After struggling through three days of cold and rain in Belgium, it was a relief to wake up on Monday morning and see it was not raining. In fact there was actually some spots of blue sky. It was a great day to travel by train to Paris and see some sights including St. Chappel and the Arc de Triomphe. The train to Paris leaves from the Midi train station in Brussels. We didn’t want to miss the train so…
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Last year my daughter Andrea and I visited Bruges as part of our trip to see the tulips in The Netherlands. We had a fun and interesting time in this old city. This year as my wife and I were deciding where to visit in Europe, I felt like it would be good to take Silvette to Bruges as it had been such an interesting place to see. Originally I had thought we would go Friday, but the rain was…
Continue Reading “Returning to Bruges, Belgium on a Cold Day”
I wish I could say that we awoke to our second day in Belgium to sunshine and warm spring weather, but I can’t. It was another cold, windy day with occasional rain showers and near constant drizzle. Nevertheless, we had planned to spend the day in Antwerp so we set off to do just that. Our first challenge was buying train tickets. With some help we were able to do that, but then we needed to know where to find…
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My son and his fiance decided they wanted a wedding ceremony in Paris rather than a big wedding at home. Destination weddings seem to be quite popular, and this was their choice of destinations. My wife Silvette and I decided since we were going to Paris for the wedding, we would make this a longer trip and fulfill some of the travel goals we have had. We planned a three week European trip starting in Brussels, Belgium. My daughter Andrea…
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I took the photo in Antwerp, Belgium. If you don’t see a photo, you will need to open the post completely. Phones, in particular, often don’t show the opening photo in the email.
For many people the main reasons to visit Arizona are the Grand Canyon and Sedona. Others may come for baseball’s spring training. Of course other folks come just for the sunshine and warmth, especially in the winter. My parents spent time in Yuma, Arizona for that very reason the winter before my mom died. However, like most states, there are actually quite a few unique and different places to enjoy in Arizona beyond the Grand Canyon and the baseball fields.…
I recently saw a blog post where the photographer shared his favorite photos from the previous year. It dawned on me that I should do that. The point is not so much to say, “Look at these great photos,” but it gives me the opportunity to share about specific photos, and what I like about them. When I started this blog, the photos were always intended to be a major part of each post. However, I know that as one…
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Having spend two days in Death Valley, it was time to head to Las Vegas and our flight home. However, we had two more places to see before returning home. Both of them were wildlife refuges. The US Fish and Wildlife Service manages refuges across the country. Their purpose is to protect and preserve native wildlife. We had visited wildlife refuges before in Washington and Hawaii. For the two that we visited in Nevada, the purpose was to protect desert…
After a good night’s sleep and a hearty breakfast at our hotel, we were ready to begin our second day around Death Valley. It was another clear blue-sky day which started out cold, but quickly warmed up with the sun. Our first experience when we arrived in Death Valley was a drive through the hills on the east side of the Black Mountains. The drive is called Twenty Mule Team Canyon Road. Those of you who are older might be…
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I realized recently that I have been to almost all of the national parks in California. Only two remained, Death Valley and Sequoia & Kings Canyon. I had tried for a few year to make it to Death Valley, but no one would go with me. Finally I convinced my wife to go, and so we began to plan our adventure. Death Valley has hit 130 degrees twice in the last few years. This of course was during the summer…
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