Friends, Musicals, Roman Baths, And A Big Pile Of Rocks

My boss from the US was in London on vacation a few weeks ago so we decided to train it up to meet him and his wife. We caught the Eurostar on Thursday night so we could make an early tour the next day, and then planned on meeting him on Saturday for some tourism and a show.

On Friday, we took a long but interesting tour all around southern England. The first stop was Windsor Castle, the Queen's weekend home. It's quite a magnificent place that still looks like an old medieval castle. We walked through the chapel where Henry VIII is buried, as well as several other famous British rulers. Unfortunately the state rooms were closed, so we weren't able to go in there...I've heard they are quite beautiful.

From there it was a 1 1/2 hour drive in the pouring rain to the famous Stonehenge. Just as we approached the site, the clouds parted and we were treated to a nice, dry view of the site. To be honest, it's a big pile of rocks in the middle of a field. This was one of the few times that I've really enjoyed having an audio guide of a place. We learned that the 3000 year old structure was built from stones over 100 miles away. How people at that time could transport 40 ton rocks that distance just blew my mind. We also heard about the many theories of who built them and why...ranging from a timepiece to plant crops to a big practical joke by aliens.

The final stop on the tour was Bath, where a Roman bath house was discovered on top of the only natural hot springs in the UK. Here we roamed around the well restored piece of history, imagining what it was like in Roman times and admiring the amazing architecture and plumbing that the Romans were able to create. We had a little extra time after the tour so we spent some time wandering around the beautiful city. We stopped at Sally Lunn's Buns to pick up the "best bun in the UK" from the bakery in the basement of the oldest house in the city, built in 1482! It's amazing to me how short America's history seems after visiting some of these places. After that, it was a long 2 1/2 hour ride back to London. We were mentally exhausted after the trip, so instead of researching a restaurant we returned to our "favorite" dim-sum spot from our last London trip. Same experience as last time...terrific food, lousy service.

On Saturday we were planning to meet with Chris at 2:00 at the London Eye. We took it easy in the morning, grabbing coffee and making our way to Leicester Square for lunch. After lunch we hopped on the Underground only to find Chris and his wife standing right next to us in the car! What are the odds? So, the four of us made our way to the London Eye. Now, I've been to London two times before this trip, and the only thing I haven't done is the Eye...I'm terrified of heights. But, this time I had convinced myself to give it a shot. So, of course, the giant ferris wheel had broken down just two hours before we arrived. A little bummed, we decided to walk across the river to Westminster Abbey...only to find it closed as well. So, we did the only things left to do in London, hit up a pub! After a couple of pints we retired to our respective hotels to clean up before dinner and a show.

The four of us met up again and enjoyed a nice dinner in the SOHO area, and then cabbed it over to the theater to see Wicked. Chris had found absolutely amazing seats for us, which added to an already wonderful show. After the show, we parted ways quickly as the rain and crowds made it difficult to stand around and chat.

London is always a fun trip, and it was even better to be able to experience it with friends.

Home for Christmas

The stars were aligned for us to have a fantastic trip home at Christmas...we got a direct flight for a great price, NATO was closed so Keith had the time off, and we had friends willing to watch Bailey. The trip itself flew by; there is just no way for us to see everyone we want to see in just a week. My parents were gracious enough to let us crash at their place, and since they are storing our bedroom set in their basement we has a very familiar place to sleep. Possibly the best part of staying at their house was that they are taking care of Pumpkin for us, so we had our furry friend curling up with us most nights. Despite hectic Christmas schedules we were able to coordinate with several people, mostly over lunches and dinners.

On one of our first days, friends had organized a group dinner at a local Mexican restaurant. After a full year being deprived of Mexican food out here, we were quite excited. Several of our friends brought their beautiful new family additions, and we chatted away the evening over margaritas and burritos. Sadly we forgot our camera on this night, so we'll be relying on them to keep us supplied with baby photos. We had three or four other meals with friends, coworkers, and ex-coworkers during the week. Unfortunately there were still many people that we missed due to holiday travel schedules, but it was great to catch up with as many people as we did.

On the 23rd, Keith's mom drove up from Norfolk and stayed with my parents through Christmas. It was really great to be able to have our families together on Christmas. Other than a few shopping trips for some last minute gifts, we took it easy. The whole family took a trip to the church on Christmas Eve to watch our nephew's Christmas play. It was a cute and wonderful version of a Christmas story. Then, on Christmas day we had a blast watching my dad put on every piece of clothing he received...all at the same time. The rest of the day was spent preparing and enjoying the Christmas feast.

