Beverages Down Under

Had a grand total of two beers during my trip to Oz. The best was a Fat Yak IPA. I had it in the Qantas lounge in Canberra and it was truly excellent. Hoppy, crisp, refreshing. Really a great IPA. The other was Coopers Pale ale. Also consumed in a Qantas lounge. This one was in Melbourne. The Coopers was OK. Not great. The fact that my drinking occurs primarily in Airport Lounges, probably says a lot about my lifestyle.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is my holiday. I like to cook and I like to eat. So it is a little tragic that this is the second year in a row where we do not celebrate Thanksgiving. For the last 12 or 15 years, we hosted Thanksgiving. It was always SWMBO's family and usually some members of mine converging on our house for a few days of caloric excess. Typically it would commence with French Onion soup which is my brother in law's favorite for lunch after he would arrive. Dinner the night before would always be a Bronto-slab of standing rib roast (bone in) and potato dauphinois. Thanksgiving was the traditional turkey with sides and a toxic amount of dessert.

I am glad that while my daughter was growing up, she had a traditional family holiday like this and I feel bad that the last couple of years have interrupted it. We talked a little about trying to do the holiday at her place in Arizona, but it didnt make sense this year. I know we will reinstate the annual tradition when we return to the US but I cant help but feel like we have missed a precious opportunity these last two.

Missing traditions is one of the unanticipated consequences of living abroad. It is not like we couldnt have stayed in the US a few extra days and had a Thanksgiving, but it would not have been the same. For me, Thanksgiving is about cooking for the people I care about and spending time with them. It would be hard to watch someone else roasting the bird and not want to jump in.  So here I sit, having just had SWMBO's shepherd's pie and watching the Lions and Packers on ESPN America. Not quite the same thing, but it will have to do. Maybe next year we can find a creative solution.

Busy Busy

It has been a busy few weeks. I originally thought that I would be spending some time in the US on business but was rerouted to Korea and Japan instead. It was my first time in Korea, but being that I spent less than 36 hours in country, all I can really say is that it was like San Jose except with more coffee shops.

Japan was essentially the same as it was the last time that I was there. Maybe a bit more expensive. I like Japan. The food is tasty and yet healthy at the same time. The people are extremely nice and helpful. Traffic is insane. On this trip what should have been a one hour cab ride to the airport turned into a two and a half hour gauntlet of wrecked vehicles. I probably should have taken the train, but my colleagues in Tokyo made my taxi arrangements and I did not want to seem ungrateful. As it was, I walked up to my gate as boarding started, so no damage done.

While in Japan I did have the opportunity to wander around a little bit in the evening with some of my colleagues. Mostly we wound up at fairly touristy spots but it was good to see other parts of Tokyo.

Returning to Belgium, I was home for all of 16 hours and then SWMBO and I drove to Reims in the Champagne region of France. We had a four day weekend that turned into a three day weekend due to my Asia trip, so we tried to make the most of the time that we had.

Reims and the Champagne region as a whole was great. Driving there from Brussels took us through some beautiful rolling fields. The wine region itself is quite picturesque as well. And as would be expected, the food is really good too. We partook of our share of champagne during the trip and I have to say, as an American, i dont think we do it justice as a wine. Champagne is really good with food. The acidity cuts through rich foods, which is about all you get in this part of the world. We also found several that were quite reasonably priced and excellent.

My travel schedule through the end of the year is similarly insane. SWMBO and I head to Venice on Thursday and then follow that with a trip to the US. We will be home briefly and then I am off to Australia. I will try to keep up with my posts and perhaps review a beer or two.

Directions

SWMBO and I must really look like we know where we are going because we are magnets for people asking for directions. A typical sightseeing stroll for us results in at least one person and often many more stopping and asking us for directions. Usually in French. If we are in the center of Brussels, often, we can provide the directions providing we can communicate. Other times, not so much. Today was one of those times. We decided that the beautiful weather warranted a park visit but we decided to go to a different one for us, a large one near the Atomium.  http://atomium.be/?lang=en We wandered around for a while when a car pulled up next to us and a gentleman jumped out with a Bon Jour and asked us for directions. I had no idea where he wanted to go, but fortunately the next people he stopped did. From the looks of the hand gestures, he was pretty well lost. About 10 minutes later a little old man greeted us. Again with a Bon Jour and then asked where the Palais Royale was. I struggled for a couple of minutes trying to figure out how to say "I think it is down that road but I am not sure." in French. He then said to me, "You are not so good at this, the french". True little old man, true. But at least I was able to give him the correct directions, so I am not totally worthless.

The whole exchange got SWMBO and I talking while wandering the park grounds. If we had tried this expat thing 15 years ago, our experience would have been totally different. When I go to work, 90% of the time, everyone speaks english. It is accented, but it is still english. I come home from work and our cable package has in addition to the Flemish and French channels, the Discovery channel, History channel, E, ESPN and a variety of other essentially American and British channels. And of course, everything I read or download on the internet is essentially American generated. It is only when you head out to shop or go to restaurants that you really have the sense of foreignness. For me, it is almost like living in the US Monday through Friday and then weekending in Europe. So after living here for more than a year, my French has not gotten any better. SWMBO's Flemish is improving rapidly, but she has to be in the community more than me. She lives in Belgium full time. I am only a visitor.

Soggy

Belgium has lived up to its rainy reputation this week; especially this weekend. The rain has been relentless. Consistent, if not torrential. It is the kind of rain that keeps you from following through on plans or making new ones. 

