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| so happy I can't keep my eyes open |
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| all is good |
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| Kleiner Feigling |
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| German band, but don't worry they also played Michael Jackson |
9.28.2012
Oktoberfest
Last Saturday we went to the SHAPE Oktoberfest celebration. We had a wonderful time drinking German beer and Kleiner Feigling, fig flavored vodka. We also dabbled in some food including delicious Bavarian pretzels. Can't wait to go to the real Oktoberfest in Munich next year!
We leave for Amsterdam on Thursday. Apparently the transportation union is going on strike on Wednesday, hope they work things out quickly.
9.23.2012
Over the Hump
Whew, I am glad this week is over. Rob came home Friday after being in Ramstein, Germany since Sunday. Based on my last post it was pretty obvious I was dreading it. Besides the fact that we couldn't talk on the phone (thank goodness for Facebook) and I swear something was trying to get in our house every night, it was a really good week.
Starting last Saturday, we went to a going away party for one of Rob's assistants. I am actually really sad she is leaving because I think she would have been a great to get to know better. When half the room is crying at an army going away party (they happen all the time) you know she made an impact. The party started at the St-Feuillien Brewery in Le Roelux which is about 15 minutes from our house. It was a great group of about 40 of us from army, navy, air force and Belgian civilians. The tour was 5 Euro which included 2 beers at the end. Since Europeans are unbelievably laid back, it is pretty safe to say everyone had more than two beers. But not everyone got behind the bar and started serving beers like this girl. It's probably time I work on my Belgian beer tolerance.
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It was a wonderful night and we got to meet a lot of great people which I think we were both craving. At some point in the night I agreed to wake up at 6:30 am on Sunday to go to the Waterloo Flea Market. I am SO glad I did! It was so much fun and there was so much stuff to see. Getting up early was so worth it. The experience was made complete by eating McDonalds breakfast, don't judge. So while I was busy buying us a new dining room table Rob was on his way to Germany. Pics or what I bought:
As weird as it sounds, Rob being gone kind of forced me to get out and do things on my own. So this week I drove to the Ikea in Brussels and spent about 2 hours there. It had its challenges including employees that spoke french and others that spoke dutch. Its amazing that a country the size of Maryland can't pick a language. I also went to another furniture store down the street from us that was pretty cool- comparable to Crate and Barrel. These may sound like easy tasks but when you don't speak the language and you are determined to try it is very humbling to go anywhere. I also got a lot of stuff cleaned out of the house and started cooking and baking more. I made Rob a "Thank the lord you are home, oh and look I bought a dining room table" dinner. It was delicious and amazing how long we can sit and talk when we haven't in 5 days. Ramstein sounds pretty neat and offers all the American things we will miss eventually...Taco Bell, Macaroni Grill, Chilis, etc. etc.
The weather is still great here. It's been in the mid sixties with very little rain for a few weeks. Soon the sun won't come up until after 8 am and will go down at 4- I'm not looking forward to that. Here is a pic from our yard, I can't take credit for the flowers but I can take credit for not killing them, right?
I finally feel like we have gotten over the transition hump and are starting to feel settled. There is still plenty to do to the house but we are in no big hurry. I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend- Oktoberfest pictures to come soon!
Starting last Saturday, we went to a going away party for one of Rob's assistants. I am actually really sad she is leaving because I think she would have been a great to get to know better. When half the room is crying at an army going away party (they happen all the time) you know she made an impact. The party started at the St-Feuillien Brewery in Le Roelux which is about 15 minutes from our house. It was a great group of about 40 of us from army, navy, air force and Belgian civilians. The tour was 5 Euro which included 2 beers at the end. Since Europeans are unbelievably laid back, it is pretty safe to say everyone had more than two beers. But not everyone got behind the bar and started serving beers like this girl. It's probably time I work on my Belgian beer tolerance.
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| hhhhhoooppps |
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| Couldn't stop staring at this staircase, pic doesn't do it justice |
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| Round 1- Black Saison (newest beer) and Cuvee De Noel- my favorite |
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| Me and the hubs |
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| Behind the bar, Christmas pic? |
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| New dining room table |
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| Hanging shelf with hooks for coffee mugs- hoping to paint soon |
As weird as it sounds, Rob being gone kind of forced me to get out and do things on my own. So this week I drove to the Ikea in Brussels and spent about 2 hours there. It had its challenges including employees that spoke french and others that spoke dutch. Its amazing that a country the size of Maryland can't pick a language. I also went to another furniture store down the street from us that was pretty cool- comparable to Crate and Barrel. These may sound like easy tasks but when you don't speak the language and you are determined to try it is very humbling to go anywhere. I also got a lot of stuff cleaned out of the house and started cooking and baking more. I made Rob a "Thank the lord you are home, oh and look I bought a dining room table" dinner. It was delicious and amazing how long we can sit and talk when we haven't in 5 days. Ramstein sounds pretty neat and offers all the American things we will miss eventually...Taco Bell, Macaroni Grill, Chilis, etc. etc.
