We've now been in our house for over a month and in Belgium for six weeks. While not an eternity, it has been long enough for us to get settled in our new life while simultaneously starting to really miss some things from our old life. As anyone who has traveled away from their home for a prolongued period of time will be able to attest, at a certain point you go from thinking this is different and we just have to cope with it to man, I really miss this or that. In no particular order, the things we really miss thus far are...
1. Stop signs and wider roads: Jess has taken and passed the Belgian Drivers License Test and thus has her license, but I am still driving on my Missouri and International Drivers License. I will likely take my test in two weeks. But the thing we have both noticed about driving here is 1. There are no stopsigns at four way intersections! The rule is that the person to the right has priority. And man, do the locals observe it. They just take it for granted that you are paying attention and they zoom out into the intersection if they are on the right. It's crazy! We're sure that there are tons of accidents here because of this rule. And this is probably why the insurance premiums are so bloody high! 2. My mid-size Camry is not so mid-size here. It's oversize when driving down our mini roads. Many of the roads near our house are no wider than bike paths. If another car is coming, you either pull off to the side to let them by, pull into another driveway, or back out of the lane.
2. Full size coffees: The coffee here is fantastic! The region we are in is the French speaking part of the country, so their coffee is well represented. There are also a lot of Italians here, so their coffee is also widely available. As much as we like a good espresso or cappucino, they only last a couple minutes because they are small. Sometimes Jess and I would just like to have a bottomless cup of Kaldi's Highlander Grogg. Also, once fall comes around, that means one thing at Starbucks; pumpkin spice latte. We love those, but there are no Starbucks around here. We heard there is one in Brussels so when we are there next we'll have to find it, but for now we're out of luck.
3. Window Screens: For some reason, most of Europe does not believe in screens on their house windows. Air Conditioning is almost unheard of in Belgium and most of northern Europe due to the cooler climate and rarity of truly hot days. But they do open their windows all the time. And if you are in the country, as we are, you tend to get a few bugs in the house. Poor Colin woke up one morning with a bunch of mosquito bites on his arms and even one on his forehead. Each night before Jess and I go to bed, we turn on the lights in their rooms to make sure there are no mosquitos lurking on the ceiling. And most nights I employ the fly swatter.
4. Sidewalks: They don't believe in them in our part of the country. Though the cars treat walkers and bikers with the utmost respect, the narrowness of the roads coupled with a car driving at you at full speed doesn't exactly instill confidence that we are going to live to see another day.
5. Free Water at Restaurants: Restaurants do not give you water for free. You order it by the bottle. A liter of water at a restaurant costs upwards of eight or ten Euro. That is never a fun part of the bill.
6. Our friends and family (including Jess' dog Riley): We most certainly miss dinners, barbeques, and impromptu visits with our friends and family...
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