SWMBO and I had originally planned on going to Antwerp to shop and explore. After breakfast though, it was apparent that it would only end in profanity, so we switched plans and opted for the mall to see if I could find a fall coat.  Having lived in Maryland the last 20 years, I never really needed anything heavier than a wind shirt or a sweater at this time of the year. In the Mid Atlantic, you go from Summer to Winter without too much of an Autumn. Belgium is different. It is more like New England. The temperature can swing pretty dramatically over the course of a day, never mind the constant threat of rain. So I need to find something.

We started at the mall. The Woluwe Shopping Center is the closest thing to an American mall we have here. It is small but has a decent selection of shops as well as a boucherie, fromagerie, a grocery store and a little Italian market. What it does not have, are too many options for the male shopper; at least the American male shopper. SWMBO believes that we just have to shed our American fashion sensibility and integrate. Which is easy for her to say. The women’s clothes are fashionable if a bit more revealing than in the US.  For men, you can go in two directions, either formal i.e., sport coats, etc. Or you can embrace your inner euro-trash self and find something colorful, shiny and skin tight. Not much in between the two.

From a fashion standpoint it doesn’t really matter however, because I am afflicted with something more difficult to shop for, American size. I think most stores in Belgium cater to an average male size of about 5 foot 7 and 145 pounds. After a day of shopping not just in Woluwe, but also around Avenue Louise, I honestly did not find a jacket that would have fit me in high school. It was a little frustrating because it is not as though my gut was doing me in. For the most part, they were just built for really tiny guys.

So it looks like I will hold off getting a jacket until I can get either to the US or to Germany. Someplace where large is large.

Oktoberfest

A year ago, my brother met us in Brussels after a few days in Munich attending Oktoberfest. He had such a great time, we planned to meet him there for the 2011 version. So we arrived there a week ago ready for the tapping of the first keg and to experience the spectacle of Oktoberfest.

I had heard that it was like the mother of all Frat parties. I had expected crowds and copius amounts of public drunkeness, but nothing prepares you for the scale of this. Literally tens of thousands of people drinking, eating and singing. And then a few hours later, drinking, eating, singing, falling down, expressing their love for strangers, and generally devolving into incoherance. It is a little staggering is the amount of human carnage that develops as the day rolls on. I will refrain from a full description  but suffice to say I saw more than one young gentleman fall into the urinal in the WC.  Oktoberfest is not all degenerate behavior, but you don't have to look far to find it.

On our first day , we arrived very early because we didn't have any tent tickets. Fortunately, the weather was amazing after an evening rain and we found an outdoor section of the Paulaner tent. We were joined by a couple of Brits and a lovely young Aussie/Bavarian and her lovely Bavarian/Bavarian friend. (We referred to her as Bavarian Cameron Diaz, because that is who she looked like). The Aussie/Bavarian was quite a good promoter of Australian tourism. ("You have to hold a Koala, they pee all over you, it's wonderful"). Hard to argue with that kind of enthusiasm.

I would be remiss at this point if I did not mention the dirndl. The dirndl is the traditional dress of Bavarian women and it is amazing the variety that you see at Oktoberfest. Everything from the traditional demure dirndl to truly shockingly revealing dirndls. In almost all varieties however, the 'ahem' bosom, is prominantly displayed. I tried to talk SWMBO into getting one under the theory "When in Rome" but she refused. Maybe another time.

Most of the afternoon at the Paulaner tent was quite good. There were only a couple of altercations involving a Polish Tablemate and his "girlfriend". The best part was Polish guy's friend restraining him which caused the girlfriend to take the opportunity to get a couple of vicious right hooks in. One to the ribs and one to head. Those natural instincts can't be trained.  I think she could be a contender.

German Oktoberfest beers are served in one liter measures which frankly are a challenge to the bladder. It makes the small 33 cl glasses of Belgian strong ale look much more efficient. One would think that the volume alone would be a barrier to people getting completely crippled and yet the evidence to the contrary was easy to find.

The second day was much more civilized, She Who Must Be Obeyed has a college friend who lives in Munich and she scored us some tickets to the Ochsenbraterei Tent, where we sat on the upper level, out of the fray. The photo with the Blue and White streamers is from that tent. SWMBO and I were happy to be up top but I think my brother would have preferred to be in the middle of the action. For us however, it was great. We spent the evening with a bunch of fun people, sang Neil Diamond and Jon Denver songs (I didn't understand that either)  and had a really good time.

Random Thoughts

Belgium is the only country I know where you wait longer to have your hair cut, than to see your doctor. This evening I spent an hour in line at my barber shop waiting for my turn in the chair, while last week, I called the doctor, made an appointment and was out of his office within the hour. I also got my meds in the same amount of time. But of course, that socialized medicine stuff would never work in the US. Makes me wish the barber were similarly socialized.

Thinking about other socialized services that apparently don't work, we have the US Post Office. We have been watching the ordeal of the US Postal Service from this side of the Atlantic with interest. The downside to their troubles of course, is who will deliver the Victoria's Secret Catalog each month? The demise of the Postal Service will also be a blow to the Thank You card industry. I have never understood why it is the thought that counts with gifts, but apparently gratitude requires formal stationary. Now what are we to do? FedEx'ing our salutations will get pretty expensive. 2011 could be the last year with Christmas Cards, which might be a good thing until you consider the fact that they will be replaced with those annoying E-cards and worse yet, the electronic Christmas letter. No longer will they be just a saccharine photo of the kids with the dog dressed in antlers and a happy go lucky account of the years events. Now they will be a full High Definition onslaught of Christmas Joy.

