Tori's Turtles, Part II

As mentioned in a previous post, my friend Tori is helping a few of us obtain our scuba certification. Yesterday, I completed my 2nd open water dive at Nemo33, one of the deepest indoor dive pools in the world -- located right here in Belgium!

Nemo33 is a recreational scuba diving center which prides itself with a large circular pit descending to a depth of 33meters or 108 feet. Amazingly, the pool is filled with 2,500,000 litres! (660,500 gallons) of non-chlorinated, highly filtered spring water maintained at 86 degrees F -- LOVE IT!! So far, I've been to the 2nd flat-bottomed area of the pool at 10 m (32 feet) where there are a few simulated underwater caves which you can go into and have a chat with your dive buddies.

What was so special about yesterday's dive was that we brought the hubby's and the girls to watch through the numerous underwater windows which allow outside visitors to view into the pools (and vice versa). Needless to say, the girls were so excited to see their mommies scuba in the pool. We did several "swim-by's" to wave hello to the girls. To see their smiling faces waving excitedly back at us was, oh-so-precious!!

A great dive ended with an enjoyable lunch at the Thai restaurant located inside the facility. Perfect as our food was ready and waiting for us when we joined the gang at the table!!

Back to Never-Netherland...

After finally posting our last blog entry of our Italian holiday, we have a lot of catching up to do!! We actually did quite a bit since we returned from Italy, so stay tuned for our latest adventures.

As you know, GM and GP came for a visit just two days after our return from Italy. We were quite busy while they were here.

Like most women, GM loves flowers. So, she came during the perfect time of year to see the most famous garden in the world -- Keukenhof. Grandma, Grandpa, the girls and I departed for a one-night get-away to Lisse in the Netherlands to visit Keukenhof, which coincidentally celebrated its 60th anniversary this year.

Last year, Ray and I took the girls there on probably one of its busiest days -- in April, on the Saturday of its annual flower parade. In an effort to avoid the insane traffic and Disneyland-type crowds, this time we went midweek while no special events were scheduled at the park. This turned out to be "oh-so-perfect" being able to experience the gardens with not so many people there. The gardens were again breathtakingly beautiful. And while we were there, we quickly understood why it is one of the most photographed places in the world (you must view our slide show!). I'll have to admit that the gardens were a bit nicer last year while the flowers were in its prime, in addition to the stunning carpets of flower fields exploding with color in all the surrounding areas (most were harvested by now). But even still, Keukenhof was magical... And minus the crowds meant we were able to see much more of the park than we did the previous year.

The girls had a blast exploring the park and its gardens, romping in the playgrounds, maze, petting zoo, and even climbing up a working windmill.

DS even got a little wet when she accidentally stepped into the water while crossing a stone path over a lake. Luckily, we had her slippers in the car!

After spending the day at Keukenhof, we decided to have dinner at Noordwijk, a beach resort located about 5 minutes from our hotel. Before dinner, the girls got to play on a lovely sandy beach (which kind of reminded me of California!) while my parents and I enjoyed a cocktail at one of the beach bars (so unlike California). I am really going to miss this European lifestyle!

The next day, the girls wanted more beach fun, so this time we headed for Scheveningen -- another seaside resort in the Netherlands. We walked through an enclosed pier to sample poffertjes (a traditional dutch batter treat -- think tiny pancakes, but much sweeter!), which we remembered to be so yummy when we first tried them in Amsterdam. These, too, were sinfully delish.

After walking around and stopping for lunch on the boardwalk, the girls wanted to play on the beach (as we had promised). By this time, however, it was getting VERY windy which makes playing in the sand not so much fun. So instead, they got to jump on trampolines right on the beach which was actually even more fun! By the time the girls (and mommy) finished jumping, the wind was becoming quite fierce, so we left and made it back to our car just before it started to rain. Talk about good timing!

Our little get-away turned out to be really wonderful. And, the best part was spending it with GM and GP...

It was just this time last year when we made our first trip to the Netherlands. We'll always remember DS' comment on how she really likes it here in "Neverland". From the mouths of babes...

Click here to see our first trip to Keukenhof...

Spring Fling in Italy XII: Homeward through Zurich

We left beautiful, sunny Venice and headed towards our final stop before going home -- Zurich, Switzerland.

We decided on stopping in Zurich because it was about mid-way between Venice and Belgium. Plus, it would be a great experience to spend a little time in Switzerland and take in the natural beauty of the Alps!

On the way, we passed through Verona (the setting for Romeo and Juliet), where I really wanted to stop at. But since time did not permit a proper visit, Ray was nice enough to at least do a drive-thru. As expected, it looked like a beautiful town, but alas, "Juliet's Balcony" will just have to wait for a future visit..

Our drives through Switzerland took us through some breathtaking scenery. We saw so many quaint little Swiss towns, that I was left a little disappointed when we arrived in the big city of Zurich. However, don't get me wrong - Zurich was lovely.

The girls enjoyed the beautiful koi pond in the center of the hotel lobby and were able to feed the fish on several occasions. Although they should have been fed only once a day, the hotel staff couldn't resist the girls asking for more fish food! Good for the girls, but bad for the fish!

