Busy Busy Busy

 I've been really horrible about posting lately, and I'm sorry about that.  But in my defense, things have been more than a little busy lately.  In the last week or so, we moved out of our lovely home and into an apartment/hotel in another town near by.  We've come full circle once again, because these are the apartments that we staying in when we first moved to Belgium, 3 very short years ago.  This is a difficult move for me, because as happy as I am to be going back to our friends and family in the states, I'm sad to be leaving the beautiful country of Belgium.  I know the odds of us ever getting to come back here are pretty slim (practically non-existent), so I'm trying to take in and enjoy every last minute that we are here. 

 So here is our last week in a nutshell.  We went to a nice little carnival in Peer.  It looks pretty empty here, but we walked around a lot when it first opened, and the crowds came later in the evening. 

 I paid one last visit to my favorite antique store, Slegers-Heise, with some friends and shared a few laughs.  I really do love this place.  You never know quite what you will find there.  I really wish I knew the history behind this grouping, don't you?  By the way, you'll be very proud to know that I didn't actually buy anything there!  (Of course, the fact that my household goods are shipped and they didn't have any new scales might have helped a bit on that one.) 

 I attended a couple of local weekly markets with friends as well.  I'm going to miss these so much.  It's so much fun to walk around, buy fresh produce and other interesting items, and then have lunch in a small cafe and chat. 

 One last trip to Achel Abbey with friends as well.  Heavy sigh.

 I have started organizing our belongings at the apartment in preparation for our flight out.  I'm sure the airlines won't have a problem with our 700 pounds of stuffed suitcases.  Maybe I need to organize a little more. 

And last, but not least, I've probably gained 10 pounds with all the eating out I've been doing with friends this week.  (There is a waffle buried under all that ice cream and fresh fruit.  The fruit makes it a healthy meal, you know.)  I'm going to add a Belgian waffle maker to my Christmas Wish List.  My booty won't thank me for that, but my heart will.  It will remind me of my time spent here, and that will make me smile.  It's so hard to say goodbye to the friends that I've made here at KB.  There are some really fantastic people stationed here, and they made our Belgian experience just that much better.  One step closer to home.

Carnival Week in Belgium

It's Carnaval Week in Belgium. The kids are out of school, everyone is in a fantastic mood, and things get just a little bit crazy. (I think this event might mark the official onset of Spring Fever.) We try to make it to at least one parade each year, because that's part of the fun. It reminds me a lot of Mardis Gras back home. There are always lots of interesting floats to see, and people dress up in colorful costumes and throw all sorts of goodies to the crowds gathered to enjoy the show.

Adding to the craziness of the event, it's all sponsored by the local brewery. Most of the participants have had more than their share by the time they make it through the town. This group sat down in the middle of the street, formed a human chain, and proceeded to wave and sing along with the music blaring from the nearest float. No one is ever out of control here, though. Everyone is just acting silly and having a good time.

This fellow wasn't part of the parade, but he was still my favorite. What kid doesn't love a parade, no matter what age? I know I do. Happy Carnival.

It's Carnaval Time!

Louisiana has Mardi Gras, but in Europe, we have Carnaval! And it makes some people who already enjoy a good party... really come out to play. The parade was led by the mounted police, riding...ostriches? They were lots of fun to watch. They never said a word, and communicated by simply blowing their whistles. (You should have seen them when the two blonds walks by.) There were lots of interesting (and a little creepy...like this doctor!) things to see in the parade. Each float had their own sound system, and the music was cranked! Groups of people in costumes followed behind each float, handing out candy, drinking, dancing, and just enjoying the festivities.

I loved the chick, who popped out of his shell occasionally to check out the festivities, and then ducked back in again.

The Titanic even made an appearance!

A big surprise was this entry. It's the Farm Ville float.... complete with the big red barn, scarecrow and sunflowers! That just goes to show you, even Belgians love their FaceBook games!

Moe from The Simpson's made an appearance and helped serve up some lovely Jupiler beer. He was bit of a rebel, because most of the crowd was drinking Martens. Elvis and his gang made an appearance as well.

There were pirate ships...

and men on stilts.

And even a few witches popped in to stir up some trouble.

The Carnaval Parade was lots of fun, and we really enjoyed ourselves. The locals are still out there living it up, but we called it a night and headed for home. Brandon has tons of candy, bags of chips, and other goodies to hold him over until next year. Happy Carnaval and Tot Ziens for now.