2009 Resolution

I think my most important resolution for the New Year is to better keep in touch with family and friends and to keep my blog updated more often. We have 6 months left in Belgium so I think that we will take advantage and try to travel around Europe more, who knows if we will ever get to come back to this area again. Isn't this a beautiful picture? This is a view of the sunset from our balcony.

THE HOLY FATHER

This was probably the highlight of our trip to Rome. It was the greatest thing to be standing almost right next to Pope Benedict XVI. We just found out the night before that there was going to be Mass on Sunday. How much more blessed can you be on your wedding anniversary! Now, the rest of your life together, you will always look back and have the memory of that special time.

Pizza? MickeyDs!!!

And even in Rome with all of Bob's favorite foods as you can see by this picture in front of a delicious pizza, there is definitely room for MickeyDs!!! As we were walking and walking and walking all over Rome, we found our most favorite fast food place inside a building which didn't have a very big sign. It was definitely worth it looking around each little place "around the corner" before we went for another great walking adventure.

In Rome - Celebrating 32 years together!

Rome was our present to ourselves for your 30th wedding anniversary and it was absolutely fantastic!!! We spent 3 glorious days going from one place to the next. We must have walked 50 miles and our poor feet were protesting at the end of each day but in the morning, we went out once again to explore and explore and explore... We went to so many places, I can't think of all of them right now. The highlight of our trip was on Sunday morning when we were able to attend Mass at St.Peter's square. We had just found out the night before that the Pope was going to be there and give Mass and canonize four saints. This is the last step in sainthood and a very big deal for all countries concerned. Another suprise was that one of the saints was from Ecuador. It was pretty emotional to see all those Ecuadorian flags flying in the wind and to hear the Pope mention the saint's name, Narcisa de Jesus, from Ecuador. Bob was very nice and stayed without complaining... much during the whole process which lasted FOUR hours!!! At the end of Mass, the Holy Father went around in the "Pope-mobil" and we ended up feet away from him. I made Bob get up on a chair and take pictures as Pope Benedict XVI came by. I kept telling Bob that I was so happy to be there that my heart felt it was going to explode! Here are a couple of pictures of the morning.

The picture on the left shows the Ecuadorian flags flying as the Priest's procession reaches the main Altar as Mass is about to begin. The picture on the right, shows two of the saints, the left is from India and the right is from Ecuador. India made history as their saint is the first woman from India to reach this step in the canonization process.

This will probably be one of the best moments to remember in our life together. Being in Rome at such a moment in Catholic history was absolutely the greatest way to celebrate our anniversary.

I will put some more posts with more stories of our wonderful trip at a later time.

A couple of hours in Antwerp

Bob and I went to Antwerp on the 14th of September. We met some friends there to celebrate the chinese Moon Festival. This is the first time we have gone into the town, ususally, we just drive by on our way to Nederlands. Antwerp is a very nice town... you should see all the diamond stores!!!! Anyway, it was Sunday so we could go even window shopping but there is a street near the Train Station where there were several stores. Diamonds are pretty but I love other stones more, Blue Saphires, Rubies, Blue Topaz, etc etc etc. Actually, anything that I would be given would be well received! LOL - This picture above is in front of Central Station which as you can see (a bit anyway) it is being renovated.











The picture on the left shows a Marian statue. They are around a lot of the buildings and private homes. The statue is on the corner of the building/house and it protects the family or people inside the building. The other picture, on the right, is a bit of the Cathedral of Our Lady. It can be seen from afar high above all the roof tops of the city. The front of the Cathedral is masive and it is joined by several buildings. The building of the Cathedral was started in the 14th century!



This is just a little clip of a "parade" of old vehicles. Don't know much about them except they were Datsuns. Some of them really need to be either worked on some more or completely retired. We were going to a Chinese restaurant which is on the street where all the cars were coming from, China Town.

A DAY IN HOLLAND

Our office family is changing in the next couple of weeks so we decided to have some fun together. We went Go-Karting in Delft, Holland. We had a great time! If you are in the neighborhood and want to try it out, here is the website: http://www.raceplanet.nl/index_karten.php?cat=Delft&id=274 That is Bob and I with Paul and John, getting ready for the race. The hairnets are to "protect" our hair when wearing the helmets that just about everyone in the world has already worn! We had about 12 minutes to go around the course and could go as many laps as you could during that time. I got bumped mored than a few times and one very hard but I was having so much fun that I didn't care. I really got into it as it was getting ready to end, I really wish we had had about 5 more minutes of it! Bob had a grea time as well - he was so much into it that his arms hurt for a few days. Maybe we will do it again!
The "girls" That is Feena (standing next to me), then Neeru (my boss) and her daughter Sasha. Sasha is only 14 so she couldn't participate in the fun but she was a good sport and watched us all make fools of ourselves. Needless to say, the three of us were the slowest in the group but we had lots of fun and that is what matters!!!

