Brugges

Just a quick update tonight before bed... we started the day by taking the train to Ghent, where we did not a whole lot other than walk the 2km to the center of town and climb the Belfry, which was really fun (by "climb" I really mean "take the lift"). Then back on the train to Brugge/Bruges where we spent most of the day, including 366 steps to climb the Belfry (no lift) and a canal tour. We ended with a 3km walk around town before hopping the train back to Brussels/Bruxelles where we saw some semi-public performance in the Grand Place called L'Eventaile (we think). You needed tickets to get in the bleachers, but we stood on the side and ended up with a decent view. A beer keg being pulled down the street, complete with police escort, gave out free beer. Then back to the hotel to pack up. Tomorrow morning we're heading out to Antwerp for the day (including, hopefully, a chance to see a Gutenberg Bible) then on to Amsterdam where we'll be for the next three nights. Hopefully we'll have free wireless at the hotel there like we do here in Brussels, now that our hotel fixed it (the internet was down the first night).

It's Tuesday, so we must be in Belgium

As it turns out, the title of the movie is eeriely prescient. We spent yesterday in Brussels and are now on a train to Ghent for a short while before heading to Bruges later today. This evening will find us back at our hotel in Brussels for our third and final night before heading to Antwerp and then Amasterdam tomorrow which will become our base of operations until we return to Frankfurt on Saturday.

I paid AT&T $25 for a European data plan and it is most definitely paying off if with nothing else then for the Google Maps alone. We've been trying to keep our map from the previous post updated with our location but the application which updates it sucks battery so I'm only turning it on infrequently.

Where are we now?

GPS tracking powered by InstaMapper.com

Whistler Weekend

The weekend immediately following my birthday (that's two weeks ago now), Sarah and I went up for a trip to Whistler. We had a great time -- we did ziplining, something we've wanted to do since we were in Costa Rica 6 years ago. We also rode up the Whistler Village Gondola to the Roundhouse lodge, then across on the peak to peak gondola. For those of us wary of great heights, it most definitely is a great height. Apparently they even have its own radar system meant to detect planes heading towards the gondola, and warn them away with broadcasts on aircraft frequencies and strobe lights. It was the longest 11 minute ride I've ever had, and of course you have to do it twice (to get back). And of course on the way back we rode in the glass bottom gondola. View Michal's photos and Sarah's photos.

My Birthday

We went to the Chapel bar in Capitol Hill for my birthday. Thanks to everyone who came out. Sarah has the photos.

Mariners for the Modern Day

Thanks to Michal, we had awesome seats for the game last weekend. We went with our friends Irwin and Dawn to the Mariners' game on Friday evening. You'd think since I saw the whole game, I could remember who the Mariners played. But instead, I had way too much fun with a new feature at Safeco Field: the Nintendo DS.

If you haven't heard (and I believe Safeco Field is the only ballpark with this feature currently), you can take your Nintendo DS to the game for tons of fun. And if you're like me, and don't own one, then as long as you're one of the first 150 people to request a loaner, they'll let you borrow one for the duration of the game.

It was the newest model, which meant nothing to me. What I did enjoy was the fact that you can order food and beverages delivered to your seat, so you never have to get up and push your way out and back in. What's more, you could watch the TV broadcast as well as listen to the announcers, see what's playing on the big screen at the ballpark on the DS, and check scores and stats around the league. And that's just the start of it.

I've never had a baseball game go by so fast. The DS TV feed ran a little behind the live game, so I could watch the action, then by looking down after the play finished, get the instant replayby watching the live TV feed. They also had a pitch monitor, which showed you where every pitch went through the strike zone, so you could agree or disagree with the home plate umpire.

Since the light rail opens in 35 days, and Michal owns his DS, I have a feeling we'll be regulars at the ballpark soon.

Strawberry Crop

My strawberry plants have really taken off this year, yielding a whole bunch of strawberries! The photo is from about a week ago and since then I've had at least a pint more.

May Flowers

I'm having a hard time adjusting to the fact that the month of May, much like April, is gone before I had a chance to notice. We did spend the first part of the month in Hawaii, and then my mom and sister came to town right after we got back to Seattle. I had a big performance on May 15th, singing and making my debut harp performance, and helped coordinate the spaghetti dinner for 100 part of the evening. Which explains where that time went.

Then Memorial Day rolled around, and we had a wedding to attend, and friends over for relaxing on the holiday itself. We took the last weekend to run down to Cape Disappointment State Park for a night. It's near Long Beach, WA in the lower southwestern corner of the state, only one long bridge over the Columbia River from Oregon. Despite the much cooler temperatures there - the high hit 65, I think, while in Seattle it soared into the 90's for the same time - we had a great time and will probably go back again. They have the lightkeeper's house that can be rented out, which seems interesting.

And then it was on to June fun.