Since our hotel did not have an executive lounge, we ate dinner in the hotel restaurant. And what a surprise! We had heard that Switzerland was expensive, but were shocked to find that our dinner was more than the hotel stay!

After checking out the next morning, we headed into town to see what Zurich had to offer. It was a beautiful day and it just so happened that the Zurich marathon was taking place. Which meant plenty of food booths and a carnival-like setting!

We walked down to Lake Zurich where the girls had fun feeding the swans. DS and PS ate their sandwiches while enjoying the lake view and were treated to chocolate-dipped fruit kabobs.

We also bought some fresh, hot roasted candied almonds - yum!

Soon enough, it was time to hit the road for the 5-hour drive back to Brussels. And, since the next day was a school/work day, we didn't want to leave too late.

It was time to say farewell to Switzerland and end this wonderful vacation...

Belgium welcomed us back with heavy rain and wind. Our beautiful Italian holiday was officially over! After 18-days on the road, it felt a little strange to be back at home , however it was nice to be back in our own beds again!

We will always remember our first time in Italy and the wonderful experience it was for our family.

Arrivederci per ora, l'Italia!!

Spring Fling in Italy XI: Venice

Our last destination in Italy was Venice. Located in the North East quadrant of Italy, it is arguably one of the most beautiful cities in the world. But, with all of the beautiful sights we have seen in Italy, how much better could it be? Quite a lot, as it turns out…

We chose to stay just outside of Venice in Quarto d’Altino, at the Crowne Plaza just next door to the train station. As in most Italian cities, you want to leave your car and take public transportation into the city, or else, you’ll be sorry! In this case, Venice is a car-free zone, so public transport is the only way in.

As we were driving up from Florence, we regularly checked Venice weather on all of the major internet weather sites. Most predicted heavy rain for the next two days, except for BBC.com that predicted “patchy blue skies with occasional heavy rain” (nothing like covering all your bases!). We decided to forego going in to Venice until the following day, and instead, headed into Treviso, a nearby town from the hotel.

After our arrival in Treviso, we quickly found parking near the city center. Although Treviso also has canals running through the city, it is unlike the grand canals of Venice. A beautiful town, none-the-less.

Since 5:30pm is way too early for dinner in Italy, we walked around and did some sightseeing before the restaurants opened at 7:00pm. Luckily, the city center had some beautiful structures and shops to keep us occupied until then.

We walked over to the Duomo, dedicated to St. Peter, and took a quick look inside. Beautiful, as you would expect.

Nearby, there were shops and narrow roads that lined the canals. We saw few tourists here, possibly due to it being off-season. However, we didn’t mind having many of the streets to ourselves.

7 pm quickly arrived and we were one of the first to be seated at Da Pino Pizzeria Ristorante. Highly recommended by several sources, we were again, not disappointed. The pizza and salads were great!

The next day turned out to be sunny and clear! (Where do these weather forecasters get their information?) After breakfast in the hotel, we walked next door and boarded the train for the 20 minute ride into Venice’s St. Lucia station.

Venice was spectacular! We were overwhelmed by its’ beauty and by the excitement in the air. Here was one of the most famous cities in the world and we were fortunate to have come during great weather and light crowds. It doesn’t get much better than that!

We boarded the vaporetti (water buses) that will ferry you to different areas within Venice, pretty efficiently, I might add. You just find your route and stand in a small area that looks like a “bus stop”. The boat arrives and you are quickly on your way.

We headed for Piazza San Marco, the famous square where St. Mark’s Basilica and the bell tower are (and don’t forget about the thousands of pigeons there as well!)

The girls all went inside the Basilica, but since my backpack (stuffed full of umbrellas, rain gear and water bottles) looked suspicious, I was asked to go to another security station, or else sit outside. I chose to go outside…

We had lunch at the new Hard Rock Café that just opened in Venice. Although it was a bit hard to find, it was worth it since we all love the food there. We also enjoy seeing their different locations throughout Europe (so far we've been to seven). And it’s a chance (for me, anyways) to have a “real” hamburger and not that thing they call a burger in Europe!

We saw Rialto Bridge, one of the four famous bridges that cross the grand canal, just before PS fell asleep in her stroller. That is my cue to sit down, relax and rock her stroller, while Jo and DS go off to do some more sightseeing and shopping. I am content to just sit and people watch while PS snores soundly asleep. I figure I better enjoy it now, before she gets out of the “nap” stage…

Soon enough, it started to get late and we had to start thinking about getting back to the hotel. Jo decided she wanted to take the vaporetto the “long way” back to the train station, and mistakenly chose one heading the opposite way back. It turned out to be the REALLY long way back! It was ok, though, because how many times are you going to be in Venice? In addtion, the sunset cruise along the canals was quite spectacular...

A quick snack at the train station sufficed for our dinner that night, and we took one of the last trains back to Quarto d’Altino. And conveniently, the hotel was just next door which made it a blessing after the long day on our feet.

We had been told by some Europeans to save Italy for last, because nothing else will measure up to her beauty. Well, that may be so, but if we were to do it again, I definitely wouldn’t wait this long to go there – that way, you can immediately start planning a return visit before time runs out…