Then, we went to the beach and had a nice meal at a restaurant right next to the sand, where you could see the North Sea. The view was actually 100% better than the food but it was great to be out there by the water. It was not warm enough to get in the water (it was windy) but Neeru and Sasha did venture in and got their feet wet. Maybe next time...

Beautiful fountains

Brussels has several fountains around the city. These are two of my favorites. Bob is in front of a new/old fountain by Cinquantenaire Park near our place. It finally was finished after over a year's work. It had been in disrepair since we arrived to Brussels in Jan 2007 but now it looks beautiful.

This fountain is by the Atomium. I just saw it in May of this year, funny since we have been in the area several times and I just saw it as we were walking in a different direction on our last visit.

National Day - Belgium 1830-2008

From Wikipedia: "The Belgian Revolution was a conflict in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands that began with a riot in Brussels in August 1830 and eventually led to the establishment of an independent, Roman Catholic and neutral Belgium (William I, king of the Netherlands, would refuse to recognize a Belgian state until 1839, when he had to yield under pressure by the Treaty of London)." Just wanted to give a bit of background history to this important day in Belgium, 21 July. If you would like to learn more about the Belgian Revolution and consequent Independence from the Kingdom of the Nederlands, click here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgian_Revolution There are very interesting facts in this report.

Now for a look at a present day celebration. This is the second time that we can participate in Belgium's National Day commemorating this great country's independence. We witness so many wonderful events in the area but the parade was one of the best things that day. Here are some pictures.

I must say that we enjoyed watching the Belgian different branches of the military march by. We also enjoyed the Air Force display and although I missed taking several pictures (nice white skies were showing in my camera at one point - LOL), I did manage to take these two pictures.

As it is normal at all ocassions, a little bit of weirdness, we must also have...

Don't know the purpose of the orangey looking hair but if you wanted to learn how to scuba-dive, this was the time to do it. In the park, no matter the rain, you will get wet anyway, and there would be lots of people to witness your accomplishment (not only your changing your clothes!). Although we were too late to see the royals start the parade, here are a couple of pictures, I found on the internet. The royal family celebrated the day by going to Church (before the parade) and of course by observing the military march in front of them. Here are a couple of pictures of them doing just that. King Albert II and Queen Paola.

4th of July - Celebrating in Belgium - 2008

It has been 232 years since our great nation declared its independence with brave people fighting over the right to belong in the new land. It has been almost 122 years since the people of France presented the Statue of Liberty to the United States.

This is our second year in Brussels celebrating the 4th of July, our Independence Day. Not very much to do as you can imagine but we did go to the Brussels American School where we did have a bit of fun. Also, of course, there was the official reception that the Ambassador has and to which a whole bunch of officials from other embassies and from the local government are invited. Just to remember events, "Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July or the Fourth, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain." (from Wikipedia) Ambassador Sam Fox was present at the BAS celebration and welcomed the Major of Zaventen, the municipality where the school is located. I have to say that there was a lot of great food, we tried not to overdo it but, oh well, it is just once a year, right? Here are some scenes..

It doesn't matter, though, how far from home we are, we can still play a little softball and pretend we are home and it doesn't matter how cold and rainy it is in JULY!, we can still have some traditional games.

And so, here we are enjoying a bit of the day...

50 years of the Atomium

The Atomium - 1958

"Designed by the engineer André Waterkeyn for the International Exhibition of Brussels, that took place here in 1958, the Atomium is a structure that is half way between sculpture and architecture, symbolising an iron crystal by the scale of its atoms, magnified 165 billion times." It is amazing to look up at this monumental structure and think of the imagination of its creator and the workers who risked it all to build it. "The Atomium was not intended to survive the Exhibition of 1958. Its popularity and success, however, ensured its place as a major landmark on the Brussels skyline." This year is the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Atomium and as so long ago, visitors are in abundance participating in all types of celebrations. Living in Brussels, it is very easy to frequently visit this wonderful landmark. We have gone several times with friends as well as just by ourselves. Below are several pictures taken during different times at which we have gone to Heysel. Heysel is the commune where the Atomium is, just a few blocks from the royal estates of Laeken.

