Saturday, February 17, 2007

A BIG PLAYGROUND!!! YAAAAAAAAAYYYY!!!

Friday afternoon was GORGEOUS weather, up in the high fifties, sunny, not too breezy, so we headed out for a stroll, all four of us. MeiMei had complained that her shoes were too tight, so she and I went to Torfs shoe store near the Super GB grocery store on the Groenplaats and she picked out the most adorable sneakers I've ever seen - baby blue Chuck Taylor All-Stars decorated all over with butterflies and flowers, with pink laces. Love 'em!

We caught up with JieJie and John on the Groenplaats. Since it was not only a beautiful Friday afternoon but the day before a week-long holiday here, the plaza was filled with people enjoying a drink and snack at the outdoor restaurants.

It was so nice out, we figured we'd try taking the tram under the river to the other side to see what was there. We got off at the very first stop after the tunnel, as we'd heard that there was a nice park area overlooking the Antwerp skyline. Indeed there was! At last, big expanses of green grass and loads of fun playground equipment. It's so easy to get to from here, I'm sure we'll be very familiar with it before we head out of town in April.
The girls yelled Yippee! and ran ahead to explore. In no time they were crawling, sliding, see-sawing and JieJie even made a friend, a little boy about her age. It's out of character for her to be so outgoing, but maybe her experience at the new school has changed her a bit in that regard. John and I turned around to see her see-sawing with this curly-haired adorable boy, both of them laughing and shouting.

Poor MeiMei...this is really the first time I've seen her get thrown over for a peer, and she was pretty heartbroken to lose her best friend, even for a few minutes. I helped her climb around on things until her big sister came back for her.
They wanted to see what else was in the big park, so we walked along the riverside path with its spectacular view of the downtown until we came to an open-air nautical museum featuring various anchors, buoys, bells, that kind of thing. Little tiny flowers were blooming and the girls picked a whole bunch for me.
My mom-spidey sense was just beginning to tell me that I should scout out a bathroom should the need arise, when all of a sudden MeiMei said "oh no! I need to go potty!" and I looked over to see the inseams of her pink pants turning darker as she wet herself and her brand new Chuck Taylors, which are now drying in the windowsill after a tumble in the wash mashine.
She was a great sport about it, we rode home (MeiMei always insists on being in my lap on the tram but in this case she stood, thankyouverymuch!) and got the girls into their pj's in time for the babysitter's arrival.
Another reason to go back to that park: The Sint-Annatunnel, a PEDESTRIAN tunnel under the river that kids love, ends up there too. And there's a restaurant adjacent to the playground that sells Antwerp's signature dish: mussels and frites. Some warm afternoon we'll have to have some and then let the girls go play while we watch them from the patio of the restaurant--it's all fenced together so there's no danger of the girls going too far away.

Antwerp American Club

Last night was a night we had been looking forward to. It was the "Valentines Day" meeting of the American Belgian Association or Antwerp American Club (the plates were engraved ABA but I think we were actually meeting as the American Club). To read more about how the club was founded, click on the title bar of this blog post. It's quite a story.

