Bob and I are at the Ryder Cup in Wales! If you watch the match onTV, I will be wearing a bright red scarf and cheering for the US!

The Post Office

Does anyone remember the receptionist from the movie Monsters Inc? I think she works at my post office.

While we were in China, we bought 2 miniature (24") terra cotta warriors as souvenirs. We thought they would look great by our fireplace. Like the Chinese Emperor who commissioned the originals, we were sure these replicas would guard our humble home. Remember, we went to China in July, so as time passed we were starting to wonder if our purchase was ever really shipped to us. Low and behold, on Tuesday, we got a notice in our mail that our shipment was at the post office and ready for pickup. I knew before showing up at the post office that I would not only need the slip of paper but a formal form of identification like a passport or an identity card. When I showed up at the post office, my favorite postal employee was busy with a line of 2 people waiting to see her. She is one of 3 employees and a nice young girl who speaks English. We bonded during my whole drapery shipment drama when we first moved to Belgium. (If you don't know the story, let me just say the customs charge was 900 euros and this postal worker figured out a way for us to pay 0 Euros!!) The other two workers are ones I normally avoid. One is a man and is not very friendly. He is efficient and just wants me to finish my business fast and leave. The final employee is definitely the replica of the receptionist in Monsters Inc. and I am sure she does not like me. I was forced to go to her window because both the nice girl and the boring guy were very busy. Here is my transaction...

Me - Hi. I am here to pick up a package. Here is my mail notice.

Crabby Postal Worker (CPW for short) - Passport/ commune card Mevrouw (That is Mrs. in Flemish)

Me - (handing over both of the requested forms of identification)

CPW - This is not you Mevrouw (Apparently, when the post office typed my mail notice, they transposed the letters in my last name so it read Baisi instead of Biasi. Of course my official forms of identification have my name spelled correctly.)

Me - Oh, but that is me, they just mixed up the letters.

CPW - It must be official. I cannot give you the package Mevrouw.

Me - You know me. I am here all the time. This is me! Your office just mixed up the letters.

CPW - Your name does not match Mevrouw. (Then she leaned over to the worker with no personality. In Flemish, he told her to get the package from the back and have a look at the address label.)

Me - (nodding toward the boring man)Thank you!

CPW - (dragging the box that looked huge and obviously weighed a lot) The names do not match. I do not know what to do Mevrouw.

Me - Is my correct name on the original shipping label?

CPW - Yes Mevrouw

Me - That looks very official to me. It was shipped to my name spelled correctly and I have identification to match the spelling on the label from China. The only problem is that your post office mixed up the letters in my name on the pick up notice.

CPW - This is highly irregular Mevrouw.

(Then both of the other postal workers leaned into her cubical and said, at the same time and in Flemish, "Just give her the box!")

After a few scowls and a lot of official stamping of the date and time of pick up, I was out of there in a flash. I probably ruined her day because I forced her to bend her rules. The worst part of it all is that 2 days later I was at the grocery and saw her again. I waved and she actually waved back!

Back in Belgique (That's French, you know!)

The kids are back in school, vacations are complete and we are getting back to our normal life in Belgium.Lunch from the outdoor market. We are on the back patio. The sun is out which is rare in Belgium in September.

Below are the typical treats from the bakery. This is what EVERYONE eats. The fatter croissant is filled with chocolate. For some reason, my kids don't especially like these.

Leah is comfortable on the couch working on her homework. As 7th graders, she and Jenn get to bring their Tablets (school issued laptops) home with them each night. Most of their assignments are completed and emailed to their teachers.

Jenn is practicing her viola below. Both girls are working on their audition music for Junior Honor Orchestra which will take place in Vienna, Austria in the spring. Notice that Jennifer is wearing her volleyball uniform. Both girls made the team and will play an away game in Amsterdam next weekend. Bob and I are making the road trip too.

Maria is moved in!

Maria is all moved into college! She has been at school a month and she is wiser already. She joined a sorority and loves living in her cute little dorm room. Notice the lack of pink - it was banned. Isn't that carpet fabulous? Bob laid each square with the help of expert tapers (Maria and me). It took an entire day, but we got it done and I have to say her room is very comfortable. Maria's roommate is from Belgium too. They have a lot in common because both of their parents live an ocean away. We talk to Maria on Skype often. It is the most wonderful invention. Leah and Jenn talk to Maria on Facebook. We miss her immensely and can't wait to see her when we visit in late October.

While Bob and I moved Maria into her dorm, the twins stayed at Nana and Papa's. They swam, played golf, went to a Cardinal baseball game and shopped. Look how tall they are in that picture!

And finally...Disney!

It just wouldn't be a vacation without a stop at Disneyland! Of course this park is extra special because we went to Hong Kong Disney!!!!!!!! Spending a day with Mickey and Minnie was a very nice ending to our trip to China.

The park itself was small...and empty! We arrived at opening time and were the only ones on Main Street. Look how small the castle is compared to the other Disney castles! We have the best kids. They are grown up and responsible but still love to have good old family fun. Maria is on the classic Dumbo ride below. The background shows you just how beautiful the terrain of Hong Kong really is. (As an aside, we could have stayed at our resort forever. It was lovely and relaxing.)One of the best happenings of the day was the parade. I love the Disney parades but the rest of the family hates them and usually rides some of the more adventurous rides while I watch the characters float by. This time we all watched the parade because frankly, we were running out of things to see. The park is small. The parade started with a big sign that said "Welcome to the Disney Water Parade". We got soaked!!!! Every character had a water gun or squirter and every float has some kind of spray mechanism. See all the water on the street and in the air? It was a blast!
Below is the family on the best ride at the park, Space Mountain. There weren't any other thrill rides so we rode this one at least 11 times. No lines makes for a very fun day!

There may not be too many thrill rides at Disneyland Hong Kong, but there sure were a lot of performers. Everywhere you turned someone was dancing. The characters were also everywhere and easily accessible.

We had a wonderful day at Disneyland!

Final stop Hong Kong

Imagine going all the way to Hong Kong and just taking 5 pictures! Above and below are the best of the 5. The skyline behind the girls does not do justice to the island of Hong Kong. It was huge! I really liked Hong Kong and so did the kids. We walked all over and saw poverty and wealth all on the same street. Shopping ranged from real to fake Gucci and illegal and legal electronics. Believe me, we shopped at all the venues. We thought things like iPads and iPhones would be the first things we would buy. We tried. No iPads were available and buying and iPhone in Hong Kong just seemed too risky. Here is the funny part: Maria ordered an iPhone online to take to college once we returned from our trip. It was on back order for 3 weeks and we curiously watched the progress of the shipment online. Guess where it was shipped from. That's right, Hong Kong!

Hong Kong was an interesting city and we vowed to go back...maybe on our way to Australia?