Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Vacation Times Abroad

I'd like to post a few pics of my trip overseas in stages. First, we flew out to England and took a train through the Chunnel, which I slept through, darn it, even though it's dark; then we landed in Brussels. Did some sightseeing there....

Market Square...


The swan is a symbol in Belgium...


The "Peeing Boy" in Brussels.....then we took another train to Brugges to stay for a couple of nights there.


Bell Tower in Brugges......


Took a canal tour in Brugges....


Still more canal tour in Brugges....


Michelangelo's Madonna and Child in Our Lady's Church in Brugges......



Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse in Brugges (only took close-ups of two - don't ask me why).....

Woman making lace in Brugges with bobbins. This was fascinating to watch and hear - very rhythmic.
I'd made a list of any needlework shops I could find or heard about near each place, but we didn't make it to any in Belgium. There was one we passed everyday, but it wasn't open the days we were there. However, the chocolate shops were extremely tasty; Belgian chocolate is definitely worth acquiring....hehe...just destroy the evidence. :)
Harley-Davidson places were also on my list, since my DH is such a fan. I also owed him big time not only for the trip/dogsitting, but I'd "ruined" two of his HD shirts a few days before I left home. Who knew that this one dishtowel with a teeny smidgen of red that has been washed numerous times and never bled, would turn both shirts a lovely, barely there shade of pastel pink? Did I mention how tiny and washed the red square was??? When I suggested that he could wear the shirts anyway, he just looked at me and laughed and told me to picture him walking in the HD shop that way. Real HD men don't wear pink, I gather.... That was rather amusing, but needless to say, he's not wearing the shirts - one local, one from San Francisco - ouch. So I started my quest. Score 0 for Belgium - none that I can get to. Better luck next time.
Next, onto Paris...

PS - totally unrelated, but I found a giveaway on Barb's blog for primoriginals. I'd never heard of this site, but I love the artwork! I very rarely post of giveaways to get better chances of winning, but this site is worth checking out, regardless of winning anything or not. I wonder if she'd make her artwork into charts or would let us do so??? Hmmmm.......


23 comments:

Wendy said...

oooh Carolyn, you have been to Belgium. If I would have known this, we could meet eachother :( That would be fun.
Bruges is only half an hour driving from my place.

Thanks for sharing these wonderful pictures. Looks like you had a wonderful time.

Emily in NC said...

Sound like you had a lovely trip, and the pictures are great.

Suzie said...

I LOVE your photos Carolyn! Not just your average tourist shots, but you capture the flavor of what you are seeing!

And I thank you SO much for sharing them with us!

Oooh, and to be so close to Wendy, and not meet up! What a meeting THAT would have been. Most of us are thrilled to meet someone within our own state, or neighboring state, but across the ocean? Now you'll HAVE to go back!

Could you maybe convince your dh that REAL mean aren't afraid to wear just the teensiest, only-in-certain-lights-does-it-really-show-up pink tinted shirts? No? Mine wouldn't fall for that either.lol

You might want to try one of two, or both, one at a time, Rit products that remove unwanted tints from clothing. You can usually find them in the grocery store, in with the household goods, and work pretty well. Look at it this way, it won't hurt to try, since he won't wear the shirts now anyway.

Paris is next. .a little parlez-vous Francais? I can hardly wait!!!

Kathy A. said...

What lovely photos! Looks like an amazing trip.
I don't know why real men won't wear shirts with a little pink in them. My DH won't either. lol

GoldenAngelsWorks said...

WOW that looks like a great trip! Thank you for sharing the pictures with us.

Meari said...

Awesome vacation pics, Carolyn!

Charlene ♥ NC said...

Lovely photos! Thanks for sharing - that's probably as close as I'll ever get...

Have you tried those 'remove dye' sheets that you wash in with problem pieces? I've seen, but never used.

Rene la Frog said...

Looks like a wonderful trip. Thanks for sharing.

Sharon said...

Beautiful photo's!

Threads and thoughts said...

Nice pictures! You have seen more of Brussels as I did, I'm ashamed as a Belgian not seeing things in the capital. Did see Bruges several times already though. I admired Michelangelo's Madonna with open mouth, I must say.
Next time when you come over, try to see Antwerp, I will give you a personal tour!
Edith

Elizabeth MacGregor-Kirkcaldy said...

OH, how wonderful and what a glorious adventure this must have been Carolyn!!! Beautiful photos!!! Thanks ever so much for sharing with us!

{Next time I'm stowing away in your suitcase!} ;)

{{{Hugs}}} and Blessings in stitches!

Katrien said...

It's a pity I didn't know when you where coming to Belgium, Bruges is not far for me, I had loved to meet someone from ILCS :( Anyway I'm glad you enjoyed your visit to my country, to bad the shops weren't open, but yay for the chocolates! We love our chocolate, lol

Anne Sans Tete said...

i love belgium! you are so lucky! good luck in your HD quest!

Sandra said...

Great pictures! Love the lady making lace, that might have been fascinating!!!

Yep, Belgian chocolate is outstanding!

Nancy M said...

Great photos! I want to go to Europe but get so overwhelmed at what to see, where to go and get it all organized! Can't wait for the next installment!

Anonymous said...

Love all your vacation pics, Carolyn and looking forward to the next ones you post. I like your idea of the primoriginals designs being made into cross stitch charts. Hopefully, she will do that sometime.
Barb in TX

Shari said...

what an awesome trip you must have had!!!! Thanks for sharing your beautiful pictures!!!!

Karen said...

Great pictures.

Cindy F. said...

Amazing pics!! I bet it was a lot to soak in! So much beauty every where!
Would have loved to have seen the lady making lace!
Beautiful trip Carolyn!! So happy you and dh got to experience all that!! I have to laugh about the HD shirt!! We have a huge HD dealership here and I can't imagine the guys wearing any shade of pink either!!
Thanks for sharing and I can't wait to see more of your trip!!

Brigitte said...

Awesome pictures, particularly the one with the rose bush in front of that old house. Looks beautiful.

Mel said...

Fantastic photos! Glad the trip went well.

CindyMae said...

What fantastic photos, thank you so much for sharing them!!!

CameoRoze (Margaret) said...

I've got to get to Brugges some day. Lovely images!