Bonjour from Belgium

For the first time in a long time, I am writing in my blog about events that just happened. In other words, I am caught up (well, with the exception of the entire time when we were between SF and Montreal!).

We got to Belgium on Tuesday and flew into Charleroi which is outside of Brussels and close to the area in which we're staying in: Mons.

Mons is a cute town near the French border that has 4 Universities and about 91,000 people. It has a great small European city that is pretty much untouched by tourists, but close enough to major cities (Brussels is about 40 min and Paris is about 3 hours away). It reminds me of Hilo, where I grew up because of its small town feel and friendly people. It has a great pedestrian square with cafes and restaurants. It's a great place to enjoy a Belgian beer and people watch!

We're staying with Mai, who we met while she was in Hawaii visiting her friend (and my former co-worker), Valy (who we stayed with in DC. Whew!)

Last night, Mai took us to a "bbq" in Mons which was out in the woods, but it ended up being more of a bon fire event with a bunch of boys in their mid-20s who spoke French and no English. (I know what some of you are thinking, and cut it out!) It was great to get out of the city and enjoy some fresh air and see the stars, esp after the crazy times we had in London and Ireland ... It was exactly what we needed and we would never have been able to find this sort of thing if we were playing tourists and staying in a hotel.


Gav & Mai and a great spread of fine cheeses and wine!


Chateau de Havre


The Belgian boys and their fire.