First of all, Happy Birthday to my darling nephew Sawyer! We miss you so much!!!
We've spent the last few weeks taking Flat Stanley to locations around Belgium for Thomas's class in Morton. I'm sure Flat Stanley would have really enjoyed Brussels, but poor Stanley was left at home, and of course it was Mom's fault. It always is I tell ya! Not to worry though...he has seen some cool places. Today, Thomas and I took some pictures with Stanley in our own little town of Hoeilaart.
Here is the castle that stands in the center of our town. It is used more as an office building, and I am sure some other really important things...that I don't have a clue about. It sure is beautiful though.
In front of the castle is a little pond. Thomas is hoping to one day fish in this pond. The kids really like the two swans that live there.
We moved from the land of pumpkins to the land of grapes. They are a really big deal here. We have a grape festival the same week as the pumpkin festival in September. But, the grape festival has fireworks...something to strive for Morton. :)
This is a very typical road sign...clear as mud, right? I can tell you that centrum means the center of town. And, this does not necessarily mean that this town is the next town you will come to. It only means that it is in that direction. And sometimes the name of the town is in French...and sometimes it is Flemish or Dutch. So, you better know them both. Thank goodness for GPS!!!
This is my favorite restaurant in Hoeilaart. It is called Nerocafe and has original comic artwork hanging inside. Comics are also a big deal in Belgium. In fact, the comic that created these lives in my neighborhood! I'm going to have to figure out which house is his when the weather gets a little nicer. I'm one of those that likes to walk at night...you know...so you can look in the windows and see the cool decorating. Not a stalker...just looking for ideas!
And, here is the beautiful church in the center of town. My impression is that not much worship actually happens in these amazing buildings. It's sad.
Another typical road sign...hope you're a quick reader!!! All of those places are to the right. Brussels is our capital. :) The kids school is in Watermaal-Bosvoorde. Groenendaal is the train station (I think), and the ring is the main highway. And, the other stuff is too small for me to read.
Another shot of the lake with the castle, and you can even see our car parked to the right of the castle.
There are playgrounds everywhere, and most of them serve a purpose of exercise. This one had directions on how to use the equipment. I was showing Thomas my skills from doing the parallel bars in elementary school. He really had a very hard time doing this. The boy lacks upper body strength. Hindsight...this really shouldn't be in this post.
Thomas wanted a picture of Mom. Sweet boy!
We set the timer for this one. Let's see how annoyed Mom will get when she goes back to the camera to see that I didn't smile. He's famous for this!
He held this for approximately one second.
Awww....there's his smile!
The sit up station...he did two...
And one last shot of the castle. The Belgium flag is almost completely ripped in half. When I am an official resident in about 2 1/2 weeks, I think I will suggest they replace that thing!
There is a transportation strike here in Belgium tomorrow. This will impact buses, trains, taxis, and airlines. It should be a very interesting day!
Until next time,
Wendy