At least we will be able to wait until December 24, 11:59 PM before we send it out.

Graduate School? Didn't you just finish first grade????

I just had a discussion with the Sun Devil about graduate school options. She graduates from college in the Spring. Although truth be told, she could probably do it this semester but it is more fun to take the full four years and further deplete her inheritance.

There is nothing that makes you feel old like discussing graduate school options with someone who it feels like 20 minutes ago you were helping tie their shoes. It is a good kind of old. She could be holding up liquor stores or running for the Republican nomination. So it could be much worse. Still, it is amazing how quickly the time has gone. I truly miss sitting in the bleachers watching her play softball or having her kick my butt in Crash Bandicoot. Those times are gone, but I think about it all the time.

This is what we are destined to do however. Grow, change and move forward. I hope that graduate school will give her the skills and confidence that the next part of her life will require. I know she is strong and intelligent, so I shouldn’t worry too much. But I would like a couple of games of Crash Bandicoot.

Summer Fun in the US, A Few Observations

Almost through our US vacation. We have a couple of days left and the the Sun Devil heads back to Arizona and we are back to Belgium. I thought I would share a few observations from out trip.

Boston is a great city. (but I am biased)

Rain Delays stink.

Fenway is the best park in Major League Baseball.

We Americans are way too fat.

My golf game has gone to hell.

The US is the best place for steak.

Small dogs are not fond of boat rides.

Flying Back to the US

At 36000 feet in coach class, a circumstance that I have been fortunate to have become unaccustomed to. It is not all that bad, She Who Must be Obeyed is a good travel companion and one who I do not get to travel with nearly enough.

While it would be altogether too easy to complain about holiday travelers. I won't. Although I am tempted. OK maybe just a little. I do not understand the attraction of those ridiculous document pouches that, mostly American, travelers wear. I particularly don't understand them on the guy wearing safari pants with far  too many pockets and zippers while wearing a photographer's vest. You cannot seriously need one more place to store your passport and boarding pass. Which also begs the question, why is it that so many travelers insist on kitting themselves out in all of the "travel"clothing for a trip to Europe? Do they will be asked to narrate a wilderness special for the BBC whilst strolling through the streets because they look like Richard Attenborough? I am no fashionista, but seriously, what is wrong with chinos or jeans and shoving your documents in your pocket?

This is the longest trip to the US that we have made since moving to Europe. I have been back several times in the past year for business.SWMBO, only a couple. We read all of the typical newspapers, follow CNN and log more than a few hours with ESPN America, the Daily Show, Colbert and South Park, so I don't think we are too out of touch. We also certainly spend too much time following the various Kardashians and those crazy toddlers in their tiaras.( Seriously, sometimes it is like you can feel the IQ points dropping.) Still, it will be interesting to get back into the swing of understanding everyone and not having to astulblieft or merci for almost three weeks.

Before that can happen, we have to clear customs, grab our bags, get the rental car and drive two hours North. Looks like it will be a long day.

Renewing the Residency

She Who Must Be Obeyed joined me for a session at the Gemeentehuis to renew our residency and get my Belgian and International driver's licenses. Technically, the Gemeentehuis staff are not supposed to speak to us in anything but Flemish, but our local group is pretty accomodating in that regard. We first took care of my licenses because we would have to wait for those to be completed. The woman who helped us with that was pretty strict about speaking Flemish but fortunately, SWMBO has been studying and has mad skilz. The functionary was pretty impressed with SWMBO's ability to interpret for me. (I didnt have the heart to point out that she had done the same thing a couple of weeks ago.)

Once the licenses were done, we did our residency card application. We need to renew each year when my company issues my new work permit, thereby proving that we are not derelicts who want to take advantage of the permissive welfare state of Belgium. The woman who helped us through this part is very nice. She was quite enthusiastic and supportive of SWMBO's Flemish skilz, which made SWMBO very happy. After about an hour, we had successfully renewed our residency and I am a permanently licensed Belgian driver with a temporary International license. By this time next year, I am sure that SWMBO will be doing a full on translation so that I can maintain my almost complete lack of Flemish. Alstublieft SWMBO!

Weekend in Paris

She who must be obeyed and I headed south to Paris for the weekend to celebrate a belated anniversary. Fourteen years has flown by. So much so, that if it wasn't for the wedding gift cross-stitch, we wouldn't realize how long it has been.

The goal of the weekend, besides the anniversary, was to have amazing food and to see Ralph Lauren's car collection at the Louvre. I will start with the food. Being someone who reads food blogs (I know, food nerd) I came across a review of Agape Substance on the Paris by Mouth blog. It was a recent review and glowed about the meal, so I thought I would take a flyer and try to get a reservation. I called the restaurant, left a message and got a fairly prompt reply back. (How un-Parisian!) Reservation secured, we were locked in for Saturday night at a super new 24 seat restaurant. After making the reservation I found out that the restaurant has only been open for about ten days and has been visited by several noted critics,all of whom loved it. So we were pretty excited to go.