The sitter arrived about 7, another of our lovely students, and our hosts, Mr. K and his wife, Ms. van H, arrived at 7:30 to walk us over to a beautiful old building on Venusstraat where the club's dinners are held. The club used to have the whole building at its disposal, but the membership dwindled so much that they finally sold the building to a restaurant with the caveat that monthly meetings could continue to be held in a sumptuous back room in the building.
At the beginning of the evening, the assembled members and their guests (about 11 in all) gathered at the bar for drinks and chatting. I was the youngest person in the room by at least ten years, so I can see the concern about dwindling membership. Everyone was sparkling, excited about a great evening ahead. I had a Kier Prinse, which is a Kier Royale with sparkling wine that's not from the actual Champagne region. Next, a lovely cream of broccoli soup was served from the bar in espresso-sized cups. I'd never think to do this as a run-up to dinner, but it was delicious, a convenient way to serve a first course too! The second course was also served at the bar: tiny bowls of escargots in a cream sauce. Each bowl was enough to fit just two scrumptious escargots, which happen to be one of my favorite "luxury foods."
We adjourned to the dining room and stood behind the chairs surrounding the round table to figure out who should sit where. Nobody was allowed to sit next to a spouse, so I ended up between C, the president of the club, and J, a very interesting man from the Canary Islands who has worked extensively for the European Union. We had a fascinating conversation about the differences between Americans and Europeans (he has visited America and is married to an American, so he speaks from experience). We both agreed that sometimes the differences can be surprising because our assumption might be that because we have some shared cultural heritage that we would be more alike. In reality, there can be big differences in how people approach social situations, how they define what is private and what can be shared, that sort of thing. Obviously it differs from person to person within both cultures--anyway, he recommended a book by an American expat called "Understanding Europeans" that sounds worth a perusal.
Dinner was great, a carpaccio of beef followed by a plate of two kinds of fish in a lovely sauce, with vegetables and a bit of mashed potato. Dessert was a sampler of apple tart, a chocolate/sponge layer cake, and a small scoop of homemade ice cream. Then there was coffee and (guess what?) chocolate.
When we got up from the table, I assumed the evening was over. Ha! Back to the bar for cordials! I had heard of this Elixir d'Anvers (Antwerp elixir, a liqueur) which they didn't have, but they did have Elixir de Spa, from the town of Spa in Belgium. It had notes of citrus and licorice and was a nice thing to try once, though I don't think I'd run out and buy a bottle. Too strong--40% alc. by vol.! Anyway, I chatted with C, the president of the club, and we have been invited by him and his wife to visit them at their farmhouse (ca. 1740) in a village not too far from here. I hope we do, as his village sounds like a beautiful place, a place the girls would certainly enjoy. The city is fun, but it's nice to get out into the countryside occasionally.

A Pleasant Thursday

Mornings had gotten increasingly contentious. By the time we left the apartment, always about 10 minutes after we should have, we'd all be cross and cranky, and stomp our way down to the tram stop. About a block from the tram stop, we'd see a couple of trams go by that we should've been on in order to get to school on time. A couple of days in a row, the girls' classroom doors were already closed when we arrived. That's just no way to start a day!

Thursday morning, we tried getting up a half-hour earlier to see if that would help, and it really did, so from now on it's 6:30am on school days. What a difference a half hour can make - we skipped happily down to the corner, had our choice of trams, and arrived at school with enough time to get settled and have a chat with the teachers and other parents.

With the whole day ahead of us (since the girls stay til 3:30 on Thursdays), we decided to see a movie. We were hoping to see "Borat" but it wasn't playing any longer at the 18-screen UGC Cinema downtown. We chose "The Illusionist" instead, with Edward Norton. Our friends J and G had seen it and recommended it highly - music by Philip Glass, too, whose work I very much like. What a great movie! We both loved it. The 11am matinee was only 5 Euro apiece and we had the whole theatre to ourselves, too. We noticed that for 14.90 Euro we can buy a movie pass that gets us into unlimited movies for a month. Tempting!

We parted ways after the movie, John to his office hour and me to lunch (at the U. of Antwerp cafeteria, not bad for 3 Euro) and errands.
After lunch, I decided to go to Sun Wah Supermarket for Chinese New Year decorations. I found some beautiful paper decorations depicting orange trees (round foods are often served for the New Year, like citrus fruits and dumplings) and a Fu(2) for the door (the 2 means as you say it, your voice goes from a low to high pitch, like asking a question--this is to differentiate it from other meanings of the syllable "fu" which would be written with different characters). I also got the girls red envelopes for their lucky money, a triplet for the door (three red and gold placards with New Year sayings on them) and some red tassels. The big find: silk qipao dresses in hot pink and red. Sun Wah Supermarket is on Van Wesenbekestraat, in the heart of Antwerp's Chinatown.

Next stopped at UNIF school uniform store on Quellinstraat to get MeiMei an extra shirt, since she only has one. We've lucked out so far with spills, but I want a backup! The saleslady there was so nice, very helpful, and even offered to try and fix the red knit sash we have that is fraying. I may take her up on it this week while the girls are out of school.

Raced to get the girls, and showed up at their school just as they were starting to excuse the students, phew! On the way to the school I noticed the BBC WORLD English language book store, so we'll have to get back there one of these days.