We spent our remaining days back home visiting friends when possible. Wendy was kind enough to bring Maya and her mother by a few times, so we got to spend a while with them. It was amazing how much she'd grown already. Our nephew Brandon also stopped by and hung out with us a bit, and we even took a trip to our old home that my brother Tom now owns. He introduced us to Rock Band, and the three of us and his roommate spent the evening playing and singing (apparently poorly as the game told us) away. We were also able to fill another craving with a trip to China Garden in Rosalyn for Dim Sum! It was exactly as we remembered, maybe even better :)

Several people asked us if we noticed anything different now that we've been away for awhile. We were both pretty blown away by the traffic, not that we didn't know it was bad, but it really stood out how crazy the drivers are there. Here, slow traffic truly stays to the right, it is illegal to pass on the right and you can't sit in the left lane, and people follow the traffic rules. I guess I've gotten used to it, that it was a shock to the system to be back with people swerving in and out of lanes, people going 55 in the left lane, and 90 in an exit lane. On a positive note, we loved going to see a movie. It's amazing to have so many theater choices, and movies without all the subtitles on it. I do wish we could add one feature that some of the theaters here have, pre-seating selection. When you buy your tickets you pick your seats, which reduces waiting in lines only to race and elbow others out of the way to save seats for your friends getting popcorn. Nonetheless, it was great to see a movie back home. Another great part about being home was being able to shop on a Sunday! We both needed to run some errands and almost forgot that we could do some of it on Sunday. And who doesn't love a 24 CVS? Ahhh..... the land of Convenience! Our other observation was no big surprise, but we were both pretty overwhelmed with the portions of food! The US really does bigger, sometimes better, but always bigger! It was not hard to feel a little sick after all the meals out with friends.

Anyway, after an uneventful but long flight back to Belgium, we had 5 days to recover from the jet lag and acclimate to the sub-zero temperatures here before Keith went back to work on the 5th. Despite not being able to see everyone that we wanted, it was still a fantastic trip home.

Love It, Hate It, Miss It – Part 3

Third in a running series answering the questions, what do I love about living here, what do I hate or dislike and what do I miss. Here are some more of my reflections:

Love It
Location: So we put down the little town we are in quite often. Just get Keith started and he’ll tell you all that is depressing about our part of Belgium, but we both agree that our town has a great location. In less then two hours driving we can be in four different Countries...France, Germany, the Netherlands and Luxemburg. By train and plane the list is extraordinary. We live less then five minutes from a train station and just minutes from the major highway so it’s very easy to get around. We came here for the opportunity to travel and our location has been really perfect in allowing us to get all over Europe. My favorite part is the fact that the highway sign by our house says “Paris” on it, a pretty nice change from “Richmond”

Cafés: I know I’ve talked a lot about us heading into the Grand Place to sit at a café, or that we’ve gone to a café for dinner...but it’s hard to explain how much we both love the café atmosphere. Town centers filled with tables under awnings, people out to have a beer or a coffee, and in no hurry. It’s a big adjustment from any eating/drinking experience in the States. Service is terribly slow, they don’t really check in on you, and it takes forever to get a bill, so why do I love it? Because you can sit for hours and just soak up the atmosphere watching people. You can order one drink and never be bothered or given a dirty look to hurry up. Even in the winter they have heaters under the awnings so you don’t miss a moment of the Christmas Markets. Cafes are just such a great part of the European lifestyle that I am enjoying so much while we are here.

The patient stare: So this actually used to be a Hate It topic about the Bureaucracy in Belgium, but discovering an answer has made it a love it or tolerate it. Basically Belgium has a standard response to any question...“no”. However, we have now discovered that "no" does not mean no, it means ask again, someone else, or be more persistent. We learned within our first weeks here that if at first you don’t get the response you want try, try, try and try again. In fact when I first arrived and needed an ID to get on the base I was given the standard no, and circular logic….“you need to get this badge first” which of course those people told me I needed my ID first. Finally I just stood at the window and stared, not angry, just waiting for some guidance, waiting, staring…. VIOLA! Success, “ok, just this time I’ll give the ID and will fix it in the system.” Not long after Keith and I attempted to get our drivers licenses, which surprisingly was not met by no, but instead the insistence that they would have to keep our American licenses. Again I simply, kindly, stared at the woman and said “No, that is not possible”. A day later we had our licenses without surrendering anything, all with a simple pause. Over and over this tactic has worked. It is still somewhat frustrating to always be met with an immediate no. It feels like people would rather spend an hour resisting or making excuses for doing work then just taking the five minutes to do a simple task. But I love knowing how to overcome it!

