perhaps meet for a beer?

Jon,

Brussels and Antwerpen is a fair distance away from A’dam, you’ll spend a hell of a long time travelling just to have a beer or two.

Besides, you’ll meet people everywhere. Relax!

How long is the train ride?

About three hours to Antwerp, 4 to Brussels if I remember correctly, but I never have remembered anything correctly in the land of beer!

HA! Thats what a video camera is for! Thank God I dont have one of those chips in my arm!!! Savings would be gone in a night!

thanks JonDD. I’m always down for a pint. I’ll let you know but I doubt I’ll be going as far north as Amsterdam. Last year when I went I could barely get myself to leave the coffee shops. Hows Pompei/Naples/Sorrento? Are they worth checking out? I’m thinking about heading back to Florence and going back out to Tuscany again. Last year, the museum with David was under construction.

Pompei/Naples/Sorrento are great but weather could be unpredictable- I froze my buns (notice I didn’t say ‘off’ cuz I still have them) in Jan of 2000 in Sorrento. The farther south I went (Sicilia) the colder it got.

my philosophy is, I’d rather have cold or bad weather than hoards of tourists, so it’s a tradeoff.

As long as you’re prepared for the weather, it really won’t make that much of a difference, imho. I’d probably take my chances on a colder climate in the hope of having snow rather than rain to deal with. Winter snow is pretty; winter rain SUCKS. It’s not like it’s going to be tropical in Italy or Greece.