Last night was the reservation and it started really well. They were very accommodating and friendly, attentive, but not overbearing. We started off with a couple of glasses of Champagne to celebrate our Anniversary. The chef then started to bring the courses. Agape Substance presents a menu but you do not get to pick from it,which I think may be a bit of a mistake. The chef selects ingredients and then assembles a menu for you at his choice, first checking if you have any food issues. The courses started off in amazing fashion. The food was over the top, bright and vibrant, and technically superb. Unfortunately, had I picked my own menu, a couple of items that wound up on the plates of the patrons on either side of us would have been my first choice. Namely the Chanterelles for me and the chocolate for SWMBO. Even so, the food was amazing. I think my favorite dish was pigeon livers in a fois gras emulsion. Needless to say, SWMBO probably would not agree with that, but surprisingly, she ate it. Although she did give me the pigeon livers and just ate the emulsion. Another surprise was the Oeuf. SWMBO likes her poached eggs cooked to the point of a rubber ball. These were approximately a 3 minute egg. Just poached enough to stay whole for a couple of minutes but not enough for a completely solid white. Shockingly, SWMBO ate that too, and liked it. I think it was the garlic sauce.

I do enjoy going to over the top restaurants like this on occasion. I appreciate the skill that goes into the dishes and the innovation that it requires. Agape Substance definitely hit the notes on those counts, but unfortunately they did miss on others. They misunderstood that SWMBO does not eat fish and that includes all fish, not just shellfish. Additionally, as the restaurant got busier, the quality control went down a bit. This impacted the later patrons more than us but was noticeable in that we are all sitting at one long table.

As creative and tasty as the food was, I cannot imagine eating a place like this more than a couple of times a year. After the meal, we talked more about a meal that we had at a Michelin two star restaurant in Luxembourg that was not nearly as fussy and far more laid back and enjoyable. This is the thing with molecular gastronomy, the biochemist in me marvels at the unique preparation but in the end, it is vibrant flavor with little substance. Give me a well roasted chicken and I am probably happier and certainly more satisfied. It was a nice experience, with some great wine, but only a couple of times a year.

Following up on the late night, we had a leisurely morning. Omelets in a small bistro followed by a walk around the Louvre. The Ralph Lauren car show at the Louvre was the real reason for the trip, besides spending time with my lovely bride (had to put that in) and it did not disappoint. The 1938 Bugatti Atlantic is probably one of the most singularly stunning cars that I have ever seen. It is probably crap to drive, but it is gorgeous to look at. Similarly, the 1930 Mercedes SSK was also a stunner. Both of the cars have beautiful flowing lines and tapered bodies and could never be made today. SWMBO liked the Porsche 550 Spyder. I have it on good authority that she would look "Super Cute" in it. The other two cars that I really liked were the 1958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa and the 1950 Jaguar XK120 Roadster. The Testa had a tapered body that presaged the form of modern F1 cars and just looked like it would make a wonderful noise. The Jag is just impossibly gorgeous and would make a fabulous cottage car (hint to the in-laws for a great 15th Anniversary Gift).

After drooling at cars we will never be able to afford, we wandered Paris a little more. coffee and tea at a cafe. A little sight seeing, etc. The nice thing about having been to Paris many times and living so close, we don't feel as though we have to take it all in at once. This is an incredible luxury, we know. It really makes visiting a city more pleasurable because there is no feeling of missing out. If we don't see something this trip, there is always the next. So our afternoon was essentially, finding quiet neighborhood bistro and sitting down for a leisurely two hour lunch, until we needed to catch a cab to the train station. The Bistro was in a quiet residential section of St. Germain De Pres in the 6th. The food was unfussy, tres correct, and delicious. We finished the meal by sharing a chocolate and hazelnut gateau that was simple and excellent. Proving again that good satisfying food is excellent in its own right.

A very nice weekend.

Ommegang...Ommagod!!

Belgians like nothing better than a big spectacle. Give them an excuse to parade around in tights while opera blasts from loudspeakers and animated movies are shown on the beautiful architecture, and they will take it. That is the only explanation for the events that we have been witness to since moving to Brussels. Every holiday celebration seems to be accompanied by live opera, costumes and cartoons. Which, to be clear, I am not complaining about. It is just interesting.

The most recent installment in this series of experiences was Ommegang. I won’t try to give the full history of the event. If you are interested, you can read about it here: http://ommegang.be/index2.php?idx=2&lg=en
In brief, the procession commemorates Charles Quint visiting Brussels from Ghent. What is now a 30 minute drive was apparently a big deal in the 16th century.

We went to the Ommegang festival with the American Club of Brussels. They had secured a dining room at Maison du Cygne, which overlooks the Grand Place. (As an interesting side bar. The first time that we went to eat here, a German couple of a certain age were taking provocative photos of the missus in leather and revealing bustier, while everyone ate lunch. C’est tres incroyable!). We had a cash bar plus a three-course dinner and wine. The group was a fairly interesting mix as it typically is when you pull together a combination of people who know one another and with a equal quantity of total strangers.

Through the course of the evening we mixed cocktail hour small talk with visits to the balcony to watch the proceedings. The festival itself lasted about three hours and was, as billed, a spectacle extraordinaire. The highlights of the festival are the stilt walkers. They walk around the Grand Place on some seriously high stilts. With the cobblestones of the Grand Place, She Who Must Be Obeyed has a hard enough time not twisting an ankle in high heels. The idea of walking around on twenty foot tall stilts is nuts.

Like a lot of experiences, this was an interesting one to see and worth the price of admission. Not sure we will do it again, but worth doing.

Nectar of the Gods

Sometimes separating hype from reality is difficult. The red velvet rope phenomenon is real and can be measured, so it tends to make me a bit of a cynic when I hear the “best in the world” tag applied to anything. As a commercially minded capitalist however, I can appreciate any slick piece of marketing that I encounter. Who would have thought it would be practiced by a bunch of monks?

