Today marks our third full day in Maastricht. This city, dating from the middle ages, has proved to have much more to offer than we expected. Since RTC is attending a conference, I have explored a lot on my own, but we did manage to do two walking tours together. The first was a self-guided tour of the fortresses of the city. Since the city was built by the Romans, it had several city walls that were used for protection. We also took a more general tour of the city, led by a guide who fortunately spoke English. Dutch is a very interesting language, and it turns out that Maastrichters have their own dialect that is different than the Dutch spoken in the rest of the country. Fortunately, everyone we have encountered speaks English. When we first arrived, I always asked if the native I was speaking to spoke Dutch. I tried to ask this IN Dutch a few times, but it was so terrible that no one could figure out what I was saying. So I took to asking in English if they spoke English. The response would often be "a little bit" but upon further conversation it was clear this "little bit" was quite a lot. I then realized that things seemed to go better if I just started speaking English. I got this sense that some people were almost offended that I was asking if they spoke English because OF COURSE they do.
Maastricht is part of an area called Limburg, and we learned during our guided tour yesterday that Maastrichters are not necessarily like those in the rest of Holland. Maastricht is sandwiched between Belgium and Germany, and changed hands between the Dutch, French, and Spanish several times. Tomorrow we head off to Amsterdam, so it will be interesting to note differences in culture between the two parts of the Netherlands.
Observations:
Everyone bikes. Yes, there are cars, but biking and walking are the preferred mode of transportation.
Perhaps due (at least in part) to this very active lifestyle, portion sizes are huge. Last night I had a a salad with duck and bacon, and RTC commented that there may have been half a duck on my plate. For a salad. (Yes, I ate all but about two bites anyway).
I'm not sure what "working hours" are here, but people seem to be out and about almost all the time. 11 AM? Plenty of action at the cafe. 3 PM? Plenty of action at the cafe. And there is beer or wine consumed any time of day. We're not shocked or anything by this--we've been to Europe before--but it is one of the things that is so much different than in North America.
It is hard to imagine with all this lovely eating and drinking, walking and biking from shop to shop, that we will be ready to face reality in a few days. But such is life. And on that note, it is time for a beer. It is late--already 3 PM!
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Next stop: Maastricht
Greetings from Brussels! RTC and I leave shortly for the train station, where we will board a two hour train to Maastricht, Netherlands. We flew into Brussels on Thursday morning, and have enjoyed our two nights here. It was a great, low-speed way to start our trip. Beer, frites, chocolate, repeat. We enjoyed a couple walking tours which covered the main sites, although we skipped big museums in favor of more cafe time.
In Maastricht, RTC will be busy with his conference, so I will be more on my own--we'll see what adventures that brings!
In Maastricht, RTC will be busy with his conference, so I will be more on my own--we'll see what adventures that brings!
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Looking forward
I hoped this post would include a photo of me sporting Caruso Curls, but it was not meant to be. I filled up the little steamer with water, plugged it in, and waited with foam rollers in hand for steam to start spouting out the top. I recalled it didn't take long...so when it hadn't started steaming within a few minutes I consulted the box, which said "steamer-ready in 30 seconds". Disappointment.
But on to more important things. In just four short days, we are off to Brussels! In honor of this, I went to a Belgian bakery, Manuel Latruwe this morning for breakfast.
I was in Madison two weeks ago, and we went for breakfast at Lazy Jane's. I had a morning bun as a warm up to my eggs and had forgotten how delicious they are. I have been thinking about them for two weeks. I am not kidding. RTC will attest to this. This morning that was all I wanted to eat. So I looked for a recipe and luckily found the original--from the original--Ovens of Brittany.
Unfortunately, if I started them this morning, I would not have them until tomorrow morning. And besides the issue of wanting them NOW, there is a lot on the to-do list this weekend.
Then I remembered Manuel Latruwe. And that it is Belgian. So I used this to justify getting in the car and driving over there (this is normally a bike-to location, but it is a miserable day in Calgary so I allowed myself an indulgent drive).
It was delicious, and I even managed to save RTC some. However, if he stays at the office too long he may be out of luck. I can only let that stuff sit in a bag on the counter for so long.
But on to more important things. In just four short days, we are off to Brussels! In honor of this, I went to a Belgian bakery, Manuel Latruwe this morning for breakfast.
I was in Madison two weeks ago, and we went for breakfast at Lazy Jane's. I had a morning bun as a warm up to my eggs and had forgotten how delicious they are. I have been thinking about them for two weeks. I am not kidding. RTC will attest to this. This morning that was all I wanted to eat. So I looked for a recipe and luckily found the original--from the original--Ovens of Brittany.
Unfortunately, if I started them this morning, I would not have them until tomorrow morning. And besides the issue of wanting them NOW, there is a lot on the to-do list this weekend.
Then I remembered Manuel Latruwe. And that it is Belgian. So I used this to justify getting in the car and driving over there (this is normally a bike-to location, but it is a miserable day in Calgary so I allowed myself an indulgent drive).
