Day 3: Brussels

Amazing architecture.

Belgian Beer and Puppets in one place. These two were animated in the world's slowest duel imaginable. But still, how often do you get a puppet theatre and a pub in one?

Air

This elegant device is just there for anyone who needs to fill up their tyres.

14 days away

I have 476 photos of Belgium and France but I will just show you 14. Or, maybe 15 or 16 ...

Day 1: Calais

At this point, we had been awake for almost 22 hours but this view of the English Channel was worth staying up for. On a clear day (which this day was not) you can see the white cliffs of Dover. I wished I could have recited Arnold's Dover Beach but I didn't get much past "The sea is...uh..." and then got it confused with this one (which I think I like better). In the end, I stood there and said "O frabjous day! Callooh! CALAIS!" and chortled in my joy.

Day 2: Canadian War Cemetery at Calais

Both of our families lost beautiful, vibrant, adored young men in the Second World War. Even though they died long before we were born, D and I still notice an absence in our families for those who were lost and are still mourned. And so, we traveled to the Canadian War Cemetery in Calais to visit one family grave site and also to pay respects to all Canadians buried there. Taking a bus to a nearby village and then walking though this gorgeous and historically significant landscape to get there, I worried about what we might find. What if the grave site was in disrepair? Should I have brought seeds or bulbs to plant? What would we report back to our family? As we climbed the hill and approached the cemetery, I quickly saw how wrong I was to question what I might find. On top of a gentle hill and protected by trees was a serene and immaculately maintained tribute to our fallen countrymen and women. On our visit, two gardeners quietly tended the site and paid careful attention to all the tiny details. Spring flowers and bulbs were planted between each grave stone, edges were trimmed and precise, the lawns mowed evenly and carefully. Calais is a long way from the Canadian prairies but there's something of them in the flowers, in the sky, and in the way a place looks after its loved ones.

Soccer Pitch

Awesome Chalk Art