Westvleteren 12 is an AWESOME beer. No doubt about it. When you do something for a few hundred years, you apparently get pretty good at it and the monks from Sint Sixtus are no exception. Still, there is a measure of Belgian absurdity to obtaining this nectar of the gods. The monks have gone Big Time and have embraced technology to keep their beer exclusive. They accept calls only within predefined windows of time that are published on their website. http://www.sintsixtus.be/eng/brouwerijactueel.htm

You then call and receive a busy signal for an indeterminate amount of time. For She Who Must Be Obeyed it was about an hour. They then take your order for whatever brand they are selling in that time window. The Blond, the Bruin 8 or the Holy Grail Bruin 12. The Bruin 12 has won best beer in the world several times. She Who Must Be Obeyed was calling for the Bruin 12. When you finally get through, they take your order for one case. Not Two. Not Three. One. You also agree not to resell the beer. They then ask for your license plate number for when you pick it up.

Pick up for us was about a two-hour drive through the Belgian countryside. We passed lots of farmland, poppy-filled Flanders Fields including Ypres, and a couple of windmills. The abbey of Sint Sixtus is at the end of an impossibly narrow, windy road, which deposits you at the abbey itself. Across the street is a little restaurant that acts as the Abbey’s visitor’s center. Here you can sample all three of the beers and purchase up to four bottles (2 Blond, 1 Bruin 8 and 1 Bruin12 with a glass). Good luck getting that through airport security. SWMBO and I stopped in the restaurant for a quick bio break and a not so quick lunch including a blond and a Bruin 8. Refreshed and ready to move on, we got back in the car and drove into the pick up line at the Abbey. Here you wait in your car for the monk to check your license plate number. If you pass muster, he rolls up with a fresh crate of 24 bottles to put in your trunk. You then pay and cannot purchase another case of beer until the following month. They have your phone and license plate on file - electronically, so don’t even try. (Unless of course you have another phone and another car.) Unfortunately, we have two phones, but only one car.

So, what did we get? Well we had a nice drive through the countryside. We came home with 26 bottles of Westvleteren Bruin 12 (“Best beer in the world”), two bottles of the Bruin 8, four Blonds and 2 glasses. Oh, and a new respect for the power of the red velvet rope.

Belgian Entropy

Belgium seems to function best in the presence of some disorder: A fact that is evidenced by our lack of a federal government for about a year. I like to think of it like the second law of thermodynamics. The more order that Belgium tries to impose through its small bureaucracies, the more other parts of the country have to release that energy by increasing the disorder and devolving into chaos. Our town is doing its part by hosting a music festival through the weekend. Much of the festivity is happening almost immediately out our front door. In typical Belgian fashion, the festival has taken over much of the available parking in the town and has blocked several streets. One of which leads to my car park, meaning that I had to rush home early to ensure I could snag one of the remaining public spots near the library. Getting to that spot was more challenging than usual as everyone else had the same idea. With the blockades funneling the town into the narrow rat’s nest of streets and alleys, the insane priorite adroit laws made every intersection a potential collision. Driving around here was already an exercise in extreme evasive maneuvers. It has now degenerated to vehicular anarchy.

Contrasting this however is the experience I had at the Police station yesterday. I need to get a Belgian driver’s license, which seems a little oxymoronic once you see how Belgians drive – You have one year from the time you move to transfer your license to a Belgian one and my year is almost up. The process is fairly straightforward, if not a little bureaucratic. First, you bring your U.S. license to the police station. They check it’s authenticity and issue you a letter that you bring to the town hall along with your U.S. license. They confiscate your U.S. license and issue you your Belgian license. The Belgian license is paper card stock with your photo taped to it (I am not kidding). It also never expires. The police were busy yesterday, so asked me to leave them my phone number and they would call when it was ready. I thought that was nice enough, so I was even more surprised when later in the evening an envelope dropped through our mail slot containing my letter. They apparently saw where I lived and hand delivered it on their way home. Can you imagine a U.S. government official doing the same thing?

So the lesson here is one of Belgian Entropy. Getting your driver’s license is quick and efficient (although it results in a very un-official looking document) which then must be offset by the poor quality of Belgian Drivers and infuriating complexity of Belgian Roads and driving laws. Somehow it works.

Beer Glasses

That is, Beer Glasses not Beer Goggles. Belgians take their beer glasses very seriously. Almost every beer has it's own glass. Most would be considered Tulips but there are many other shapes as can be seen by some of the photos on this site. Some say that the shape is designed to enhance the various beers, but that is just marketing. As someone who has always drunk beer from bottles however, I have to say that I believe it is better to drink your beer from a glass. Being able to smell the beer while you are drinking enhances the flavor. And if nothing else, it is fun collecting all the obscure shapes.

I am woefully behind on the blog posts, so am going to try to catch up on about two weeks of tastings here. SWMBO and I popped by Moeder Lambic over the weekend for a quick beverage after enjoying noodles at Au Bon Bol. She has decided that her favorite beer is the Saint Monon Au Miel. I would agree that it is pretty tasty. We had it fresh from the tap and on a hot day, it was quite refreshing. A slight honey note with fruity background. It was a fairly light beer for being 8%. Three and a half Drunk Monks.

My selection at Moeder Lambic was a Lambic blend from Tilquin Gueuzerie. This is not a beverage for amateurs. With the natural fermentation and lambic sourness, this is a beer that fights back. It has almost an oily mouth feel and a serious tart edge. Beneath that though is a fruity malty beer with a lot of complexity. Also three and a half drunk monks.

Last up was a Djean triple. A good beer to follow up the lambic. Crisp, a little hop but not spectacular. Three Drunk monks.

