Grammy & Paps' visit cont....

On Monday we had a fun filled day at Ikea.  They had never been to one and I needed to get a closet for the baby's room (because there is no closet in her room) and a few other things.  I have actually never been to an Ikea in the states, so my only experience is the one here.  First of all, it is a huge warehouse full of pieces and parts of ready-to-assemble furniture.  When we went there for the first time to get the boys a closet, we were a bit overwhelmed.  We finally figured out that we needed to go to the showcase area, pick something out, then go down to the warehouse and find the correct aisle with all the parts you need.  I'm sure that's the way it is in the states, but here all the directions and labels are in French or Dutch, so it takes a bit to get used to.  But we did finally figure it out.  Ikea has everything you can imagine from kitchen items to rugs to toys.  It is a huge place, and here there is also a big cafe in it that is actually pretty good.  And you NEVER want to go on a Saturday (really want to avoid most shopping on a Saturday) because that is the day all the locals go there and shop.  It is chaos to say the least.  All the stores are closed here on Sunday, even the grocery.  There is an express grocery store that is open on Sundays in case you need something, and some of the shops take Monday off too.  Coming from the states where the weekends are great for shopping, it's a little hard to get used to.
So, we got her closet and a table and chairs for the kids' playroom.  While I went to pick the kids up from school, Paps put together the closet and Grammy did the table and chairs.  The kids were excited about the table and chairs because their other set had been broken during the move over.

The next day Drake went to school and Grammy and Paps went to the city center by themselves to walk around.  That is what we call the little shopping centers in each town.  Each commune has it's own with stores, cafes, restaurants, etc.  Ours is one of the smaller ones, which I like because it's not too hard to navigate.  I think they had a good time walking around and telling us about some of the stores they saw.  We really haven't had much of an opportunity to just walk around the center much yet, but we have some great restaurants and of course a great chocolate store.


Mike took Thursday and Friday off, so we had a good four days to travel around a little.  Thursday we went back downtown Brussels to see some sites.

We first walked around some of the streets looking for a place to eat.  The kids were excited because they found a Subway, but we didn't eat there...yet!

We finally chose a place after walking for a bit.  There are tons of restaurants to choose from so we just picked one.  It was a really good meal, and as you can see Mike really liked the mussels.  We got Kade to try one but he wasn't too fond of them.  They are a specialty here along with beer and fries.  Love the fries, but I'm not a mussels fan.

Drake trying to take a drink from the Manneken Pis.....have to explain him later.

Grand Place

Beautiful buildings and landmarks

The Grand Place is the central square of Brussels. It is surrounded by guildhalls and the city's town hall. It's the number one tourist spot, so everything is very "touristy."  Usually I don't like to do the tourist stuff when I vacation, but this place is really neat and I actually felt like I was on a little vacation rather then just living here.  I've heard that every two years in the spring it gets covered in flowers to make a carpet design.  I can't wait to see that.

Manneken Pis

Little Man Pee

 This is a hugely famous tourist attraction in Brussels.  A landmark I guess....  I really don't know the exact reasoning behind this little guy, I think there are several stories about him.  Sometimes he's dressed and sometimes not.  There is even a museum with all his outfits on display.  

The kids just laugh every time they see it, and you can even buy little tiny statues at any tourist shop.  I know you want one!

So after a nice day of touring, some yummy Belgian waffles, and another great photo opp with the waffle-eating manneken pis, we headed home with our Belgian chocolates and our bellies full (but not too full for some chocolate).

Next up Bruges and Germany....