"S" is for Sprinkles

Hello! Happy Wednesday!

In case you are curious, Paris was lovely (as it so often is) and Devan and I had a wonderful time bopping about. Although BF thought we did a terrible job as visitors to the capital city, it was a perfect getaway as I maintain there is nothing wrong with doing the following while in Paris:

- Having GOOD pizza instead of really bad French food

- Enjoying a hot dog in a baguette from a vendor rather than a 16 Euro club sandwich at LaDuree

- Spending an hour strolling through antique shops and coming away nothing but a bunch of pictures

- Purchasing macarons from Laduree and then eating them with a Starbucks chai latte that tastes like home

- Prancing about the (free portion) of the Chateau de Vincennes

Perhaps individually they are not so noteworthy, but done in quick succesion they make for a relaxing and fun agenda.

So. Those are my thoughts on a free day in Paris. But there was something else I was supposed to share... I wrote an "S" on my hand to remind myself. Because I am awesome like that. Heck if I know what it stands for now. Oh! I know! "S" is for Sprinkles! AND the other fun little things I learned while in Austria.

I suppose I'll share them now in order of deliciousness...

1. CHOCOLATE SPRINKLES FOR BREAKFAST

Remember when I mentioned that the shopping list for our trip included chocolate sprinkles? Turns out they were not for cupcake topping. No. They were for breakfast. On top of bread. And butter.

Don't believe me? I have proof:

Breakfast of [Belgian] Champions: white bread with butter and dark chocolate sprinkles!

Everyone laughed at mine & BF's shocked faces as they feasted on this delicious dessert-masquerading-as-breakfast plate. And then we laughed at their shocked faces when we opened up the jar of Skippy peanut butter we brought (found at an Asian supermarket in Maastricht... because that makes sense) and had it on toast with bananas or on apples. They thought we were nuts! Especially when we packed lunch for the day and made PB&J sandwiches. "Peanut butter and Jelly?? That is so weird!"

Apples and peanut butter? Crazy!

2. SOCKS

At some point during the week, I was alerted to the fact that BF and I were - constantly - committing a serious fashion faux pas. By wearing white socks. The wearing of socks was fine. But the fact that they were white? Oh heavens no!

Turns out (in Belgium) they are to be worn ONLY while working out and even then it is preferred that women wear white socks with colorful accents to the gym. BF and I, obviously, only own white socks and everyone now and then they would giggle at this. Also. Even if the hottest Belgian boy in the whole world approaches you, you are to turn him down if he's wearing white socks. I found this ridiculous.

3. SALZBURG

... is an easy two hour drive from Wald-im-Pinzgau. Should the weather be bad or you need a break from skiing.

The weather was great and BF and I needed no sort of break so we skied while our friends went on a city trip to Salzburg. Their pictures were lovely and they had a wonderful time. I got a great purple and blue bruise on my leg and had a delicious Spaetzle noodle soup while on the slopes. I think we had a wonderful-er time :)

4. MARCH MADNESS

Seeing as how we're already at the final four, this portion is a bit late, but whatever. I was still shocked when I learned that our friends had never heard of March madness. They had NO IDEA what it was. None! Poor things. Whether they liked it or not, we decided they would learn what all the fuss was about as we had the evening free the first day of the tournament. I think the introductory session went pretty well but after watching Lou & I work on our brackets and then be subjected to 5 hours of March Madness on Demand on 2 laptops and 2 iPads, they asked a number of incredible questions, including but not limited to the following:

"So. What is the point? They play just so that YOU can make the bracket?"

"How do you get a touchdown?"

"What if Pitt scores less points in the game but has a better bracket than the other team? Do they still lose the game?"

I'm thinking we might have to do a refresher session next year...

