A Sight for Sore Eyes...

Life in Belgium just got a whole lot easier...

Now all I have to do is wait for the rice that we packed with our furniture to arrive...

Exploring Brussels

A Sunday with no plans on the agenda doesn't come up too often, so I decided to take full advantage and head out to explore the city.

First, I ditched my Prius for public transportation. For 4 Euros ($6), you can get an unlimited day pass for trams, buses and subways within Brussels. I started from the Tervuren tram station and headed towards the city. "Central Station" sounded like a good place to start, so I got off the subway and headed upstairs.

First thing I came upon was "The Mercedes House", a combination boutique shop, museum, showroom and cafeteria all in one. I checked out their displays, including a rare C111, which was a show car from the 70's that used to be state-of-the-art and something I used to drool over... Looking at it now, it almost looks like something you could put together in your garage with hardware bought at Home Depot. What a letdown! :(

Stopped at a brasserie (cafe), sat at an outside table and did what the other Belgians were doing: order a beer and people watch.

I started to get hungry, so I looked at the menu, flagged down a waitress, and with my 3 months of French lessons behind me, I POINTED at something on the menu!!!

Luckily, what showed up was a Belgian version of a Cobb salad. And it was probably one of the best meals I have had since my arrival here. A cold Stella Artois beer, freshly baked rolls, a tasty salad and a beautiful afternoon.

All that was missing were my girls, and it would have been perfect.

A Jolly Good Time in England!!!

This week, I travelled to the UK for a meeting at Lexus Great Britain. And who better to show me England for the first time than my favorite "bloke", Alexis.

We jumped in our Land Cruiser and made the 200KM (125 mile) drive from Brussels to Coquelles, France. There, we boarded the Euro Tunnel train that travels underneath the English Channel and crosses the 50KM (31 mile) distance in about 35 minutes. After arriving on the other side at Folkestone, England, we unload off the train and drive about an hour or so to our hotel just outside of London.

Our first stop was to a local pub, where I ordered a Foster's Beer. Alexis then reminds me that Foster's is Austrailian beer. Oops....

Dinner was with a group of British Lexus dealers and engineers. And although everyone spoke English, most of the time I had no idea what was being said at the table...!!!

And, before we left, I did manage to have fish and chips for lunch.

After lunch, I found out the following:

A) Its no big deal to have a drink at lunch

B) England does not have an "open container" law in effect.

So, as long as you are not "pissed" (means "drunk"), you can finish your beer on the way home...

The UK is a very interesting place. I'll have to come back and investigate further....

Curious observations of Belgium Life

Living in Belgium has been quite the experience, even after only 3 weeks! From the eyes of this California native, things here are just different. Not better, not worse, but only different. Every day I look forward to finding a new discovery about my surroundings. People from home always ask me "what's it like over there?" Well, here's my list of curious observations so far...


1. "You want me to bag my own groceries??" - Supermarkets in Belgium do not offer to bag your groceries. In fact, they don't even offer free BAGS!! Instead, the cashiers sit on these neat little stools, scans your items and watch YOU bag groceries. Its up to you to bring in your own plastic bag or canvas tote. I never seem to have a bag with me, so I usually just toss it back into the shopping cart. - - Which reminds me: To get a shopping cart, first you must put a coin into this little lock that secures it to the cart in front. The money stays in the lock until you return the cart to the collection area and chain it back to the next cart. It's a great idea because you never see a parking lot full of carts all over the place, rolling towards your brand new car...

2. No ice - anywhere - When ordering a drink in a restaurant, or even when using the soda fountain machine, you are struck by the fact that there is no ice anywhere. (My office mates tell me it's cold enough here to keep your drink cold).

3. Ground floor = "0" - Coming down an elevator, I always forget that the Europeans consider the ground floor as "0". The 2nd floor, as we Americans know it, is actually the 1st floor here in Belgium. Needless to say, I'm not the most popular guy on the elevator when I push 1 instead of 0...

4. Quit your whining America! Your gas is cheap - Try $8/gallon for unleaded regular in Belgium! Come see what its like to fill up only HALF of a tank of gas into a Prius and getting dinged $60 (like I did today - Thank god Toyota is picking up my gas bill!)

5. Get hi-speed internet anywhere in the house - The cable TV guy gave me this little device that provides high speed internet from any electrical plug in the house. You just plug it in and instant internet access. Yeah, yeah, I know wireless routers do the same thing (without the cord), but I still thought it was cool...

Anyways, I am sure this list will continue to grow as the days go by. But it does make this assignment interesting. Stay tuned, I've got more coming...

