The only bad news, is that we are flying American Airlines, UGH, well, life isn't perfect, but we sure know how to make the best of it, a Valium, ear plugs, a comfortable eye cover mask, and that part of the trip can just be erased from memory or prevented from ever entering our happy brains.
We fly into Brussels and take the "BULLET" train into Amsterdam.
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| Fast Train from Brussels to Amsterdam |
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| Netherlands and Belgium |
I ride the Amtrak Acela all the time between Boston, Providence, New York, Newark, Philadelphia and Washington DC, but it's only called fast, because it doesn't stop in every little town along the way, but it's nothing like the bullet trains in Europe or Japan.
The train ride between Brussels and Amsterdam is about 1 hour and 30 minutes, not bad.
Gil and I will have no car for 4 days, which is making me a little paranoid, I know, I am bad. But I like to go wherever I want, whenever I want and I am not used to share my space.
How is that for an Americanized Brazilian brat? ;)
But all kidding aside, Gil and I will be in good hands. Let me explain WHY we are going to Europe next week.
See, when I was a Rotary Exchange Student back in 1989, I lived in the US for one full year, in Oklahoma, and in the middle of my one year living here, I went on a 45 day trip with 57 Rotary Foreign Exchange students from all over the world.
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| This is the route of our 1989 trip around the US, it included Toronto, Canada and Cidaud Juarez, Mexico |
I made friends from Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Denmark, Finland, Turkey, France, Italy, Argentina, South Africa, Sweden, Spain, Mexico and a TON of Brazilians, mostly from Sao Paulo state, 1 from Parana state and 1 from Minas Gerais state and I know I must have forgotten to mention a country or two.
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| Rotary Exchange Program Summer Bus Tour USA-Canada-Mexico 1989 |
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| Me, Daniela, Miguel, Luciane, Ana Luiza, and Marcio walking across the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco |
But have you ever been in San Francisco in the summer wearing nothing but jeans shorts and a T-shirt? No! I have! You would cry like a 3 year old little girl.
Then you try to cross the Golden Gate Bridge on foot and freeze half to death, IN JULY people!!! JULY!
Alex, you would freaking turn blue and die in under 30 seconds.
Well, I was skinny, very HOT I know, and had all my hair still on top on my HUGE HEAD.
We went to one of those touristy stores in Chinatown and I bought the CHEAPEST sweat shirt the dimes, nickels and quarters found in the bottom of my JEANS backpack could afford, and apparently PINK wasn't a popular color, it was the cheapest, on sale for U$5,00 bucks, so PINK sweat shirt it was.
I thought it was the right price to use it one afternoon going across the Golden Gate Bridge. :)
For the first time since 1989, our group has re-organized, and Facebook played a fundamental role as a tool to make that possible. We have our own Summer 89 Bus Tour Community, and we will meet in Amsterdam to see each other after our trip of a lifetime, for the first time in 23 years later.
How cool is that?
Folks are coming from all corners of the world, you can imagine my level of excitement.
So, our friends from Amsterdam and the UK are preparing canal tours, bus trips into the interior areas of Holland, Cheese tours, Clog Factory, Cycling Tours, Canal Tours, a picnic at Vondelpark, Heineken Tour, Ann Frank and Van Gogh Museums, you name it!
However, we would love to hear from any of you who might have any experience in Amsterdam and and principally BELGIUM, and might want to share some tips, and recommendations with us.
That would be great! Principally because we don't have any locals guiding us thru Belgium.
I love when you share tips, when I was in Houston, Ginger from Flowers and more shared an awesome Persian restaurant and Bakery in that city, it was probably one of my favorite places to eat in this country EVER!!!
Our dear fellow blogger Sara, from Our Crazy Happy Life also one of my favorite Oklahoma Cowboy fans ;) , gave me a great tip on the BEST MEXICAN FOOD I ever ate in my life, that was my last night in Houston. Thank you so much Sara, I will treasure that for life.
I still crave Mexican Food, living in Rhode Island you get no Mexican Food what so ever, you might as well be in Sao Paulo, there seems to be more Mexican options there, ok, Ray, here you go side tracking gain.
Ok, so, please don't be shy, and share any tips, restaurant, hotels, scenic routes, small charming little towns, anything you think we could visit and enjoy as much as you did.
Again, talking to Ginger on facebook, she told me about the awesome little town on the coast of Belgium, called Bruges, it's on the coast. Colin Farrel was in a movie called "In Bruges (2008)", a cool action thriller. HERE is the link to "In Bruges".
So, needless to say, Bruges is on our travel plans, thanks again Ginger.
I love History, so I will enjoy Bruges, and have been doing a lot of reading about it all.
We also included Ghent on our trip, because besides the fact that Ghent is an awesome historic little town, it is where the BELGIUM WAFFLE was invented! You think I would miss that! Not in a million years, Belgium Waffle making class included. MAX Restaurant in Ghent, Belgium is the place where Belgium Waffles were invented, a couple of centuries ago, the same family still runs the place, several generations down.
Reading the reviews is so entertaining, they go on to mention that the restaurant has a line up front every morning, mostly Americans, waiting to eat Belgium Waffles for breakfast.
The owners often get irritated and have to explain every single day, that Belgium Waffles are not eaten for Breakfast, they don't even have the Waffle Iron and oven turned on until about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, about the time they start serving the Belgium treats.
Belgium eat Waffles plain, with just a coat of powered sugar, with coffee, as a mid-afternoon pick me up snack. No whipped cream, no fruit, jams or syrup, but they keep all these items for American tourists, who insist in eating Belgium Waffles the American way.
The Americans describing the experience often mention how light the Waffles are and that only one won't suffice, you should order many of them if you are hungry. :)
One thing that made me literally sick to my stomach was to read about the recent History of both countries and discover that most towns near the border with Germany look modern, everything is pretty much new, because they were all completely destroyed by the Germans, during the Nazi invasion of WWII.
It makes me sick to remember I am part German, it makes me sick because I can't believe HUMANS allowed this to happen. It mostly makes me sick because I come to realize, it is very possible that this could happen again. You don't understand how Germans were brainwashed by the Nazis? I have one word for you: "Tea Party", ok, that is two words.
And I am not saying Tea Party folks are Nazis, but they have a similar level of stubbornness, ignorance and may I dare say, racism, that Germans had in the decades preceding that horrible war.
One more thing before I get carried away in "side tracking land", despite the fact that I am part German, my Paulista grandfather fought in Italy and helped defeat the Nazis in that country.
Yes, in case you didn't know, Brazil had a significant participation next to the United States and the Allied forces and played an important role in defeating Hitler in Europe, and that makes me feel a little better about the whole thing of being half German.
Back to our post's topic, I wanted to explore all of Belgium, but because of our short time, 4 days, we will concentrate in the towns that were better preserved from the Nazis destruction, and visit the regions closer to the sea, where our greatest and best friends forever, the British, helped defend from the BASTARDS Nazis, Tom, your people are awesome!!! Please thank your grandparents for me when you see them again!! :)
No, we didn't have enough time to learn Dutch, but I heard they all speak English very well over there, so I am not too worried about that.
Belgium mostly speaks French but most people also are fluent in English.
Gil knows a little French and he lived in Louvain-la-Neuve, a small town just outside of Brussels, Belgium, when he was 19 years old, we will definitely include this town in our trip.
So, please, please, share any tips you might have for us for Belgium or Holland.
We will most definitely post pictures and a post trip post.
Thank you
Abracos
Ray