An excellent consolation prize

(First Spring trip to Paris ~ April 08)

A dear friend from college, we'll call her "Future Supreme Court Justice" or "FSCJ" for short, has been staying with us in Leuven the past two nights. Unfortunately, BF & I have been suffering from general exhaustion due to work and whatnot so I hope she's had an okay visit. Fortunately, where Lou and I were unable to bring our A [hosting] game, Leuven stepped up to the plate and was its dazzling self. It even managed to hit one out of the park with two whole days of sun and downright reasonable temperatures. Regardless, I've most enjoyed her visit. You know those people that you can go years and years without seeing and then pick up right where you left off? Well, she's one of them. Add to that the fact that she's brilliant, genuine, thoughtful, engaging, inspiring, interesting and funny as hell and you have all the ingredients for an incredible guest.

Sadly, she has to jet off to Paris today to rendevous with her family and my life must return its focus to the mundane. However, luck of lucks, she needs a ride to her final destination and who should be able to chauffeur Ms. Future Supreme Court Justice but yours truly?? Pretty great consolation prize, no?

So. This afternoon, I'm stealing my friend, Devan, and we are going to drive FSCJ into Paris and then stay the night ourselves. Have a nice little girls-only-no-boys-allowed dinner and then spend Saturday shopping the Marais and the Les Puces des Saint-Ouen market (i.e. the biggest flea market in the world) and perhaps making a stop or two at Laduree for some macarons.

Paris in the springtime with friends? A most wonderful consolation prize indeed.

From April

Different Kinds of Dining: Brussels Edition

One of the latest crazes amongst the travelling set is what I like to call "Storybook Travelling." Or perhaps "Tale Travelling"?** What I mean is that 99% of the travelers I come across are in it for the "story." They are no longer content with the standard Paris city tour highlighting Notre Dame and the Arc de Triomphe. Been there. Done that. "Luke & Jenna - you know, from work? They did that. We need to top them." No. They want to walk through the underground crypts. Or take a painting class at the Louvre.

Same goes for restaurants. The hole in the wall you read about in Le Monde (with the help of Google Translate, of course) just won't do it. Even the weekend dinner club, "Hidden Kitchen," isn't enough ("It's been covered in the Times, it's SO 2010. What else do you got?").

On the one hand, this attitude can be a bit irritating. Seriously?? The Musee d'Orsay isn't good enough for you? Seriously??What more do you want from me? But at the same time, it's kind of awesome. It forces you to approach travel in a new way. To look for an experience rather than just tick sights off a list. Maybe even make a few lasting memories.

With this in mind, I started looking for interesting, off the wall dining experiences in my neck of the woods and, much to my surprise, Brussels had more than it's fair share of storybook-worthy offerings:

1. Would you like some wine with your view? (Dinner in the Sky)

Frequent readers of the popular blogs, Cup of Joe and Black Eiffel, will probably be rolling there eyes and thinking "Been there, clicked that," BUT, in case you haven't read about it already, here are the details:

Belgian based company, Events in the Sky, enables 22 lucky (and height loving!) individuals to have a 3 course meal with an exceptional view... from 50 meters above the ground. A table is held aloft by a crane and can be placed in a number of spots around Belgium (or in one of the 30+ countries the company now serves) for spectacular views of the the surrounding area. In the pictures from their Belgian events, the crane was placed outside the Atomiom and most certainly afforded the diners a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

(courtesy Dinner in the Sky website)

href="http://www.dinnerinthesky.com/dits_marriage/pictures.php">

Fun fact:



You can also get married in the sky and then bungee jump as newlyweds! Such a shame I didn't see this until now...

Site: www.dinnerinthesky.com

Price: Who knows? This is a group-only type deal that you must reserve in advance. Perhaps you can pitch it your boss as a "Team Building" exercise?

2. Belgian Geometry: Square meal in a cube on an arch. (Electrolux "Cube")

Kind of like the travelling version of Paris' Nomiya restaurant, Electrolux is bringing it's "Cube" (sidenote: why does Paris get the exotic-sounding "Nomiya" and we get the "Cube"??) restaurant to Brussels. From March 25-July 3rd, diners will get to sample gourmet food atop one of Brussels' gems, the Arc de Triomphe in Parc du Cinquantenaire. From their website:

Overlooking the beautiful Parc du Cinquantenaire, 18 diners will share an
unforgettable and inspiring evening. Come and join them in Brussels, and enjoy
the latest gourmet creations from culinary directors Bart de Pooter, chef of
restaurant De Pastorale in Reet and Sang Hoon Degeimbre of L’Air Du Temps in
Noville-sur-Mehaigne at an once-in-a-lifetime dining event.

