Month: January 2022

Featured

Six Months in Maastricht

We are now officially halfway through our adventure here in Maastricht. I talked with the kids this week about that fact, and they were surprised, feeling like it had come so quickly. Highlights for them include “some of the cool trips” and “spending New Year’s with Auntie Melissa”. Goals to still accomplish include taking the Chunnel to England, visiting friends in Scotland,  staying in a windmill, entertaining some family coming to visit, visiting friends in Sweden, and plans to see my cousin and her family in Germany. Here’s hoping!I’ve vented quite a bit here and on other social media about my frustrations with the Dutch, mainly in their handling of Covid vaccines etc. This time I’d like to focus on some positive things going on here…

Belgium / europe / Travel

A Trip to Kasteel Ooidonk

With the Netherlands shut down for Covid concerns, we decided to take a “safe” getaway with the boys. This was actually one of our fairly last-minute Christmas presents to them. We booked our stay for just after the New Year, picking this castle spot because: 1) I wanted to stay in a castle, 2) It was in Belgium, thus tours and restaurants not shut down, 3) It showed a large garden and forest area that I knew the boys would enjoy running around, and 4) Did I mention it was a castle??

Belgium / europe / Germany / Netherlands / Spain / Travel / Travel with Kids

Christmas Markets: The abbreviated tour

I’ve been saving up this post because I thought, for sure, we’d visit dozens of markets and I wanted to review them all. The universe, Covid, and some European governments had other plans. Instead of dozens, we made it to four: Aachen (Germany), Brugges (Belgium), Maastricht (Netherlands), and funny enough, Valencia (Spain) where we stumbled upon one on accident.  While they are all different, there are some staples that make a Christmas market a Christmas market: gluhwein and hot chocolate, chocolates and cheeses for sale, usually some sausages, small gift vendors, and usually some festive lights. Read on to see where we went and what we liked about each one!