We took the tram(s) home and I have to say, the girls are getting quite sophisticated about the whole process. They now do things without really thinking about it, like making sure they have a handhold as soon as we get on (learned that the hard way!) and they stick close by me. They know how to get ready to get off and wait for the last little back-lurch when the tram finishes stopping. They love the trams, so we are not really using The Stroller for school right now. When the weather's nicer, perhaps we will again.

On the way home, the cellphone rang and it was John, calling from right behind us on the block! He and Mr. H, the dorm counselor for the program, were coming back to the apartment to have a glass of wine and chat. We all came up together and enjoyed some late aftenoon tv & snacks.

Thursday night was a dinner with some of the students--THIS time we had a sitter! We made dinner for the girls and the sitter, then headed back to that rib place I wrote about in January. The students loved the all-you-can-eat delicious ribs and the fun atmosphere. It was a great evening and we truly enjoyed the students. Many of them had just been to Stockholm last weekend. It was fun to hear about their adventures, though they did say it was really cold, and the airport offering the low fare was 1.5 hours outside of Stockholm by bus.

The students had gotten lost on the way to that restaurant - John and I decided that we need to start scheduling these student dinners a bit farther afield to force the students to see a bit more of Antwerp than the university neighborhood where they're spending most of their time.

A Pleasant Thursday

Mornings had gotten increasingly contentious. By the time we left the apartment, always about 10 minutes after we should have, we'd all be cross and cranky, and stomp our way down to the tram stop. About a block from the tram stop, we'd see a couple of trams go by that we should've been on in order to get to school on time. A couple of days in a row, the girls' classroom doors were already closed when we arrived. That's just no way to start a day!

Thursday morning, we tried getting up a half-hour earlier to see if that would help, and it really did, so from now on it's 6:30am on school days. What a difference a half hour can make - we skipped happily down to the corner, had our choice of trams, and arrived at school with enough time to get settled and have a chat with the teachers and other parents.

With the whole day ahead of us (since the girls stay til 3:30 on Thursdays), we decided to see a movie. We were hoping to see "Borat" but it wasn't playing any longer at the 18-screen UGC Cinema downtown. We chose "The Illusionist" instead, with Edward Norton. Our friends J and G had seen it and recommended it highly - music by Philip Glass, too, whose work I very much like. What a great movie! We both loved it. The 11am matinee was only 5 Euro apiece and we had the whole theatre to ourselves, too. We noticed that for 14.90 Euro we can buy a movie pass that gets us into unlimited movies for a month. Tempting!

We parted ways after the movie, John to his office hour and me to lunch (at the U. of Antwerp cafeteria, not bad for 3 Euro) and errands.
After lunch, I decided to go to Sun Wah Supermarket for Chinese New Year decorations. I found some beautiful paper decorations depicting orange trees (round foods are often served for the New Year, like citrus fruits and dumplings) and a Fu(2) for the door (the 2 means as you say it, your voice goes from a low to high pitch, like asking a question--this is to differentiate it from other meanings of the syllable "fu" which would be written with different characters). I also got the girls red envelopes for their lucky money, a triplet for the door (three red and gold placards with New Year sayings on them) and some red tassels. The big find: silk qipao dresses in hot pink and red. Sun Wah Supermarket is on Van Wesenbekestraat, in the heart of Antwerp's Chinatown.

Next stopped at UNIF school uniform store on Quellinstraat to get MeiMei an extra shirt, since she only has one. We've lucked out so far with spills, but I want a backup! The saleslady there was so nice, very helpful, and even offered to try and fix the red knit sash we have that is fraying. I may take her up on it this week while the girls are out of school.

Raced to get the girls, and showed up at their school just as they were starting to excuse the students, phew! On the way to the school I noticed the BBC WORLD English language book store, so we'll have to get back there one of these days.

We took the tram(s) home and I have to say, the girls are getting quite sophisticated about the whole process. They now do things without really thinking about it, like making sure they have a handhold as soon as we get on (learned that the hard way!) and they stick close by me. They know how to get ready to get off and wait for the last little back-lurch when the tram finishes stopping. They love the trams, so we are not really using The Stroller for school right now. When the weather's nicer, perhaps we will again.

