September Visitors

We were very happy to host Denis, Erin, and Maureen in September.  For those who do not know, Denis is Hugh's youngest sibling.  Of course the arrival of Uncle Denis was quite a treat for the kids and the fact that he brought two additional playmates for them was an added bonus!  Besides entertaining the kids, they had a full schedule of Antwerp, Brugge, Brussels, Ghent and Amsterdam.  Our guests never leave feeling well rested  - that is for sure!




They adapted to local culture quickly:

Waffles

and Beer

They used the train and the trams to explore some of the sights on their own.  Hugh also went with them to Amsterdam for a few nights.   However, the whole gang went to Ghent.  We really love this town and I have posted about it before.  It has a castle, canals, churches, and lots of great places to eat and quench your thirst.

The first stop was the castle.

At the top of the castle

Here we are exploring the castle, playing a game we play called "touch the wall".  You can't see the steep drop on the other side of me (with of course no guard rail).  Uncle Denis was leading this round as I played defense in the outside lane.

After all that exploring, it was time to treat our guests to the local drink.  Ghent is known for a beer called "Kwak".  And in this bar, you can get it in a very special glass IF you are willing to give something in return.

Liam and his Father and his Godfather 

Time to give the waiter your shoe!

A bell is rung and the shoe is hoisted up to the ceiling

And this is what you get in return.  Denis felt it was a good deal!

Did I mention my mom was here too?  Liam took this picture.

We feel very lucky to have been able to share this experience with so many great people.