Au Revoir (french); Tot ziens (flemish); Sayonara and Aloha L.A! ______________________________


Hi everyone!

As most of you know, Ray has accepted a 2-year assignment with Toyota's European Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. For those of you who do not know, Belgium is located next to France, Germany and the Netherlands. The home of NATO and the European Union, it is considered the "gateway to Europe" with its easy access to many European countries. (Hint, hint--good excuse to come and visit!)

Ray started his new position in February, 2008. The girls and I arrived here in late March. We are living just outside the city of Brussels in the commune of Tervuren, Belgium.

Although we are sad to temporarily leave our family and friends, we are excited for this adventure. What an opportunity to leave our tiny box and experience life outside of America!

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Trams, Trains and Fun on Public Transportation...

On Friday, after dropping PS off at school, DS and I decided spur-of-the-moment to attempt our first time at public transportation. We hopped on the Tervuren tram to Montgomery Station where I decided to take DS to the Parc du Cinquantenaire located in Brussels. After a quick phone call to one of Ray's colleagues at work, I found out that it was walking distance from Montgomery Station. The walk was a little long for DS, but my little trooper made it with flying colors.











This park was created in 1880 to celebrate the golden jubilee of the kingdom of Belgium and is home to the Musee du Cinquantenaire (art-history museum), Musee Royal de l'Armee et d'Histoire Militaire (military museum) and Autoworld. I didn't think DS would be too interested in any, so I decided to take her up to the top of the Arc du Cinquantenaire. The elevator to the top was accessible through the military museum, but instead of taking the elevator, I thought it would be more fun to climb the stairs. So, my little trooper and I trekked our way up a winding staircase to the top, which led to a birds-eye view of the city.

















































Rather than walking back to Montgomery Station, we decided to hop on the Metro (subway). After a few mistakes, including hopping on the wrong train, we finally made it back to Montgomery. DS and I treated ourselves to warm waffles which we enjoyed on the tram ride back to Tervuren. This spur-of-the-moment adventure turned out to be a lot of fun!


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