On the way home, the cellphone rang and it was John, calling from right behind us on the block! He and Mr. H, the dorm counselor for the program, were coming back to the apartment to have a glass of wine and chat. We all came up together and enjoyed some late aftenoon tv & snacks.

Thursday night was a dinner with some of the students--THIS time we had a sitter! We made dinner for the girls and the sitter, then headed back to that rib place I wrote about in January. The students loved the all-you-can-eat delicious ribs and the fun atmosphere. It was a great evening and we truly enjoyed the students. Many of them had just been to Stockholm last weekend. It was fun to hear about their adventures, though they did say it was really cold, and the airport offering the low fare was 1.5 hours outside of Stockholm by bus.

The students had gotten lost on the way to that restaurant - John and I decided that we need to start scheduling these student dinners a bit farther afield to force the students to see a bit more of Antwerp than the university neighborhood where they're spending most of their time.

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Happy Vawentimes Day

What a great place to celebrate such a chocolate-intensive holiday. We didn't want to make a huge deal out of Valentines Day, because I would rather stress the heartfelt, homemade gestures that children can share in. The girls each made cute cards at school. One says "JieJie loves mummy and daddy" in her teacher's handwriting and has a beautiful flower made of hearts that JJ lovingly glued to the paper. MeiMei's has a butterfly that she drew and it says "Liefste mama en papa, ik zie jullie zoo graag!" (I'm thinking it means Dear Mom and Dad, I love you so much!"

Dinner was salmon (hey, it's pink!) with various sides, and then for dessert I rolled out my surprise: a chocolate layer cake with marzipan flowers from Goossens, a bakery that has been around for over 100 years here in Antwerp. And it was REAL marzipan too--we've been alerted to the fact that much of what the world thinks is marzipan is mostly coconut, a cheap imitation of the rich almond paste that comprises the real deal. The marzipan banner across the little cake said "Valentijn."

John and I gave each other a nice bottle of red wine, and the girls got John some chocolates. The girls got cards from us and some strawberry candy. Why not chocolate? Don't read this part if you are easily shocked. JieJie "doesn't like Belgium chocolate." She says she likes Harrisonburg chocolate better because it tastes better.

SACRILEGE!

But it's ok. It just means I get to have hers when she tastes it and doesn't like it, heh heh heh.

Weather continues to be in the 40's and rainy off and on. Beats the snow and ice storm that has paralyzed our home town - JMU is closed today for the second day in a row!

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

weekend trip to Amsterdam

Saturday morning, we took our time getting up and around as the weather was chilly and rainy. We had tickets to go from Antwerp to Amsterdam-Centraal by train, but train tickets are not for a specific train, just the route. We could go at 8:27, 9:27, 10:27, etc.

We packed a backpack with essentials for an overnight, got The Stroller out (it's been resting a lot lately as we do more tram riding and walking) and walked over to the train station at about 10am. We got there with about 10 min. to spare til the train departed. Antwerp-Centraal train station is really a beautiful building, built in the days when these transportation hubs were treated as temples to progress. The station is undergoing a lot of renovation right now but you can see plenty of majesty in the marble, the gilded decorations on the ceiling, and the fairy-tale staircases that reminded me a bit of New York's Grand Central Station.

The train came, we got on, sat down in our seats and JieJie, still sleepy, said "can I have my buddy (the thing she sleeps with)" and MeiMei said "yeah, I want my buddy too." I looked at John and said "did you pack the buddies?" He looked at me and said "There wasn't enough room in the backpack. I thought you packed them." We looked at the girls, whose eyebrows were starting to scrunch up in the middle, the corners of their mouths turning down into pre-cry frowns.

OH NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! How could we forget the buddies?! How would they ever sleep at our friends' house that night without their buddies?! You have to understand, JieJie has NEVER fallen asleep without her Buddy, and she also has a second buddy, Buddy Zoltar from a parallel universe 30,000 light years away (hence the amazing similarity). MeiMei's buddy is a pink blanket with her name on it, and she also likes to sleep with Woofy the Dog. Moment of panic. I offered to get off at Antwerp-Zuid, go back and get them and catch up with them, but we quickly realized the total insanity of that idea.