(amazing photo via Flickr user PixGraphix)

Site: http://www.electrolux.be/Cube/Cube/

Price: 150 Euros for lunch, 200 Euros for dinner. Um, ouch. Maybe next time for us...

3. Dining in the dark? www.Only4Senses.com
[Oh shoot! Just as I hit "publish" I learned that this is no longer a dining option... I will try to find a 3rd/4th offering for Brussels and share it later]

** Which sounds better? Or do you have a suggestion for a better description of this trend? It's seriously bugging me that I don't have a short, cute little title for it...

The Further Adventures of Britt & Lou: Austria Edition

Hello!

After 7 days in the Austrian Alps and 20 hours of driving through 3.5 countries (we accidentally wandered into Switzerland for like 8 minutes)we are back in beautiful Belgium. Before I get into a full recap of our stay, let me cut to the most important bit: contrary to what the videos I posted earlier might suggest, I survived a whole week at the [Alpine] peak without incident! And by "incident" I mean broken bones, trips to the hospital or any lasting physical damage. I do have a few good bruises and Lou may or may not have captured a video or two of me wiping out in truly spectacular ways, but, we are all in one piece. Which is 90% of the battle.

(I know, I was shocked by the lack of injuries too...)

So. Now that my skiing expertise has been shared, we can move on to the business of recapping the week.

Here are the pertinent details:

Timeframe: March 12- March 19, 2011

This would have been a fine time to go had there been more snow in January & February given that the average temp was 55 and there were blue skies most days. Unfortunately, the lack of precipitation prior to our visit meant that for 5/7 days we found ourselves with icy runs on the mountain and almost no fresh powder. Of course, on our 2nd to last day there was a proper storm and while we couldn't ski that day we did stay the full day on Saturday so that we could take advantage of the amazing conditions.

(Blue skies + Mountains + Snow = Happy Lou)

Where we Stayed: Haus Contento in Wald im Pinzgau, Austria

"Haus Contento" was a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath apartment nestled in the Wald im Pinzgau valley with gorgeous views of the surrounding mountains. Although on the basic side, it was perfect for our purposes and fit the six of us quite nicely. We were able to cook all but 2 nights, make breakfast every morning and watch more NCAA basketball than our poor Belgian friends ever desired thanks to the free internet. Our friend booked it for us via http://www.chaletsplus.com/en/

Where we Skied: Zillertal Arena

Zillertal Arena is composed of not just one but 5(ish) peaks connected via gondolas, chairlifts and tracks on the mountain as well as buses down in the valley. And how were all these peaks? Well. Considering that my only other ski experience was in Telluride, which, according to Lou, is one of the best resorts in the world, I'm not sure I'm really a good source for whether or not Zillertal is a good place to ski. I guess I'll just say that I was able to do all of the hardest routes by my 3rd day. Yes, me. I'm not saying I did all of them well, but, I did them without any major problems. So. I suppose that means Zillertal is great for novices like myself. More advanced skiers such as Lou had to really search "off-piste" for exciting tracks.

Where we Ate: Restaurant Zum Kirchenwirt in Wald im Pinzgau, ProllerAlm in the Zillertal Arena, our kitchen table and the rocks at the top of Koningsleitenspitz

I recommend the rocks:

Check back tomorrow for a recap of what I learned about socks, sprinkles, Salzburg and (apres-)skiing...

While we're on the subject...

(of skiing, not grocery lists...)

I emailed my mom about the funny Belgian shopping list and her response had nothing to do with chocolate or sprinkles or Nutella. Instead, she said:

"Be careful. Wear a helmet please."

Really? I thought you were supposed to remove your hat at the dinner table?