The final beer to review is a Valeir Xtra. My first sip had me thinking Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. That is about the best way I could review this. Crisp refreshing and the most hoppy beer I have had since living in Belgium . And as hot as today was, a good beer to end the evening with. Three and a half drunk monks.

Life is Full of Surprises

Tonight I went out into our back yard to snip off some sage leaves for a mushroom, sage cream sauce for my pasta. When I looked up from the sage plant, I noticed that one of the trees had sprouted a bunch of ripe cherries. I probably should have noticed this before, but was pleased with the discovery. I knew we had grapes and strawberries but the cherries are a real bonus. It's amazing what can grow in such a small space. Our back yard is smaller than our living room in the US but it is chock full of surprises. I think I see a cherry tart in our future.

We had another surprise last night. When SWMBO tried to turn on the light, the switch blew and we had no light in our living room. A call to an electrician later and the guy showed up, ON TIME. Fixed the light and didn't charge us. It turns out it was a fuse in the switch itself. You hear stories about horrible Belgium service, but we have often been pleasantly surprised.

Chocolate Wasted

The SunDevil has been in Belgium for a nice long visit. It was great to have her here over the Father's Day weekend. Something I had not thought about when we planned the trip. Since she arrived, we have been trying to share some of what we have found since she last visited over the holidays. At this point however, I think she is done with the old stuff. Perhaps me included.

The weather since she arrived has been very Belgian. Lots of sporadic rain and cooler temperatures. Very unlike the beautiful weather that we have had in the weeks leading up to her arrival. It has made finding fun things to do more of a challenge but we have managed as best we can. For example, this afternoon she baked some killer bannana chocolate chip cupcakes and tonight we tried some chocolate and a strawberry genever. The two shot glass sized bottles did not last long. The SunDevil made some references to getting "chocolate wasted".


For my part, I had a Nostradamus. Not sure that this beer would convey any prescience, but it is OK. The dominant note is a sweet malty flavor. At 9%, it is a pretty strong "donker". It has a bit of Chimay Bleu note to it, but not as refined. There is not enough hop to balance it out. Not bad but not a home run. Three and a half Drunk Monks.

Bad Beer Night

Bornem Double

Cereal nose. Smells like a bowl of grape nuts. Malty cereal flavor. Tastes like a bowl of grape nuts, without the crunch. I am not a big fan of grape nuts.

Bornem Triple

I cannot drink two mediocre beers in a row. Triple down the sink.

SWBO thinks I am too nice in my reviews. Not tonight. One Drunk Monk.

Bleary Eyed But Blogging

When I was traveling a lot for business, I had gotten to the point where I adapted to time zones quickly. As I write this however, I am feeling pretty exhausted. I was in Chicago for more than a week attending the American Society of Clinical Oncology Meeting and returned to Belgium this morning on the red-eye.

I have been fortunate enough to travel in Business and First Class on many airlines. Given this experience, I have to say that American Airlines is among the least comfortable business class cabins I have ever experienced. Better than coach, but only just. I debated taking an Ambien before the flight, but I was a little concerned that it was not long enough and I would wake up feeling woozy. As a result, I did not sleep at all and returned to Belgium in a splendid mood.

While I was gone, SWMBO procured a few new beers for the blog. A good start on improving my mood. Tonight I am trying the Abbaye De St Amand. The beer is flavored with Juniper berries, which is also one of the key flavorings for gin, another beverage of which I am fond. The beer itself starts with some sweetness and citrus notes. The juniper is there, but very light adding an herbal component that complements the citrus well. There is a good balance of hop that counters the sweetness and gives the beer some structure. Three and a half Drunk Monks!

Back on the Bike

After about 10 days in the bike shop, my bike was finally ready. It didn't need 10 days of work, they just forgot that it was there. Ahhh, Belgium. I haven't really done much riding at all in about five or six years. There was a period in my late 30's where I was riding a lot, but travel and responsibility got in the way and my bikes just hung in the garage. Cycling seems to be the national sport of Belgium and everwhere you go there are cycling shops and groups of riders sporting team logo lycra. So it seemed natural that I try to get back on the bike.

I should make clear that I do not consider myself a cyclist. I like to ride my bikes. It is good exercise, scenic and generally enjoyable. I am not however, built like a cyclist. I am not tall and lean, but rather wide with short legs. Even if I wasn't fat, my torso is still built like a sail and I catch every bit of wind. I try to tell myself that the increased wind resistance makes it better exercise, but mostly it just slows me down.

Last year, the Tour de France's route took the race literally in front of my house. We didn't live here then, proving timing is everything, but there are photos to prove it.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.133177556714459.16096.114475351918013

Typical of this part of the world, our streets are mostly cobblestones which is why I think they picked us for that part of the Tour route. If you have never ridden a bike on cobblestones, all I can say is, they are no joke. The bumps are only half the issue. The bigger danger is the uneven and slippery surface. I have incredible respect for the racers who ride at speed over these things. I think I am going to have to become a much better rider before I feel comfortable clipping in to my road bike. As it is, I was riding my hybrid with much wider tires and felt like one slip and my teeth would be scattered across the road. Hopefully I can avoid injury long enough to get my bike handling skills back up to my high standards of mediocrity.