We thought for a couple of minutes, and then John or I (can't remember who) came up with the suggestion that we find a toy store in Amsterdam and find substitute Buddies just for that night. I knew they would never agree to that and they'd just keep crying and crying and screaming and flailing until they graduated from high school, and the conductor would come and say I'm sorry we don't allow crying in the trains, you'll have to find some other way to get to Amsterdam...we'd walk off the train past fellow passengers, none of whom have ever had children (or if they did, their children never ever cried), and they would spit on our feet and mutter "stupid spoiled Americans" as we slinked past them, stepped down onto the cold, abandoned train platform and watched our train disappear to the north.

But wait--JJ and MM stopped crying, sniffled a moment, brightened up and agreed to the Temporary Buddy Plan!!! Soon the Snack Man arrived with his cart, JieJie ordered her little can of Pringles, MeiMei got her Waffel Suiker, we had some coffee and enjoyed the rest of our ride to Hamsterdam, as MeiMei calls it. Not many people know that the Dutch actually invented Hamsters. True story.

We got out at Amsterdam-Centraal and walked through hordes of Birkenstock-wearing young backpackers with dredlocks and dilated pupils going from the nearest Coffee Shop (a colloquialism meaning Marijuana Den) to the Sex Museum to the souvenir shop to Madame Toussaud's and then back to the Coffee Shop. It's too bad that Amsterdam has become the new Haight-Ashbury, but in a few blocks we arrived at the Dam (central square) and turned down a side street toward the beautiful Old City with its quaint canals, bridges, boats and shops.

It was cold and drizzly as we walked down Herengracht and Prinsengracht looking at all the beautiful rowhouses, which are kept up so nicely. Antwerp has neighborhoods like this too, but Antwerp is earlier in its gentrification process, and there's still lots of graffiti and broken windows compared to Amsterdam.

We found a cute little toy store and there was a bin of soft stuffed animals. MeiMei picked a pink pony right away, and JieJie, always the discriminating shopper, lined up all the stuffed dogs and cats so she could choose the best one. She had so much trouble picking, she asked for a countdown. After I said 3...2...1...pick! she chose a soft kitten and promptly named it Meowy (are we surprised?). The girls were content with their Temporary Buddies and we headed for lunch.

We found a pizza place on the Elandgracht (Napoli Restaurant) and ordered what has become our usual: a frutti di mare for the adults and a Margherita (tomato sauce & cheese) for the girls. They were good pizzas, though we think Blauw Water in Antwerp is still the best we've had here.

Next we walked the old town. It's such a great place to spend time, just so different from any other city we've been to. We worked our way toward the Rijksmuseum with its amazing collection of Rembrandts and Van Goghs and tried to figure out whether a museum visit was a possibility or not. Based on the girls' restlessness, and the fact that it would be 4pm by the time we got to our friends' in Mijdrecht, we decided to put it off til another time. The neighborhoods around the Rijksmuseum are worth a walk too--GORGEOUS 19th-century houses, truly grand. I bet it's spectacular there in the spring.

We waited at Museum Plein for our bus, and it soon came. The big wide doors opened and we noticed that there wasn't a big wide opening for the stroller, as we'd assumed. The opening was cut in half by a railing--oh, no! We tried to fold down the stroller but one part was stuck. After a short while, the bus driver gave up on us and left. No matter, the next one would come in 15 minutes and we'd be ready this time.

We rode the bus to Uithoorn, going from central Amsterdam out to the 'burbs, through a sweet town called Amstelveen before heading to Uithoorn. Our friend R soon arrived with the car and we rode to R&M's house for an overnight. We enjoyed a relaxing evening, more great pizza and sandwiches, a movie (Brassed Off) and bed. The girls did ok with their stand-in buddies but I ended up sleeping with MeiMei and we put JieJie in with John so if they woke up in the middle of the night they'd have a parent nearby.