The weather is still great here. It's been in the mid sixties with very little rain for a few weeks. Soon the sun won't come up until after 8 am and will go down at 4- I'm not looking forward to that. Here is a pic from our yard, I can't take credit for the flowers but I can take credit for not killing them, right?
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| View of back of house- the dirt patch is for our future garden |
I finally feel like we have gotten over the transition hump and are starting to feel settled. There is still plenty to do to the house but we are in no big hurry. I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend- Oktoberfest pictures to come soon!
9.13.2012
Je donne ma langue au chat!
Translation: I give up!
While this is not the exact translation, it is a french idiom that I learned in class today and have said approximately 534344 times in the past 2 weeks.
It is hard to explain just how hard the last 2 weeks have been. Locking ourselves out of the house was just the beginning of a string of "learning experiences." A part of me wants to list everything that has gone wrong so that someone, anyone, can feel my pain. But, I won't do that to you. Just know there has been a lot of crying, cussing and then hugging it out between Rob and I as we blow up appliances, replace items lost and stolen, and learn how to do adult things like take care of a yard. Every single thing we do takes at least 3 tries to get it right...every single thing.
A few highlights from the past few weeks. Unfortunately there are no pictures...my phone and camera were in the purse that got stolen.
On September 1st we took the train to Brussels (30 min each way and cost us 7 euro/ticket) for the Brussels Beer Weekend. There were 250 Belgian beers to try and we got through about 5 before I looked down and realized my purse was gone. We were having the time of our lives with our new British friends and then it all came to screeching stop when we realized I had my iphone, new camera, debit card, car and house key and train tickets in there. Luckily we had also met an American couple that drove to Brussels that day and they gave us a ride home and helped us break in our house...for the second time in 3 days. Back to the festival...it was SO much fun! Best day we have had since moving here for sure. Cannot wait to go back next year and catch some more festivals throughout the year. By far my favorite beer was The Pink Killer from the Brasserie de Silly. It was sweet and delicious without being too much. A perfect brunch or tailgating beer. Rob loved it too so it wasn't too girly.
On Friday we took a day trip with Rob's team to Dinant, BE. Rob and I are planning to go back soon. Its a great little river town with little patisseries, shopping and live music. It's know for being the home of Adolfe Sax, who created the saxophone.
On Saturday we went to SHAPE Fest. It's the base's biggest event of the year. Each country represented has a booth with native food, drink and items to purchase. There was SO much food! If you are wondering...we went to the American tent and they served chicken wings, burgers and hot dogs and Budweiser products. Oh and Nelly was playing while we were there, representing the Lou. The American tent was by far the loudest, because that is how we are. You don't realize it until you aren't in US anymore, but we are loud. There was live music all day and carnival rides of those who have kids. It was fun but we decided that next year will be better when we actually know a few people.
I started french class on Monday which I have been looking forward to. Most of the people in there are American but there are also people from Spain, England, Sweden, Romania and Slovakia. It feels good to be in the classroom again for sure. Since being here I have a new found respect for those people living in foreign countries and not knowing the language yet. Side note: After class I met Sally-Anne from England and we realized that she has a 15 month old Labradoodle...Duke will have a friend when he gets here!
All of our household goods arrived, and nothing was broken and I think everything made it. I can't tell if we got lucky or if Karma decided to give us a break. Our next project is to break our brand new box spring to get it up the stairs and then put it back together again. That probably won't happen for a few more weeks because Rob will be in Germany all week next week and I no longer touch anything in the house unless I know it works, I swear I mess up everything I touch.
We got cable and Internet at our house yesterday! Feels good to be connected again without sitting in a cafe. Our wireless is great so we can facetime and skype regularly now. I have a feeling that me and BBC are going to be very close since that is one of approximately 8 English stations. But the french channels are good to help us with learning the language. Last night I came across MTV with the translated version of Jersey Shore, turns out there is no translation for "guido."