Hate It
No Websites: One of our biggest frustrations here is that almost none of the businesses here have websites. Those that do are very limited and have only the most basic of information. Surprisingly, the fact that they are in French isn’t really the problem, we’re pretty adept at translating information so that hasn’t really been the issue. I think we’d be more likely to try more restaurants and stores nearby if we could check them out a bit more online. We have been able to do all our banking and bill pay through the web, however, so we’ve been lucky that way.

TV: It’s like they are taunting me! They have a lot of great shows here on TV like The Simpsons, Friends, Lost, etc. but they are all in French. No subtitles, everything is dubbed in French. We get a few channels in English, CNN, BBC, and then there are some Dutch stations that play some shows that are in English with Dutch subtitles. So I can watch Star Trek the Next Generation, Monk, Magnum PI, etc. We even get the North American Sports Network that covers all the major games of the week, so we have been able to catch some Hokie games! But in the grand scheme of things English TV is limited.

Miss It
A Dishwasher: Overall our house has been great, a nice size, nicely furnished, and has all the modern conveniences we need minus one….a dishwasher. I really didn’t think I’d miss having one so much but it gets tiring doing dishes all the time. There are just times you want to throw everything in the dishwasher and walk away. We’d probably only have to run it once or twice a week but it’d be nice to keep the counters cleaned off in the meantime. Our kitchen is pretty dinky so it’s not really an option let them pile up. One can dream.

The Search for the Best Beer in the World

When Mike came to visit a while back, a beer loving friend gave him a list of must-try Belgian beers. I was ashamed to admit that despite living in Belgium for almost a year now, I had never even heard of the one at the top of the list...Westvleteren 12. On a side note, the number indicates the alcohol content...meaning 12% alcohol! I took a look in our Lonely Planet guide to Belgium and noticed that they too had rated it the best in Belgium. After a little more research I discovered that last year it had achieved the title of "The Best Beer in the World" by ratebeer.com, a popular beer aficionado site. (It has since fallen to second...still, not too shabby)

We started by going to our favorite beer shop in Brugge, which has every beer imaginable...except this one apparently. Several beer stores in Brussels proved fruitless as well. I tried the Delirium bar in Brussels who is famous for its beer selection, which is currently at 2004 available brews....again no luck.

As it turns out, the monks that produce this beer make a very limited quantity, and don't sell to stores or bars. The only way to get it is to drive to the abbey and pick it up yourself. Even then, you have to make an appointment by phone (which is impossible to reach, and they only speak Flemish), and you are only allowed two cases (about 40 beers) per car. I read online that there is a cafe attached to the abbey where you could get a glass of the beer, and sometimes purchase six packs when they are available (which is apparently never as I found out). So, we took a Saturday afternoon and headed to the abbey to try the "Best Beer in the World."

Upon arriving at the abbey in the middle of Nowhere, Belgium, we found the little cafe that the websites spoke of. I eagerly walked in to purchase my six pack at the little store, only to be greeted with a chuckle when I asked. Apparently about two times per year they will sell a case or two, but no more, and they don't know when they will get it. However, you are able to purchase a little kit which has 1 of their famous beer, 1 of their second famous beer (apparently the 10th best beer in the world), two of their "regular" beers, and a glass with the abbey's name on it for about 20 Euro. We tried to pick up several of these sets, but you are only allowed to purchase 1 per person. So, Elizabeth and I each bought a set for ourselves and then sat down for lunch, where we were finally able to try this famous beer.

I must say, I was not disappointed. The beer itself is dark like Guiness, but less bitter and a lot more flavorful. It's absolutely fantastic. I don't know if I would call it the best in the world, but it's certainly one of the best I've ever had. I'm sure that some of its fame comes from its rarity too, but it's absolutely worth a try if you ever get the chance. I found a few places that have imported it to the States, but it seems to run about $30 - $50 a bottle. If you're a big beer fan though, it might just be worth the price.