The first time we saw the Atomium was from the window of the tram we rode to Heysel. It certainly was an impressive sight! February 2007 - When we took a look at the Atomium, we felt a little sad as although it was still a great monument, it seemed desolated and isolated. It was being given a renovation and its surroundings were in a big mess but we still had fun looking at it and discovering a new space in our new home, Brussels.

This was taken on our first visit to the Atomium. Since then, we have gone many times and each time, we enjoy being there and looking out to the city from the top sphere.
These pictures show the "Little Europe" park which has replicas of the most famous places around Europe. You can see a mini Eiffel Tower from Paris, Shiphol Airport (Amterdam - best airport in Europe), etc.

You can just see also a little bit of (Heysel Stadium) soccer field, King Baudouin Stadium. This place has a sad story which happened in 1985 during the European Cup Final when during a riot between rival fans of Liverpool and Juventus teams. 39 fans died after a wall on the stadium collapsed. Since, the stadium has been rebuilt and more precautions have been taken to avoid such a disaster. The modern stadium offers a better view and more pleasant surroundings.

A Belgian Cathedral

Cathedral of St Michael and Gudula

You cannot imagine how many Churches there seem to be all over Europe but I will show you the main one here in Brussels. Some Churches are old, some are new but built over old, it is just amazing how beautiful they all are. Take for instance St.Michael's Cathedral in Brussels. It is an imposing place that when you look up, to the top, it feels like you are going to fall backwards. Our friends, Jamie and Denine were here last year around the end of May to celebrate their 25th anniversary, every time we wanted to take a walk inside the Cathedral, we found it closed but still were able to enjoy it from outside.

St Michael's is built on top of where the original Chrch stood and you can still see some of the ruins underneath. The whole place is beautiful and you wonder about how many people have gone through it throughout the centuries. Below is another detail from the outside of the Cathedral. Can you imagine all the work that went into each detail?

Today, the Cathedral of St. Michael and Gudula is the episcopal see of the Archbishop of Mechlin-Brussels and therefore the leading Catholic church in Belgium. All royal weddings and christenings take place here.

New Toy

Ok, so I am technology oriented but I have to admit that some toys are more challenging than others, especially the ones where I have to guess half of the options and what or how I could do things. So, I have a new toy, an HP iPAQ. It sure is a nice one! I really love it and I have already been able to do with it a lot more than I ever did with my old Palm One. I would like to have new software with it so I can play more but somehow, I accessed a site that only lists stuff in Euros! I guess I should expect it since I do live in Europe! BUT BUT BUT... Ok, I will be patient and wait for a response from HP to see if I can get the order processed in Dollars!

Working for the Secretary of State

Ok, not directly for her but she is the BIG BOSS! Thought I should explain a bit about why we are in Brussels. I work for the Department of State, in the Foreign Service as an Information Management Specialist. At the moment, I work at the American Embassy in Brussels. I started working as a direct hire in March of 2004 so I have 4 years in plus another 4 years that were added as a result of my service as a Family Member when Bob was in the Marine Corps. Talking about Bob, he decided that it was time that he followed me around instead of me going to where the Marine Corps sent us. So now, he is the Family Member and enjoying it immensely. After going through eight months of training in Virginia, we were sent on our way to our first post which was Cotonou, Benin. Cotonou was a very quiet place, not a lot to do but still enjoyed the beach and the beautiful sunshine. The picture I am sharing now shows the group of people I worked with at the Embassy. Other adventures description will come later. Working for the Department of State gives us the opportunity to travel around in many places in the world. Bob is a retired Marine and with his postings, we had already traveled to several places in Africa, Asia and Europe so this new life we have now is not really a new thing but a continuation of what we had already experienced before. We hope to continue our service to the US government until we can retire. This is a great life but also a sacrifice as it is a bit difficult to leave our child and grandchildren as well as our extended families behind. Hopefully, the adventures we share and the visits we manage to make to the US will make up a bit for our daily absence.

Brussels 2008

Never thought I would end up in Brussels, Belgium at some point in my life but here we are! Bob and I have been living in Brussels since January 2007 and just decided to start a blog to share our experiences with our friends and family. Belgium is a beautiful country and we are definitely enjoying life here... aside from how expensive it is, but that is another matter not having anything to do at all with how wonderful it is to be in Europe. I wanted to include a picture with this introduction and the most recent that I found was this one which was taken in Frankfurt, Germany last month. Yes, it was still pretty cold at night and a little rain came during our stay there but we have gotten used to it. I will talk more about this trip later. For now, I hope all our family and friends take a look every once in a while and see where our exploring and touristing has taken us. We will be in Europe for another year and I will keep you updated with new adventures as well as showing you some of our old discoveries and trips around the neighborhood.