It was good to get back on the bike again this morning. My hinder is a bit tender from yesterdays ride, but not as bad as I expected. I wore my mountain biking shorts and a T-shirt because nobody wants to see my fat self squeezed into lycra like a neon Memorial Day bratwurst. (Something that has not ocurred to many of my Belgian counterparts). I figure I need to get below two bills before anything remotely resembling road cycling gear goes on my body. I tried to maintain as brisk a pace as possible, but my general level of fitness tells me that it may be a while before I join the peloton. Still, I am trying to tell myself that now in my mid forties, anything physical that I do is a positive. If nothing else, it offsets some of the beers that I am reviewing for this blog.

Sports Aren't The Same When You Can Fast Forward

Living in Europe is not always easy if you are a US sports fan. Sure we have ESPN America on the Belgacom Sports Package but that is no cure for the temporal displacement issue. 6-9 hours of time difference can make following your favorite team in real time a challenge. Most days the game starts at some ridiculous hour that we simply can't stay up for. So then you wake up and either try to avoid the internet all day so that you can watch it from the DVR the next evening or you just chuck the whole thing and check the box score in the morning.The real issue for me though, is that watching games in tape delay ruins the intensity and drama. If you can hit fast forward to see how it turns out, the life is sucked out of it. So we are stuck with a much lighter diet of sports than we had in the US. I do think we appreciate it more however when we have something on that we want to watch. Weekends are a little easier as there are usually a few games that start at a reasonable hour. Last night was one of those times when the time change benefitted us. Red Sox had a matinee game which hit us right at 7PM so we were able to watch the drubbing of the Tigers in real time. Almost felt like home.

As I mentioned, we have ESPN America on the Sports Package, which also gets us about a half dozen channels with cricket, snooker and soccer options. Haven't yet developed a taste for those, but if I live here long enough, who knows. Before we left the US, SWMBO and I bought the MLB.TV package, which is really great. We stream the games in high definition to our computer and string that through an HDMI cable to the flat screen. It is a little choppy sometimes, but the image is excellent. I think I will probably need to do the same thing with the NFL this fall, although it is less urgent with footbal. In Europe, ESPN America plays almost every US football game over the course of the week. So while you know the score, you can watch football almost every evening.

Our rigged internet viewing extends to other selections as well. We get our Daily Show and Stephen Colbert Quota this way, as well as South Park. When we first moved here we were able to purchase shows from itunes as well. Unfortunately, when we changed our billing address, that option went away. Belgian itunes does not have TV or Movies. Only music. Bad French Pop music at that.

Tonight is game 7 of the Bruins, Tampa Bay saga. I am rooting for the B's but I don't think I can stay up for the 2AM start. Hopefully they win and I won't mind watching the replay in the morning. Go Bruins!!

We are still here and Luxembourg is Nice

So class, what have we learned this weekend? How about not to believe lunatics with doomsday predictions and Luxembourg is a beautiful little country with a thing for winding roads.

SWMBO and I headed out for Luxembourg for the weekend Saturday morning bright and early. Weather was great and we took a very direct route. Less than two hours of drive time and we pulled into the center of Luxemburg City (And they are spelled differently). We really lucked out on the hotel front. SWMBO researched hotels and we wound up staying at the Parc Beau Arts. It is a little boutique hotel across from the palace and within a quick walk to all of the sights of the city. We got a great deal on a suite and the room was excellent. Very comfortable and tres chic. Possibly my favorite part though was the garage. They have an automated system where you drive your car into an elevator, press down and you end up facing a circular enclosure with a platform at the center. You drive onto the platform, empty your car and step out of the enclosure. Once out, you press another button, your car spins around to face you and then drops through the floor to be stored in a racking system below. It was all very James Bond and a fun start to the trip. Leaving the enclosure was an adventure as well, because the garage empties into a tunnel system that runs under the city and goes back to the hotel.

We spent the rest of the day wandering the city and sightseeing. Luxemburg City is a fairly small city but it has substantial elevation changes. I would recommend better walking shoes than we were wearing. By the end of the day we were beat, but it was good exercise and we saw some really interesting sights. We headed back to the hotel after sightseeing to get ready for dinner. We ate at Le Bouquet Garni, which has a Michelin Star and I can see why. We both ordered the Menu de Asperge (Asparagus tasting menu). The food was absolutely amazing but not stuffy at all. Very relaxed. I asked our waiter about the matched wine tasting menu and he steered us away from it. He said with the flavors we would be happier with a single wine and recommended a Pouilly Fume from the Loire. The wine save us 40 euro and was excellent. You have to appreciate honest waitstaff.

This morning we woke up reasonably early. Had a nice breakfast in the hotel. (Have I mentioned that croissants here are awesome?) Had more fun retrieving our car and then hit the road. Our itinerary was Chateau Beaufort followed by Castle Vianden. Both in the Little Switzerland part of Luxembourg. The route we took was incredibly scenic and in many ways reminiscent of the Swiss countryside north of Geneva. The roads really made me miss my old Cayman S. Switchback after switchback. These roads are made for sportscars and motorcycles. If you are looking for a great place in Europe to drive, this would not be a bad choice. The castles were interesting and the driving was fun. I am glad the Rapture didn't happen and ruin the good time.

So what about the beer? Well, it was a bit uninspiring. I only had a Bofferding which as it's unfortunate name may suggest, was not stellar. The beers of Luxembourg seem to trend toward their eastern neighbors in Germany rather than their Western neighbors in Belgium. The Bofferding is a pilsner style beer and seems to be the everymans beer in the area. It is not bad, a little like a Becks. After trudging up the hills of the city, it was quite refreshing, but it is not a beer that you would go out of your way to get.

