We had checked in to our Amsterdam hotel and had the afternoon and evening to get to know the city. It was sunny and we had been walking for about two hours.
‘Look, it’s Ben and Jerry’s,’ I said. We don’t have B&J’s in Australia. There are B&J stores in England but I hadn’t tried it yet. I love ice cream so it was only a matter of time.
‘Why don’t we get some?’ mum said. I didn’t need much convincing.
There were a few people in line ahead of me. I watched a girl and a boy point out their flavour choices. The counter woman scooped the ice cream into waffle cones and the happy couple stepped into the sunshine with ice creams in their hands.
Strange. I didn’t see them give her any money.
The next man wanted New York Fudge Chunk. ‘Can I have it in a cup?’ he asked.
‘Sure,’ she said and scooped the glorious ice cream into a cardboard cup. He tried to give her a Euro note but she waved it off.
‘No, it’s free!’ she said, smiling.
‘Free?’ He looked confused.
‘Free?’ I thought, blinking with growing excitement.
‘Yes! Today is Free Cone Day!’
‘Wow. Thank you!’ he said.
I rushed up to the counter. ‘Free Cone Day? Is it Free Cone Day?!’ I had never heard of such a thing.
‘Yes!’ The look of realisation in people’s faces was clearly making the ice cream lady’s day. ‘Just for today.’
‘Well, I’ll have three!’ I shouted. I had died and gone to heaven.
Ben & Jerry’s hold Free Cone Day on the same day all around the world every year. Mark it in your calendars, friends. Watch out for it in April or May.
