Happy 4th of July everyone!! Hope you are all having a wonderful and relaxing holiday weekend with family and friends. Ben and I were able to have a little 'picnic in the park' party with our American friends yesterday. We've been having fabulous summer weather here lately, so we take every opportunity to be outside and soak in the sun!
Greg had a very productive work trip to Paris a few weeks ago. He even got a little "play" time to sightsee and enjoy the city. Here's a great photo he took that captures the scene of the water color painting we bought when we visited in May. I love it!
Now for a recap of our fantastic trip to Brussels...
We took a train on Saturday morning to Bruges, about an hour away. We loved it there - a very cute, quaint little town. Very touristy, but very rich with history and culture. Photos below include the Church of Our Lady (where we saw a wedding taking place early in the day, so we went back later to see Michaelangelo's Madonna and Child sculpture), the Provincial Court in Markt square, and the City Hall in Burg square. Our favorite part of the day was a little boat ride through the canals (we got a great shot of the Belfry). And, of course, sampling the wonderful Belgian chocolates (and more free chocolate for Ben)!! The train was packed on the way back to Brussels; we had to sit in the vestibule the whole way. We overheard some American high school students who were backpacking through Europe. They were chattering away about how stupid and small Belgium was, how rude the French are, etc. I was so sad for them, they were being so disrespectful to the other possible Belgian or French travelers, not to mention their parents who I'm sure were footing the bill for their trip. Why even come to Europe if you are going to be negative about your experience? Anyhoooo, I'll get off my soapbox now. We enjoyed a picnic dinner on the lawn in front of the St Michael cathedral, and ended the day with another yummy waffle (Greg is addicted!) and a Belgian lace souvenir purchase.
Sunday was meant to be fun day for Ben - the Atomium and Mini-Europe. But, I think his back molars must be bothering him because he didn't get much sleep and was Mr. Cranky Pants as we walked around Mini-Europe. He finally settled down once he realized he could push the blue button in front of each model and hear the national anthem of that country (he's a sucker for music). The whole thing was a little cheesy, but really quite amazing at how detailed and precise the models are of many of the famous buildings in Europe (and, where else can you get Big Ben, the Eiffel tower, and a water slide all in one photo?). Back to the hotel for Ben and Dad to take a nap, then ventured out again to St. Catherine cathedral and of course...the photo everyone has been waiting for...Mannekin Pis. It is hilarious to me that there is a statue of a little boy peeing, and then funnier still that there is such a huge crowd of people taking photos! We saw a shop selling Mannekin Pis fountains and thought of picking one up for the Shipley patio/garden. :) We finally made our way to the Grand Place center and saw the beautiful buildings. We had some really tasty Italian for dinner (yet again, more free chocolate for Ben) and saw lots of German and Spanish soccer fans strolling the streets as the Euro final was Sunday night. (Spain won for all those who don't keep up with international soccer, and we heard the celebrations most of the night!)
Monday morning was check out. We left our bags at the hotel to wander around the city a little more. The pace of this vacation was so different than Paris. So much to see and do in Paris that we felt like we were on a "tight schedule" to see everything, but in Brussels we were able to walk in a direction and happen upon some really beautiful things without really having a plan. We saw a few more churches, the Palais Justice, and found Wittamer chocolates, which had an unbelievable display window! Stopped to devour some frites with ketchup and mayo, picked up some beer to bring back home, and caught the 1:19 p.m. train back to Amsterdam. We admit that there is a big part of Brussels that we didn't experience...the mussels. I can admit that I've tried them before (and didn't enjoy the slippery, slimy things), so the closest we got this trip was a picture. :)
Well, that sums up our trip pretty well. Our EurRail passes expire the end of this month, so we leave in less than two weeks for Lucerne, Switzerland. A few days after we get back, our first visitors arrive - Greg's brother, Nick, and his girlfriend, Megan. We can't wait to see you both!
Getting to Know Amsterdam tidbits:1. Sad news to report. The radio stations here play Phil Collins too. :(
2. More sad news to report. Summer construction season has played havoc on our stroller wheels. Lots of sidewalks are being torn up for repaving or other construction projects. And we thought getting away from Chicago expressways would mean getting away from summer construction...3. I've made many new and unexpected friends with my little social butterfly, Ben. Let me explain a few recent outings. Ben wanders over to a man sitting on a bench at the park drinking beer with his buddies. He starts to chat with me, telling me how they are going to walk to Switzerland. I ask when they are coming home to Holland, and he tells me he has no home...the streets are his home. Wow, wasn't expecting that! Another instance was yesterday during our 4th of July picnic. Ben is playing with a toy cell phone and wanders over to a couple sitting with their baby on a blanket. The man smiles at Ben and asks who is on the phone. So, Ben sits down on their blanket and starts playing "phone". They were very sweet, and I had a really nice chat with them. I guess I shouldn't complain...he could have made friends with the woman sunbathing topless about 100 feet away, which would have really pulled me out of my comfort zone. Which leads me to my final tidbit for today...
4. Have I mentioned that it is "typical Dutch" as they say to have the children play at the pool completely naked?! And by children, I don't mean just babies...5, 6, 7 year old boys and girls all running around playing in and out of the water in their birthday suits! I've even seen some of the parents join in the fun. I think this is one Dutch tradition that the Zabikows will not be partaking of...
On that note, I think it's time for me to 'take off'! Doei!!
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