(Weak joke, I know... moving on...)

Anyways. Her concern is somewhat understandable given that I am a) the clumsiest person ever - and that's without skis - and b) I've only gone skiing once. So, to ease her fears of me being a reckless speed demon that careens down the mountain, I thought I'd share the following videos captured by BF on my inaugural ski trip (in Telluride, CO):




Oh but wait. It gets better:



Right. 2014 Olympics, here I come... with my helmet.

Can't leave home without it...

The minute the ink was dry on my offer letter to start work in Belgium (in January of 2008), the wheels started spinning with travel ideas. Paris? Rome? Barcelona? Nah. Too overdone. Need to do something different. Something my mountain-loving BF would find extra special.

Somehow a ski trip in Austria popped into my head. With the always-reliable source material of movies & tv shows, I conjured up images of hot chocolate, quaint chalets, wool sweaters, furry boots, snowy Alps and apres ski amongst worldly Europeans. Could there be a better vacation for our first winter in Europe?

(BF and I skiing in Telluride this past winter. Had we taken this trip in 2008, perhaps I would have been capable of planning a ski trip in Europe.)

SO. For Christmas that year I bought BF the "Lonely Planet Guide to Austria" and bookmarked "Innsbruck." The Olympics had been held there twice. Surely it would be good enough for us?

Well, yes, it probably would. If I had ANY idea how to plan a ski trip.

Unfortunately, at the time, my experience with these things was rather limited:
a) I had never seen a proper mountain
b) I had never been to Austria
c) I had never been skiing

(Also, it should be mentioned I had no idea what "apres ski" was. Having never seen it spelled before I actually thought it was something along the lines of "a-PRAY ski" and involved religion. Turns out it involves drinking. Lots and lots of drinking. Which is totally similar.)

I searched dozens of websites, read articles, guidebooks, etc. but was completely and hopelessly lost. Between the German and French descriptions of resorts and chalets and confusing reviews and absurdly expensive packages... my head was spinning. So. I promptly booked a weekend in Paris (so much for original) and... well, let's just say that THREE years later, we still have not been skiing in Europe together.

However, thanks to our amazing friends, Janey and Jeroen (who are old pros when it comes to booking European ski vacations), we will finally be going on our Austrian ski trip! We leave this Saturday and will be staying there a full week with the aformentioned Janey & Jeroen as well as another two friends.

Which brings me to the point of this post... Belgian shopping lists. You see, we will be staying at a chalet with a full kitchen so the idea is that we will stock the place with basics for breakfast, lunch and a few dinners and then supplement that with a few dinners out. As they aren't sure whether or not there will be a reasonably-priced grocery store nearby, our dear friends pulled together a grocery list of ESSENTIALS for a week away. Many of the items would have been on my list (toilet paper, spaghetti, cereal) but there were a few that I feel are uniquely Belgian:

Still Water
Sparkling Water
Nutella
Baking Butter
Butter for Bread
Chocolate Sprinkles
Icebags (these are plastic bags you fill with water and then freeze. Like ice trays but disposable.)
Koningingenhapje (also known as "Flemish Stew" or "Beef Carbonnade")

Amazing, no? I love that two kinds of water and two kinds of butter are required. I can't wait to see what constitutes butter for bread. (Perhaps they mean stick butter and margarine? Somehow I think it will be fancy schmancy dairy butter vs. supermarket brand baking butter) Nutella should require little explanation but chocolate sprinkles??? Really???

Want to know why I love Belgians so much? They can't survive a week without chocolate sprinkles.

(The chocolate spread aisle at the local grocery store. The yellow boxes at the top left are Sprinkles. To the left of those are "Matinettes" - bars of chocolate that are meant to be spread on bread. The rest of the jars are Nutella, gourmet versions of nutella and "Speculoos Spread" - a bread topping made of speculoos cookies. It's a big deal here in Belgium.)

Remember when I said that Belgian Customer Service was subpar?

The "prank" below pretty accurately sums up the customer service experience in Belgium.