Valentine's Day in Belgium

Today is Valentine's Day. And I believe that it's the first time that Jo and I have not been together in the past 14 years.

Most of the people at work knew the significance of the day, but I did not see a single bouquet of flowers, gift of candy or romantic card anywhere. Also, there were no mad dashes to the Hallmark store, or last minute calls to the florist to buy a dozen long stem reds... It was just another day at the office. I guess it must be strictly an American holiday?

I noticed that traffic was heavy on the way home tonight though. Perhaps it was the rush of romantic Belgians hurrying home to have a candle lit dinner with their loved one? In reality, it was probably just a big soccer match on TV...

Anyways, since Jo was halfway around the world tonight, I figured Nadaly would be a good stand-in for my dinner date tonight. We pulled out a frozen Wagner Pizza Speciale, threw it in the oven at 230C for 12 minutes, and popped open a cold Maes lager... Yum Yum!

Not sure what we would have done if we were back home in CA tonight. Probably a nice dinner out with the girls somewhere, or possibly grandma and grandpa would have watched them so that that we could go to a favorite restaurant.

We'll make up for it when she gets here next month.

Happy Valentine's Day Jo!

Ray Gets Settled In

Well, today marks Day 14 into my new life as an American expat in Belgium. And it hasn't been too bad!!!

The first week I spent getting all the paperwork out of the way. All Belgium residents need to register at the commune (village) where they live by showing your passport, visa, work permit and clean FBI criminal record. Next, the police come to your house to make sure you really do live there. Finally, you get to turn in your US drivers' license to get a Belgium one.

With that out of the way, I was free to get the house in order so that I could move in. My first few days were spent at either IKEA (correctly pronounced "ee-key-ya" in Belgium!) or Krefel, an electronics store, where I have become very popular among the salespeople. They can usually count on a big sale every time I walk in.

Guest bedroom, anyone???

Thankfully, I have been lucky to have experienced great weather (for Belgium). The days have been sunny and clear, with temps around 50F. (View of the neighborhood from our upstairs bedroom)

Another plus is that I haven't had to rely on my lame French (or non-existent Flemish). Pretty much everyone has been able to help me in English. Although I don't think we always have 100% comprehension, it's close enough to get the job done.

The first day at work was Friday, February 1st. Everyone in the office has been extremely nice and helpful.

I sit across from Alexis, an engineer from Great Britain. We joke that by the time I return home to the US, I will probably be saying "cheers, mate!" alot.

The house is finally coming along. I have my appliances in, my flat screen TV is hooked up and I just got my cable TV and internet today (woo hoo!).

The infamous "Belgium traffic" had been a non-issue for me, with easy 15-minute commutes to and from work. THEN, I found out that it had been a Belgium holiday week this past week!!!

I purposely left early today to beat the rush, but I'm sure tomorrow will be the true test.

I miss my girls alot, but my trusty sidekick Nadalie has kept me company. I fear she is getting a little spoiled though...

Thats it for now. Jo and the girls are "toughing it out" in Hawaii this month, so Nadalie and I will have to press on, until our US supplies arrive...

Ray's Departure

What a sad day it was for the Shinozaki girls when Ray departed for Belgium on Monday, January 28th. As most of you know, Ray started his new job on February 1st.

D and P found the time in their busy schedules to go to Build-a-Bear and make a going-away present for their Daddy. Since Ray always talks about getting a dog, the girls picked out a puppy, named it Nadaly and each had their own voice message inserted into each of its paws. Needless to say, D and P had a great time "making" their present for Ray's send-off.

We took Ray to the airport, had lunch, and said our good-byes at the terminal... Au Revoir!

Moving Day

Wow -- what a BUSY and exhausting month it has been! On Thursday, January 24th, the packing company came to our home and literally packed up our entire house in two days. It was a chaotic atmosphere in the house while the packers and craters did their thing. And, as expected, there were a few glitches along the way. Meaning, there are a few things we are not sure if we'll see in Belgium or if we'll see in 2-3 years. However, even though it was a challenge, we got through it and what a relief it was when the packing was completed.

On day 1, from 8:30am until 7:00pm, the moving company packed, packed, and packed. 3 full truck-loads to be exact!

Day 1 pics:

On day 2, all the boxes and furniture were loaded into the trucks. We have a shipment going out by sea, by air, and also stuff going into storage here in L.A.

Day 2 pics:

Our family stayed in a hotel for the few days prior to Ray's departure. The girls had a great time -- for them, it was like a mini vacation!

In addition to the move, we have also been busy catching up with friends and family. Thank you everyone for all the lunches, dinners, and get-togethers you invited us to. We are going to miss all of you!