Sunday morning we just relaxed and visited. R&M's son was supposed to have a soccer game but it was canceled because of rain. After lunch, it was time to go back to Antwerp. R drove us to Amsterdam-Schiphol station, which is in the lower level of Schiphol Airport.

It's really great how integrated the air/train/tram/bus systems are in Europe. I haven't missed the car at all! It would actually be more trouble than it's worth in the neighborhood we're in. It's really amazing how quickly we've adjusted to doing everything on foot or by public transportation, and we've realized how everything around us is set up to support that way of getting around. Take shopping for example. At home, we drive our car to the grocery store, fill a cart to overflowing, then fill the trunk to take it all home. Once we're home, we have a big refrigerator to put everything in, an extra freezer for overflow, and a pantry for dry goods.

Here in Antwerp, we walk/tram to the grocery store with our little rolling grocery carrier in tow, fill a hand basket with a few days' worth of groceries, tow the groceries home in the handcart, and once we get into the apartment, we have a very small refrigerator (comes up to just below my shoulder) and freezer and two cupboards for food.

Because the system is set up this way, our food is fresher when we get it and meant to be consumed within a few days. It has fewer preservatives and fewer things are made with hydrogenated oils, so the food is healthier too. I don't often think about my shopping patterns as a product of a larger system of food delivery, but when I think about how difficult it would be to shop this way at home, it's clear that larger circumstances in society determine the menu from which we make our personal choices.

Monday, February 12, 2007

Flemish PTA Rave Party

Last Friday night was a benefit dinner for the parents' association that supports the girls' school here in Antwerp. We received a lovely invitation a few weeks ago and decided to buy tickets. Tuition was so reasonable, it was the least we could do, and it sounded fun. What a great opportunity to get to know some other parents and go to a restaurant we'd never have found on our own.

The invitation was intriguing. The location of the party was Barcelona at Hanger 26. Hadn't heard of it, and it's an unusual sort of name. Then at the bottom of the invitation, the English phrase "Bring your dancing shoes." To a school benefit attended by parents, teachers and school administrators? This I gotta see.

Our university students are sometimes able to babysit, but this past weekend they scattered to the four winds, taking advantage of their time here (and good for them!). Some went to Florence, some to Cologne, and some to Stockholm--brrr! What is it that makes young American men so curious about young Swedish women?? Anyway, the night of the benefit arrived and we had to choose which of us could go. Since John had gone to a fancy function earlier in our trip, it was my turn.

I got dressed up and caught a bus to Barcelona, which turned out to be a multipurpose room with catering facilities overlooking the River Schelde. The room itself is beautiful, with wood floors and huge expanses of white walls that make the room look very modern, like an art gallery. Long low white benches and black tables went along one wall, with candles and little bowls of munchies scattered around. A couple of lights were projecting artsy blue and red overlapping cog-like shapes on the walls that were turning slowly. I saw JieJie's teacher and went to her to chat. Everyone was dressed up, looking very sophisticated, and waiters came around with champagne and hors d'oeuvres.

More parents arrived around 8pm and people were very nice as far as introducing me around. There were some people whose response to meeting me was, "ah yes, the American. We've heard about your girls. How do you like the school?" and similar small talk.

Dinner was served about 9:30 and it was delicious. The buffet featured a huge bowl of calamari, some chicken yakitori, some vegetables, lamb, Chinese dumplings, and wrap sandwiches among other dishes. I pulled up a stool to a high table and sat with a couple whose daughter is in MeiMei's class. He's British and she's Flemish, an architect here in Antwerp. Their American friends were with them, a couple from the Philly area. Small world - someone tell my friend KH that the man from Philly has a friend from Hudson, Wisconsin!

We all chatted over dinner, there was more wine and beer served, and sparkling water to maintain a bit of equilibrium(!) and soon it was time for a raffle. Iena, the architect, said to her husband, "Hey, you've got a winning number already! Whoever gets #802 gets to marry Iena B!" Don't you know, the first item they drew for was a HUGE stuffed gorilla, and they picked #802!!! We laughed until we cried as her husband went up to claim his "bride." The stuffed gorilla sat on a barstool for the rest of the evening, observing.