It was delicious, and I even managed to save RTC some. However, if he stays at the office too long he may be out of luck. I can only let that stuff sit in a bag on the counter for so long.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Road trip part 3: flooding and things I discovered
The last leg of our journey was pretty uneventful, other than some serious flooding.
I like the shadow of the Uhaul in the photo. This past weekend, I helped my family move, and they had a much bigger Uhaul. It made out 14 footer seem like a pick up truck.
One of the boxes that I moved was labeled "keepsakes". I wasn't entirely sure what was in this box, so I sorted through it once we got home.
The Richard Caruso Molecular Hairsetter:
A NKOTB poster from 1990:
As you can see, I thought it was funny to put it up. RTC was not as amused as I was. Unfortunately, we forgot to take it down when we had a friend over. He now thinks we are bizarro.
I like the shadow of the Uhaul in the photo. This past weekend, I helped my family move, and they had a much bigger Uhaul. It made out 14 footer seem like a pick up truck.
One of the boxes that I moved was labeled "keepsakes". I wasn't entirely sure what was in this box, so I sorted through it once we got home.
The Richard Caruso Molecular Hairsetter:
A NKOTB poster from 1990:
As you can see, I thought it was funny to put it up. RTC was not as amused as I was. Unfortunately, we forgot to take it down when we had a friend over. He now thinks we are bizarro.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
More roadtrip
Part 2, Part 2! Yes, I'm back for more. Part 2 of the roadtrip recap will not be as exciting as part 1 because I am traveling for work and don't have access to my photos at the moment. And now that I think about it, that wouldn't make a difference because we didn't take any photos in Winnipeg. Lame.
Day 1 of our drive included stopping in the Twin Cities to pick up furniture. We were a little concerned about packing the truck up in Madison and having to leave room for our new furniture, but with RTC (and H's!) careful organizing, there was just enough space to slide the new furniture in the truck. And since we had to slightly change our route due to flooding, our stop at the furniture distribution center happened to be right on our new route. I don't think we spent more than 10 minutes getting the furniture, and the distribution center was very conveniently located next to a gas station and coffee place.
Along those lines, I was very proud of our ability to organize stops. On each leg, we stopped only three times, and each time coordinated gas fill ups and bathroom breaks. Last August when I rode with RTC to Winnipeg, I know we stopped MUCH more frequently.
After the furniture pick up, our next big stop was the border. When I "landed" for the first time as a Canadian permanent resident last November, I only had a small suitcase with me because I was only staying for a few days. And even when I moved to Calgary in January, I didn't have much with me. The immigration officer at the border crossing into Manitoba was perplexed by my lack of paperwork, but he eventually got it figured out and we were on our way in 20 or 30 minutes. This was MUCH faster than we expected, and we were very happy that the border crossing portion of the trip was done!
We stayed with RTC's grandparents for two nights and had lots of fun eating pizza, visiting, fixing computers, going to the Salisbury House, and going out to eat at an Asian restaurant attached to the Winnipeg Goldeyes baseball field (odd, I know, but it was good!). Then we went for ice cream at what I am told is a Winnipeg institution, BDI (Bridge Drive-in). Yum! Geez, we did a lot of eating. I can't believe I don't have any pictures of the visit.
Part 3 will document the very soggy and very windy last leg of our journey. Stay tuned.
Day 1 of our drive included stopping in the Twin Cities to pick up furniture. We were a little concerned about packing the truck up in Madison and having to leave room for our new furniture, but with RTC (and H's!) careful organizing, there was just enough space to slide the new furniture in the truck. And since we had to slightly change our route due to flooding, our stop at the furniture distribution center happened to be right on our new route. I don't think we spent more than 10 minutes getting the furniture, and the distribution center was very conveniently located next to a gas station and coffee place.
Along those lines, I was very proud of our ability to organize stops. On each leg, we stopped only three times, and each time coordinated gas fill ups and bathroom breaks. Last August when I rode with RTC to Winnipeg, I know we stopped MUCH more frequently.
After the furniture pick up, our next big stop was the border. When I "landed" for the first time as a Canadian permanent resident last November, I only had a small suitcase with me because I was only staying for a few days. And even when I moved to Calgary in January, I didn't have much with me. The immigration officer at the border crossing into Manitoba was perplexed by my lack of paperwork, but he eventually got it figured out and we were on our way in 20 or 30 minutes. This was MUCH faster than we expected, and we were very happy that the border crossing portion of the trip was done!
We stayed with RTC's grandparents for two nights and had lots of fun eating pizza, visiting, fixing computers, going to the Salisbury House, and going out to eat at an Asian restaurant attached to the Winnipeg Goldeyes baseball field (odd, I know, but it was good!). Then we went for ice cream at what I am told is a Winnipeg institution, BDI (Bridge Drive-in). Yum! Geez, we did a lot of eating. I can't believe I don't have any pictures of the visit.
