recap with russo part 1

INTRO:

russo's first name is sarah, last is russo.  there were two sarah's at dance so we called her russo to differentiate. russo is three years my junior. we didn't go to high school together, but we may as well have been sisters. we spent more hours together than i did with my own brother. i was lucky enough to carpool with her my last year of dancing. it was awesome to play tour guide and show her around a country we came to adore. plus we had her there for the few days of holiday that we took while overseas, perfect. thank heavens for christmas break and sky miles. love you russo.

bruges belgium. heaven on earth. matching coats.

antwerp. kloosterstraat. cheesy picture in a million dollar store.

place de jeu du balle. 365 days outta the year flea market.

the king's palace. stunning russo.

brussel's best look-out point.

the one and only grand place. holiday styled. they even had a nativity.

 manniken piss. this was one of the few places russo was reccommended to go visit. he's the most famous statue in belgium and is about 18 inches tall, sort of a let down.

but we aren't kidding when we say the belgian waffles are to die for. no let downs there. don't worry we brought 30 home with us, they were gone in a few days.

russo spent the sabbath attending our perfect belgian ward. after church they put on a FEAST for noel-no casseroles or green jello there-just turkeys, soups, salads, homemade bread, and smorgasbord of desserts. best food we ate all week. after 12 hours at the church, we spent 2.5 hours getting home from church when it usually takes 30 minutes. despite that, the next day russo and i BRAVELY trekked the 2 hour drive to citadelle at dinant without devin. worth it? yes.

we also trekked up all those stairs in the background since the tram was closed. (nothing gets shoveled or snowplowed in belgium. they usually get a few inches, not two feet.) 

there were at least 1000 stairs. and at the top, there was just a metal guard rail.

but the view was irreplaceable.

gratefully we only had one fall. of course it came on the last five steps and included a face plant. we will never forget that experience.

... part two tomorrow.