It was hugely popular here - probably because everyone that watches identifies with it a bit more closely than they'd otherwise prefer...

Carnaval, Belgian Style

For many, the word "Carnaval" means "that crazy festival in Rio de Janeiro." They immediately think of extravagant costumes and hypnotizing samba dancing. Like Mardi Gras in New Orleans but with a Latin flavor.

(Carnaval parade in Rio)

But spectacle aside, at it's heart it's just a four day festival that begins the Saturday before Ash Wednesday (though the parades start in earnest on Sunday, seven weeks before Easter Sunday). And you know what? It's not the only Carnaval festival in the world.

Venice is known to put on a fabulous show:

(Unfortunately we just missed Carnaval on our Venice trip last year)

And while not quite so elaborate as the one in Rio nor as full of intrigue as the one in Venice, Cologne holds a pretty interesting party each year:

(Carnaval revelers in Cologne, Germany)

[Sidenote: In 2009 we visited Cologne to see what all the fuss was about. Although there were some amazing costumes and hilarious parades, it was cold and rainy and just... icky. But that could be because Cologne itself is a bit of an odd city. Much of it was razed during the World Wars and the structures built afterwards are not exactly easy on the eyes. It's basically concrete, accented with concrete and topped off with more concrete. You can imagine how gorgeous it is in the rain. Shockingly, we have not been back. ]

(Celebrating Carnaval in Cologne, 2009. We started the morning off with more wigs but they were ruined in the rain...)

Now, if Rio's celebration is the "most feathery" and Venice's is the "most masked" and Cologne's is the "most gray and miserable" then Belgium's own Binche Carnival is easily the "most bizarre." In the world.

Although there are celebrations in various forms in the weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday, the events that draw the most attention take place on Mardi Gras. And they begin early.

As in 4am early.

With drums.

Dressed in traditional costumes (see picture below) that are passed down from father to son and can be 150 years old, the "Gilles" go from house to house, gathering their fellow men (gotta be a guy to be a Gilles) and greeting each other with champagne. Although it sounds a little crazy to be drinking champagne at 4am while in costume, this is apparently a very serious affair with many rules that must be followed.

(Gilles in traditional costume that consists of an ostrich-feather headpiece, green glasses, belt with bells and wooden shoes.)

Around 8am, the different groups of Gilles come together and have a breakfast of champagne & oysters. They then don special wax masks (I didn't get a picture of this myself as they took them off before the parade but see below for an example) and wait for the municipal authorities to give them the OK to begin the parade through town with their fellow Carnaval celebrators dressed up as Harlequins and peasants among other things.

While waiting for the festivities to begin, locals and tourists alike can be found packing the streets and spending the hours dancing, drinking and eating fair food. If they are REALLY cool they play with confetti:

Around 3:30 things get quiet and you start to hear the slow thunder of footsteps coming towards you. Which is when things get weird. (you know, because drums at 4am and ostrich feathers are totally normal...)

The low rumble is the result of 1,000+ Gilles, Harlequins and peasants slowly strolling through town carrying baskets of blood oranges which they gently toss to the waiting crowd.

(Orange AND confetti. Score!)

Note that is is what happens when you are nice.

If you taunt them, well, they don't so much "toss" as PELT.

So you better duck.

(The metal grates are not just for decoration...)

Looks like fun, no? Not too shabby for little old Belgium. If you think this is something you'd like to experience for yourself, it's not too late! Mardi Gras celebrations begin tomorrow at 4am!

For more information, check out the official Binche website HERE. (translated in English if you're French is a little rusty. Or non-existent.)

Let's try this again, shall we?

Wordpress and I have had some issues of late so I've decided to go back to Blogger. It's what I used when I was last living abroad and keeping a blog (in 2005! where did the time go??) and it's just so darn easy to use I'm hoping I'll stop making excuses and, you know, actually post from time to time.

As opposed to once a month. If that. Oops.

For now, check out this, um, interesting picture (that was stupid simple to embed):

Curious what this picture is all about? Check back tomorrow! (seriously, mom, I promise to write about it.)