Part 3 will document the very soggy and very windy last leg of our journey. Stay tuned.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Roadtrip recap, part 1
I've been negligent with the posts over the last month. Preparing for our trip to Wisconsin for Easter and the big move kept us busy. I was a little nervous pre-move in getting things organized in Madison, loading the UHaul, and then driving half-way across the country. Fortunately, RTC was looking forward to the road trip, so that put a positive spin on things.
We flew to Chicago on the Wednesday prior to Easter and stayed at my mom's. We enjoyed a nice meal with my mom and step-dad (Lou Malnati's pizza!) and rested up for our busy next few days. Thursday we drove to Madison and was welcomed by my jubilant nephew H, who came sprinting across the backyard when he saw us pull up in the driveway. :) We got to work sorting through our boxes of stuff. We also made some time over the next few days to pick up our favorite WI items and of course visit with family.
Sunday was Easter. The Madison house was busy and full of people, but we went to church and managed to pull together an Easter meal. Here is the slightly frazzled but happy group.
H is likely looking very giddy because he is eyeing this:
H LOVED the UHAUL. He got to sit in the front of the cab and pretend to drive, complete with seat belt, "hot coffee and snacks for the drive". He discovered if he pushed on the horn he could actually make a sound and of course, THAT was very exciting. You would think that just "driving" the truck would be excitement enough, but he also loved to hang out in the back while we were loading. He even helped RTC tie down the stuff buy holding the rope. This kid was so excited that at random moments he would start jumping up and down and announce that he was in the back of a BIG truck! My step-dad has pictures so hopefully I can upload them soon.
Early Monday morning we headed out. We were on the road at 5:40 AM. I whined about this the night before, but once we were on the road, I was happy we left so early.
Here's the first driver:
And here's the second driver:
Part 2 to come!
We flew to Chicago on the Wednesday prior to Easter and stayed at my mom's. We enjoyed a nice meal with my mom and step-dad (Lou Malnati's pizza!) and rested up for our busy next few days. Thursday we drove to Madison and was welcomed by my jubilant nephew H, who came sprinting across the backyard when he saw us pull up in the driveway. :) We got to work sorting through our boxes of stuff. We also made some time over the next few days to pick up our favorite WI items and of course visit with family.
Sunday was Easter. The Madison house was busy and full of people, but we went to church and managed to pull together an Easter meal. Here is the slightly frazzled but happy group.
H is likely looking very giddy because he is eyeing this:
H LOVED the UHAUL. He got to sit in the front of the cab and pretend to drive, complete with seat belt, "hot coffee and snacks for the drive". He discovered if he pushed on the horn he could actually make a sound and of course, THAT was very exciting. You would think that just "driving" the truck would be excitement enough, but he also loved to hang out in the back while we were loading. He even helped RTC tie down the stuff buy holding the rope. This kid was so excited that at random moments he would start jumping up and down and announce that he was in the back of a BIG truck! My step-dad has pictures so hopefully I can upload them soon.
Early Monday morning we headed out. We were on the road at 5:40 AM. I whined about this the night before, but once we were on the road, I was happy we left so early.
Here's the first driver:
And here's the second driver:
Part 2 to come!
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Big week
We have an exciting week coming up. We are taking advantage of the long holiday weekend to head back to Wisconsin to see family and pack up the rest of our stuff in Madison. Then we will drive back to Calgary in the moving truck. We fly to Chicago on Wednesday night and hope to be back in Calgary the following Wednesday night. Today we have been rearranging our small amount of furniture to make room for the items that will be coming.
Our plan is to drive home via Winnipeg to visit RTCs family and rest for a day. However, the flooding on the Red River may prevent this. We will be following the weather forecasts and road conditions closely and make a decision next weekend. We aren't too keen on floating away in our moving truck, though I suppose we would be stocked with provisions for awhile.
In other news, the weather in Calgary has been terrible all weekend and looks to continue that way until mid-week. It isn't horribly cold, but it has been snowing. Yesterday we tried to go skiing, but saw at least four vehicles that had skidded off the road and rolled over, so we decided to turn back for home. I am hopeful that when we return from our trip that the weather will have taken a turn and spring will finally be here--to stay!
Our plan is to drive home via Winnipeg to visit RTCs family and rest for a day. However, the flooding on the Red River may prevent this. We will be following the weather forecasts and road conditions closely and make a decision next weekend. We aren't too keen on floating away in our moving truck, though I suppose we would be stocked with provisions for awhile.
In other news, the weather in Calgary has been terrible all weekend and looks to continue that way until mid-week. It isn't horribly cold, but it has been snowing. Yesterday we tried to go skiing, but saw at least four vehicles that had skidded off the road and rolled over, so we decided to turn back for home. I am hopeful that when we return from our trip that the weather will have taken a turn and spring will finally be here--to stay!
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