We’ve had some great Freiburg weather the last few days. When it’s not freezing, raining, or snowing, Vinnie declares she is unbearably hot. It was 45 degrees. Fahrenheit.
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This morning I had the sad misfortune of sharing the street with the garbage truck picking up curbed Christmas trees. It reminded me of the dead wagon.
In childhood, on a rare occasion, we’d see a dead cow on one of the surrounding country roads. It was always unsettling. I remember one specific incident when the carcass was just east of our house, passed the 30/G Rd intersection. Dad was home for dinner, looking out the kitchen window, and called to my mother, “The dead wagon is here, taking care of that critter.” I hopped up from my chair at the table. Summer afternoons were never too exciting for Thomsen kids, and though the words “dead wagon” didn’t sound glamorous, they weren’t ordinary. I followed my dad’s gaze to the road. It was nothing special, but the existence of such a thing was haunting. I often work through bad times by reassuring myself that I’ve been through worse: “At least you’re not having a baby right now, “ “At least you’re not waking up early to detassel.” “At least you’re not driving the dead wagon.” Thankfully, I’ve never actually driven the dead wagon, but the idea of it makes cleaning the toilet seem like a delight. I went back to German class tonight after a three-week break. Anyone needing a humbling experience, enroll in a foreign language course. Lots to learn!
Lee and Ned went back to school last Wednesday, and the bigs return tomorrow. I am sad to see Christmas break end. The lazy mornings and unstructured time were needed by all. We took hikes, trips to the park, and the kids made some huge messes. The walls of their room are covered with magazine cut-outs of their favorite sport stars, and they’re on their way to reproducing all the flags of the world.
Hello, Epiphany! I love the twelve days of Christmas and was so happy to learn our Anglican church here in Freiburg holds an Epiphany party. We had a great time this afternoon, and Thom dressed up as one of the three kings.
The plan today was to explore Brussels: find the fountains, pretty buildings, buy provisions for the train trip to Freiburg. We aced the first two. Despite the disappointment in the female counterpart of the Mannequin Pis (It is tucked in a dead-end alley and surrounded by bars), we had a lovely morning wandering. Vinnie ate a Brussels waffle and preferred it to the one she tasted in Antwerp. I wanted to keep walking as long as it wasn’t raining. My not-so-secret parenting secret is keep kids hydrated and fed. I was on the look-out for either a grocery or another cozy cafe. Sadly, I wasn’t finding either. The data on my phone didn’t work in Belgium so that wasn’t too helpful. I decided to walk a different way back to the train station than the one we took yesterday. This route had us go by the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula and through the botanical garden--both very nice. All was well as we approached Bruxelles Noord from the other side. Then, the neighborhood felt different. All the sidewalks were quiet outside the tourist area, but this area felt a bit off. Then, I saw them: long tubes of red lights shining in the windows on this Friday afternoon. An instant later, Vinnie chimes, “Mama, I see a real-live lady in the window.” This was not the plan. When I was in Amsterdam’s Red Light District in October, it was crowded with men on stag weekends and groups of tourists. The Red Light District we stumbled upon today was lonely and sad. Vinnie suggested we just eat in the train station. Not really my style but neither is introducing a seven-year-old to prostitution. I bought her a Magic Box at Quick, Belgium’s take on fast food. Thanks for the ice, but I’d stick to waffles, Belgium. Originally, our trip to Belgium was just going to be Brussels. Then, train ticket prices changed, and it became more economical to go to Antwerp from Freiburg. I’m so glad we did. Antwerp is beautiful, and Vinnie and I really enjoyed Rubenshuis. Errol was surprised when he heard the museum celebrating Peter Paul Rubens was on the itinerary: “I thought you didn’t like the Masters?” He’s somewhat right. I prefer a lot of other art over paintings of Jesus and his team. The Rubenshuis is a good example of why one shouldn’t write off a complete genre of art because you saw too much of it one summer as a teenager. Yes, there were some angels and stiff ruffled collars, but the museum was Rubens’ former home. We also saw furniture, jewelry, and sculpture. Rubens found inspiration from the Romans, and Vinnie loved hearing about Hercules killing a lion with his hands. She thought she knew another story about Hercules killing a giant from the Bible. David and Hercules are rather similar. My favorite times in Antwerp were in coffee shops. All three were cozy and felt very local. In a new place, I try to follow the travel advice a friend gave me in 2003: get off the tourist path to find your restaurants. I never ate at restaurants then, but now that I’m not a super-budget traveler, I can follow his wisdom. Usually it takes just a block or two, but they make a big difference. The downside is these places often don’t accept credit cards. But, ours this afternoon had English National Geographics to page through. It was a nice touch. The cafe we went to this morning wasn’t off the tourist path but very special. We noticed it when we first arrived and walked through the train station. First, Antwerpen Centraal is the most beautiful train station I’ve ever been to. I can’t forget to say that. Besides beauty, it also has a fun pop-up coffee shop called The Playground. Patrons drink coffee/beer/wine and play games. Vinnie and I played a new board game called Battle Sheep but then resorted to the old favorites of crazy 8 and war before we left. Vinnie tasted her first authentic Belgian waffle today from a sidewalk stand and fancy hot chocolate yesterday at the Christmas market. It’s much easier (and cheaper) to let your kid indulge when you only have one with you. After a quick train ride this afternoon, we landed in Brussels. We’ll be back to the boys in Freiburg tomorrow night. Happy birthday, Abby!
Last year we had the pleasure of Abby living in New Jersey for a few weeks. Being nearby gave Ab the opportunity to really show off at being the best auntie in the land. She took Vinnie ice skating a couple times, and Vinnie loved it. She’s been begging to go again. Today, in Antwerp, on Abby’s birthday, she finally got back on the ice. In a few hours, I will wake up Vinnie to start our next adventure together. I’m taking her to Belgium. I was supposed to go in August of 2003, but my friend Florence talked me into trading Brussels for Paris.
I loved Paris with Florence and appreciated the Brussels airport for letting us spend the night there, but I’ve always wanted to return and give the country the visit it deserves. Here goes. Happy New Year!
We had no expectations of what a Freiburg New Year’s Eve would be like. At midnight, the sky lit up with fireworks all around our flat. There wasn’t one specific show, but fireworks set off in every direction from random people and locations. We could see some from every window of the house, and it continued for 45 minutes! Today we saw a lot of evidence on sidewalks and in curbs. I imagine the street cleaners are anticipating a big work day tomorrow. |
Anne Thomsen lordWritings on our year abroad. Archives
September 2018
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