Waiting for the Rapture

I was tempted to have a nice tirade about the peculiar brand of mental illness, narcissism and religious zealotry that produces individuals who, with a straight face, predict biblical fantasy. In the case of Harold Camping, you can probably add geriatric dementia to the mix. More unbelievable to me, is that anyone would take it seriously. And you know those people are out there. But, I decided that I live in secular Europe and this is a beer blog, so I will not sully this forum with my rants about the rants of lunatics.

Not letting the predictions of imminent doom spoil our fun, SWMBO and I are preparing for a little trip to Luxembourg this weekend. Looks like about 90 minutes by car, so SWMBO has printed out a circular route that should have us hitting a variety of sights along the way. Tomorrow night, a dinner at a Michelin Starred Restaurant in Luxemburg City. Sunday we visit two castles. (SWMBO likes castles) Then back to Brussels. I know I comment on this all the time, but the scale of Europe really makes trips like this enjoyable. Being in Brussels, we are close enough to most of Europe to make a trip easy in a two day weekend.

The approach of the Rapture calls for relaxing beverages. Tonight, mine is a Rame'e Amber from Brasserie De Brunehaut. I poured this beer into my standard Leffe tulip. It is a clear dark caramel color. A hint of sweetness with some mild hop, some spice and tobacco. At 7.5% it is not a strong beer by Belgian standards. This is a perfectly acceptable beer, but it lacks depth. It does not have a strong finishing component to take it to another level. Would I have it again? Probably not. With a fleet of Trappists on most menus and certainly in our markets, there is no reason to. Three Drunk Monks.

Working From Home

Today I took a day to work from home. Technically, it was running errands that would enable me to keep living in Belgium and traveling for work. Woke up early, addressed a few emails and then headed to the Administratif Centrum to have a form in Flemish validated. They tell me that it says that SWMBO and I still live in our town. Oddly, this form that the Administratif Centrum validated, goes back to my company, who then attach it to another form that goes back to the Administratif Centrum. Somehow I think they could probably cut out a step or two, but this is how it works. It gains you nothing to question it. The people in the Administratif Centrum are supposed to only speak Flemish to me, but they are nice and we chatted in English while she took care of filling out the bits that I could not understand. I hear horror stories about this sort of thing all the time, but the people in my town are just really nice and accomodating. With that done, I realized that I had locked myself out of the house while SWMBO was at the gym. Fortunately, my doctor had an opening, so I was able to turn the mistake into a multitasking opportunity.

The big event of the day and the main reason for my working from home was to head into the city to go the US Embassy. The process is that you make an appointment, generally at least a week in advance. You must specify the reason for the visit. I made my appointment for 1:30 which is the first one after lunch. In Brussels the entrance to the Embassy is quite well guarded and you cannot just walk in front of the Embassy. If you have an appointment, as I did, you have to wait until the time and then stand in line in a cattle chute. Because mine was the first after lunch, I was able to get close to the front of the line and within 15 minutes I was inside. I needed to get new pages added to my passport as I only had two spots remaining and several trips scheduled. I was prepared for them to tell me that I would have to come back later in the week to pick up the passport but the woman at the desk said I could wait and she would have someone take care of it right away. Imagine that, beurocratic efficiency!!. I was out of there in about an hour with my new passport, thick as a paperback novel.

In case you are wondering, yes, I did get some real work done today. A slide deck finished for an upcoming meeting and several other requirements for my meetings the rest of the week. After 20 years of working out of my house, today was a welcome return to that old routine.

Date Night

I attended a scientific conference in Brussels on Friday. It was a good meeting discussing ways to facilitate personalized medicine approaches in Europe. I was able to meet up with a few people that I have been wanting to speak with for a while and I got a few new concepts to add to my slide decks. All in all a productive day. Because the meeting wrapped up around 5, SWMBO joined me in Brussels when the meeting let out. She had made us 7:30 reservations, so we headed down to Moeder Lambic Fontainas. This has become our favorite beer bar in Brussels. 40 Belgian Beers on tap with a few hundred in bottles. The neighborhood is not too scenic, although on Friday night it was a little more animated. Moeder Lambic is very close to the rainbow center of Brussels and with a Gay Pride parade scheduled for Saturday morning, the area was already quite colorful. We found a nice table outside and ordered a couple of new beers and a mixte plat of raw milk cheese and cured meats.

We ordered a couple of rounds. Moeder Lambic serves in somewhat smaller 25-30cl pours as opposed to the standard 33cl, which is great for tasting a few different beers without getting sloppy. I am not going to do a complete review of all of the beers as I was not taking notes but generally they were al in about the same range. I ordered an Ardeladus Tripel followed by a Bons Voeur Tripel. Both solid Three and a Half Drunk Monks with a slight edge to the Ardeladus.

SWMBO ordered a Valeir and a Witkap Blonde. She prefered the Valeir but again, both quite solid beers that I would rate at Three to Three and a Half Drunk monks. I had first had the Witkap at the Belgian beer festival last September and it was as tasty as the first time. All were on tap and quite refreshing on a warm evening.

After our beers and snacks, we wandered around the Centre for a bit and then headed up to the Petite Sablon for a bit more wandering and looking at galleries. The restaurant where we ate was OK, not great, and after the cheese and meat plate (which we did not finish, we are not pigs after all), I really didnt need much more. The restaurant itself was really pretty however and we again ate outside in their courtyard. It sometimes surprises me that SWMBO and I have anything to talk about anymore. We see each other at least 50% more than we have over the last 10 years now that my traveling is greatly reduced. We spend far more time together and have not yet managed to get sick of each other. Who would have thought?