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Harry went to Utrecht to attend the IMCA agility event.
He flew from New York last time he went to Holland
for IFCS World Agility Championships four months ago.
But now, Harry is living in Switzerland.
It is so much easier for a dog to travel by train than by air.
So Harry and his master decided to take the City Night Line.
The train left Basel at about 10PM.
Harry went to sleep under the bed as soon as the train left Basel.
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At 6:30AM, just an hour before the arrival to Utrecht,
a friendly steward nocked the door to wake Harry and his master up.
He said, "I'll bring the breakfast in 15 minutes!"
Harry was yawning as he was waken up a little earlier than usual.
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Harry's master jumped out of the bed.
There was a small showerroom at the corner of the compartment.
But 15 minutes was too short to take a shower.
So she quickly washed her face and brushed her hair.
There were tooth-brush, tooth-paste, soaps, shampoo, and razors
just like in an ordinary hotel.
There was also a hairdryer beside the mirror.
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Exactly after 15 minutes, the steward brought the breakfast.
On the tray were croissants, cheese, ham, salami, cornflakes,
yogurt, muesli bars, orange juice, and milk-tea.
Harry was watching his master seriously while she was eating.
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After a while, the steward came back again to ask
if Harry's master wanted another cup of tea.
But she politely declined as she already had enough.
From the window, Harry could see wind power generators.
They finally crossed the border of Germany and entered Holland.
Utrecht is the first railway station in the Netherlands
which the night train from Switzerland stops.
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Utrecht is a large academic city.
One in five people there is a student.
The scenery of the canal was somewhat similar to that of Amsterdam.
But Utrechit is clearner and quieter than Amsterdam.
It is probably because there are less tourists in Utrecht.
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Behind Harry is the Dome Tower, the tallest building in Utrecht.
There are not many tall buildings like this in Utrecht.
People can see the Dome Tower from everywhere.
So when Harry got lost in this foreign city, he simply had to look
for the tower to find out where he was about.
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Utrecht University is located at the very centre of the city.
The univeristy is one of the oldest universities in Europe.
It was founded in 1636.
But the univeristy building is even older.
The chapel in this univeristy building was constructed in 1409.
The monument in front was Jan van Nassau's statue.
Can you see? Harry is sitting at the foot of the satue.
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Harry saw many colourful tulips in Keukenhof in May this year.
At that time, tulips were growing bulbs under the beautiful blooms.
The bulbs were all in the market after four months.
There were so many different kinds of tulip-bulbs.
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The canal running through Utrecht is clean and quiet.
Harry could see quite a few people fishing at the canal.
These two men were just staring at hook sinking in the water.
They never talked to each other, but kept smoking the pipe,
and waiting for the moment fish bites on the hook.
Very quiet time was passing there.
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People in Utrecht are really appreciating the beautiful canal.
Harry came across a group of boy-scouts practicing canueing.
There were also people reading newspapers or drinking a cup of
coffe at the terrace facing the canal.
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Harry met a big car when walking along the canal.
The cat was walking on the street first, but came down
to the canal to meet Harry.
Naturally Harry thought the cat wanted to make friends.
So he went to greet the cat.
But the cat only tried to surprise Harry by scratching his face.
Harry was quick to give up the idea of playing with the cat.
So he started walking again, but the cat continued to follow...
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Utrecht is well known as the hometown of Miffi Rabbit.
The author of Miffi still lives in Utrecht.
There were quite a few cartoon shops in Downtown Utrecht.
Miffi's memorial poststamps and pins of were sold in this shop.
In the window display, Tintin's dog "Snowy" was smiling.
That Snowy reminded Harry of his best friend in New York, Yuki.
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This is probably the biggest finding of this trip.
"Honden Toilet" means "Doggie Toilet" in Dutch.
Dogs can pee and poop whereever this sign stands.
And owners do not need to clean up after.
Harry's master could not believe this.
But there were indeed so many poops left on the lawn.
Was Harry's master only teased? Or was it really true?
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Harry enjoyed the stay in Utrecht.
It was easy to travel from Basel to Holland.
So he may visit Holland again in the near future.
Please also check Harry's report of the 7th
International Mix & Breed Championship Agility (IMCA).
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Utrecht, Holland 
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