Who Would Have Thought???

Back in 1999, when I was still Miss Williams and the year I became Mrs. Vastine, Nick was one of my third graders.  And, even after third grade, Nick and I kept in touch.  He helped in my classroom in high school, and with Facebook, we have stayed connected over the years.  Now in his last year of college, he had the opportunity to study in Lyon, France.  And, I'm very proud of him for taking the opportunity.  I told him if he was ever in Brussels I would be happy to show him around.  But of course, who wants to hang out with their third grade teacher?  Am I right?!  I was pretty sure I would not hear from him.  So, I was beyond thrilled when Nick contacted me and said that he would be coming to Brussels in October and would be staying with us.  Yay!!!

Thomas and I picked him up at the train station on Thursday morning (no school for the kids due to conferences.)  We dropped his things off at our house and headed straight for the Grand Place.  Speaking for Nick, I think the Grand Place (and maybe the beer too) was his favorite part of Brussels. 

We laughed at his point...both agreeing that we never thought we would be standing in the center of Brussels together. It was surreal.

Manneken Pis

We walked around the city and had waffles.  How do I not have any pictures of the waffles??

A stop at the Palace.  No coat for Nick.  He doesn't wear a coat....we'll see about that. ;)

I had to attend the kids' conferences, so we parted ways and Nick enjoyed exploring Brussels on his own.  We met again in the evening for dinner and Westvleteren at our favorite bar in Brussels.  I did have to give Nick a hard time.  I had noticed he hadn't called me by name all day.  I've been there.  It's awkward when you are with former teachers, but you are now an adult.  I STILL have teachers that I absolutely cannot call by their first names.  So, I totally called him out on it and asked him to call me Wendy.  He needed a few reminders, but overall a success.  Poor guy.

Very happy guys.  But who is going to drive??  Not me.  I was enjoying one too!

On Friday, Allison was off to Disneyland Paris for orchestra, so Nick, Thomas, Jack, and I headed to Brugge.  I had offered Brugge to Nick, and he was thrilled we would be able to visit.  In Bruges is one of his favorite movies, so the city was a must see.  Side note:  Brugge is the Flemish spelling and Bruges is the English and French spelling.

With Jack along, there would be no complaining from Thomas.  And, we rode the train, so that was a bonus too.

The Belfry....If you're a fan of the movie In Bruges, you would want to climb the belfry (Nick of course.)  If you have been to Brugge 10 times, you have no desire to climb the belfry (that would be me.)  I didn't want to be the party pooper, I am a terrific sport, I didn't want to look like I COULDN'T do it (LOL), and I knew the younger boys were all for it.  So, up the belfry I went.  All 330+ steps of the belfry.  And, I survived. ;)

Way up there above the clock...yes, that is where we were.

I could not get any decent shots with all of the crazy back light, but you get the idea. 

Okay, I guess it was worth it. ;)

 Jack picked the lunch spot.  It was his favorite pizza place on the square below the belfry.

Yes, they put that thing away for lunch.

Ohhh, look who is wearing a coat back there. :)  I insisted.  Brugge is COLD, and he admitted he was glad he had it.  I win!

Having a beer.  Pretty sure we didn't anticipate this either in third grade.

 On this chilly and rainy day, we still did the boat tour.  The leaves are starting to change.  Fall is my favorite season and even more beautiful in Europe.

My buddy

The picture I really wanted was these two with their hoods up not paying any attention to the boat cruise.  But, of course, they would not allow that to happen.  I wonder what people think about my kids when they do this cruise.  They could probably give the commentary, so it really looks like they are checked out. I'm starting to feel the need to explain to other tourists.  I actually did explain to a family on our Seine River tour in Paris.  Allison was lying down editing pictures on her iTouch.  I'm sure that did not look good.  Oh well!

The smallest bridge in Brugge with the coolest group of guys.

 I had promised Nick we would get him some mussels before he left.  So that was our last stop on Friday night.  That was quite a pot of mussels, and he finished them!  Chris had never seen In Bruges, so that was how we concluded the evening (and with more Westvleteren.)

 Saturday morning, we were off to Disneyland to meet Allison, so we took Nick to his hotel in Brussels to finish out his stay until his Sunday morning departure. :(

Nick, thank you so much for visiting.  We absolutely loved having you here, and you are welcome back anytime.  Hopefully, you can squeeze in one more visit before you head back to the states.  Or, we might just have to check out Lyon. :)

Until next time,

Wendy