About 11:30, the first of two dessert courses came around, little mini eclairs and raspberry tarts, and I went to sit with the couple who had offered me a ride home. We sat near MeiMei's teacher, so I got to check in with her too about how things are going. She said MeiMei had told her "I love you" last week. For the more formal Belgians, this is a bit much, and even for us huggy-huggy Americans, we've been trying to teach MeiMei the difference between saying "I like you" and "I love you." I told her teacher that it's fine with me if she helps reinforce the distinction--the teacher, Miss Y, said "oh, I just thought it must be an American way of expressing yourself." Yoix! Everything in the U.S. apparently seems like one big Casual Friday from here.

By this time it was after midnight, and I can safely say I was in a room full of some seriously inebriated parents! There was this wonderful air of carefree mischief to the evening. I loved seeing this side of people I'd known only as so-and-so's mom or dad. The final dessert course came around--Belgian chocolates of course!--and some people started saying their goodbyes, heading for taxis, while others made their way to the dance floor. The head of the parents' association was fully lubricated and started the dancing off with ABBA's "I Do I Do I Do I Do I Do." Next thing you know, moms and dads were throwing themselves into the dance melee with abandon, and the gym teacher was doing the jitterbug with one of the single moms I recognized from rainy morning drop-offs. I was glad to be heading out, since my dance partner was back at the apartment. I wonder when things finally wrapped up? Betcha it was 2am.
What a party! And not one I'm likely to see repeated among the more staid parents I know back home, at least not when we're all coming together for a school function (which is funny considering the stereotype of Americans as being so informal with one another...we're downright Puritannical when it comes to our Public Parental Duties!)

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Snowy Thursday in Antwerp

We woke up Thursday morning, got ready for school as usual, and walked out onto the cobblestones with light dusty snow falling. The girls were so excited at the prospect of a snowy day, they forgot their usual whine-all-the-way-to-the-tram-stop fussing and instead focused on catching snowflakes on tongues.

By the time the tram arrived at the school stop, big fat flakes were flying and there was that wonderful clean fresh feeling in the air. The girls' teachers had plans to cancel morning lessons and give in to the children's need to get out there in the courtyard and play in the snow, hoping that they could attempt some lessons later in the morning. JieJie told me later that indeed they did all go out into the courtyard, playing in the snow and throwing snowballs at a designated wall (which was more than I was allowed to do at school lest you think this sounds strict!).

The snow got in the way of a planned trip with our unversity students to Antwerp's main art museum, famous for its collection of over-altar paintings by Rubens (a famous Antwerper), also a few original works by Memling, van Eyck, Titiaan, Modigliani, Magritte, the Brueghels and others. We waited by the main U. of Antwerp entrance and I snapped some photos of the campus in the snow (see above--John and the one student who showed for the tour are in the doorway).
JieJie's teacher had assured me the beautiful white stuff would all be gone by the end of the day, and she was right. As we got to the Museum Voor Schone Kunsten the temperature was rising and the sidewalks were getting shiny.
The museum is just wonderful. It's big enough to satisfy several visits, but small enough to feel that I could find the works that might appeal to my mood on that particular visit. I got an audio guide. The narrations are very well done, though the works that are narrated seemed to be barely a quarter of the collection. I found myself wanting to know much more about certain works after being reminded how many stories there are in each painting and sculpture.
My favorite work was Jean Fouquet's Madonna with Seraphims and Cherubims because of the vivid colors and an unsettling oddness. Mary in this painting seems somewhat cold, the baby old beyond his years, but something about the whole composition really grabbed me.
I will definitely wander back to this museum when I have some time to spend. If you visit Antwerp, be sure to allow some time to stop in and meditate on the amazing treasures within.
On that note, one of the children's books we checked out of the library is Degas and the Little Dancer which gives the background of the famous sculpture. When I told JieJie tonight that the statue is in the Louvre in Paris and that we can see it in person, she seemed really excited. Gotta do my homework for these trips so they feel like scavenger hunts, eh?
We picked the girls up from school Thursday and they had so much to tell us about a fun day in the snow with their teachers and classmates. We are looking forward to another good week this week, and hoping that JieJie's little friend Sarah will return from her trip with her family.

You can search FTJ for past posts, e.g. China info...

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