My plans while Rob is gone next week...french class, yoga class, baking, and maybe a trip or two to the some shops I have had my eye on. I'm really not looking forward to him being gone. I would give about anything to have Duke here with me but I am sure it will be fine and go quickly.
And last but not least... HAPPY BIRTHDAY to this little one. I hate that I am not there to help her celebrate but I plan to be there when she can remember her birthdays :) Aunt Jill and Uncle Rob will celebrate in your honor from across the pond.
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
Oh, and I certainly drank more than one bottle of wine/week these past two weeks. No pics of the bottles but I have been hooked on German Rieslings lately.
While this is not the exact translation, it is a french idiom that I learned in class today and have said approximately 534344 times in the past 2 weeks.
It is hard to explain just how hard the last 2 weeks have been. Locking ourselves out of the house was just the beginning of a string of "learning experiences." A part of me wants to list everything that has gone wrong so that someone, anyone, can feel my pain. But, I won't do that to you. Just know there has been a lot of crying, cussing and then hugging it out between Rob and I as we blow up appliances, replace items lost and stolen, and learn how to do adult things like take care of a yard. Every single thing we do takes at least 3 tries to get it right...every single thing.
A few highlights from the past few weeks. Unfortunately there are no pictures...my phone and camera were in the purse that got stolen.
On September 1st we took the train to Brussels (30 min each way and cost us 7 euro/ticket) for the Brussels Beer Weekend. There were 250 Belgian beers to try and we got through about 5 before I looked down and realized my purse was gone. We were having the time of our lives with our new British friends and then it all came to screeching stop when we realized I had my iphone, new camera, debit card, car and house key and train tickets in there. Luckily we had also met an American couple that drove to Brussels that day and they gave us a ride home and helped us break in our house...for the second time in 3 days. Back to the festival...it was SO much fun! Best day we have had since moving here for sure. Cannot wait to go back next year and catch some more festivals throughout the year. By far my favorite beer was The Pink Killer from the Brasserie de Silly. It was sweet and delicious without being too much. A perfect brunch or tailgating beer. Rob loved it too so it wasn't too girly.
On Friday we took a day trip with Rob's team to Dinant, BE. Rob and I are planning to go back soon. Its a great little river town with little patisseries, shopping and live music. It's know for being the home of Adolfe Sax, who created the saxophone.
On Saturday we went to SHAPE Fest. It's the base's biggest event of the year. Each country represented has a booth with native food, drink and items to purchase. There was SO much food! If you are wondering...we went to the American tent and they served chicken wings, burgers and hot dogs and Budweiser products. Oh and Nelly was playing while we were there, representing the Lou. The American tent was by far the loudest, because that is how we are. You don't realize it until you aren't in US anymore, but we are loud. There was live music all day and carnival rides of those who have kids. It was fun but we decided that next year will be better when we actually know a few people.
I started french class on Monday which I have been looking forward to. Most of the people in there are American but there are also people from Spain, England, Sweden, Romania and Slovakia. It feels good to be in the classroom again for sure. Since being here I have a new found respect for those people living in foreign countries and not knowing the language yet. Side note: After class I met Sally-Anne from England and we realized that she has a 15 month old Labradoodle...Duke will have a friend when he gets here!
All of our household goods arrived, and nothing was broken and I think everything made it. I can't tell if we got lucky or if Karma decided to give us a break. Our next project is to break our brand new box spring to get it up the stairs and then put it back together again. That probably won't happen for a few more weeks because Rob will be in Germany all week next week and I no longer touch anything in the house unless I know it works, I swear I mess up everything I touch.
We got cable and Internet at our house yesterday! Feels good to be connected again without sitting in a cafe. Our wireless is great so we can facetime and skype regularly now. I have a feeling that me and BBC are going to be very close since that is one of approximately 8 English stations. But the french channels are good to help us with learning the language. Last night I came across MTV with the translated version of Jersey Shore, turns out there is no translation for "guido."
My plans while Rob is gone next week...french class, yoga class, baking, and maybe a trip or two to the some shops I have had my eye on. I'm really not looking forward to him being gone. I would give about anything to have Duke here with me but I am sure it will be fine and go quickly.
And last but not least... HAPPY BIRTHDAY to this little one. I hate that I am not there to help her celebrate but I plan to be there when she can remember her birthdays :) Aunt Jill and Uncle Rob will celebrate in your honor from across the pond.
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
Oh, and I certainly drank more than one bottle of wine/week these past two weeks. No pics of the bottles but I have been hooked on German Rieslings lately.
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