The Transportation Gods

I have a confession to make. Although I travel on the train here in Belgium, quite frequently, since we moved here 2 years ago, I’ve only taken the bus that goes by my house once. Since I refuse to drive here in Belgium, the bus that passes right by my...

Springing into Spring

Kermit the Frog said ‘it’s not easy being green,’ but with the sunny days of spring arriving in Belgium it’s a lot easier to start seeing green opportunities, everywhere you turn. These days when I look out my patio doors, I can’t help but think about green – the colour...

The Silent K – Learning Dutch in Belgium

I am attempting to learn Dutch… again. It’s been an on-going battle; a tug-of-war between my guilt at not being fluent (and at this point I would call anything above a three-year-old’s level fluent) and my lack of motivation. Honestly, my excuses for not learning are pretty weak: I don’t...

Home Remedies

While we all know there’s no real cure for the common cold, it seems that everyone has a tried and true recipe for a speedy recovery. Even if our cures are only psychosomatic, there are definitely things we turn to, to make us feel better. Often these are the same...

The saga continues…

Because I sure you’re all just dieing to hear the rest of my IKEA closet saga, here goes: Saturday was to be the day. Even though Andrew and I had wasted the entire previous weekend, we wanted the closet saga over and done with. If we picked the closet up Saturday, by Sunday...

A Source of Indulgence – Thermes de Spa, Belgium

It was just under a year ago that Andrew and I had our first spa experience in Belgium. After a wonderfully relaxing day, we vowed that it would not be our last. In fact, The Grimbergen Spa has become a regular haunt for us. Usually initiated by Andrew, (although I admittedly don’t put up much objection), our spa trips have become a monthly ritual.

Quest for the Holy Grail (…er, closet)

I’ve been trying to think of the perfect literary work to describe the weekend that Andrew and I have just had. The Trial comes to mind. We weren’t actually on trial of course but it did seem that there were unseen sources pulling strings around us. The futility of our...

Wishing for a Different Christmas

Last year I made a big deal about having a quiet Christmas. It was just Andrew and I (and the furry family, of course). We decided not to give each other gifts, so there was no Christmas shopping madness. I cooked a huge dinner, but at my own pace (and...

Weathering Belgium

Working from home during a Belgian winter can be very depressing. Too much light on the computer monitor makes working on photographs impossible, so I spend most of my workday in a dark corner of my living room. Lately, with the days at their shortest of the year, it feels...

Alison Cornford-Matheson