Atlanta Antwerp

Every two years, the weather man declared, there are strong gales in the south of England, the type that disrupt train services, housewives lose their laundry drying on the line, umbrellas get blown inside out - and even trees are blown down. This was the day that we chose to fly to England. It's OK, the gales will die down sometime in the afternoon, said the same weather man, but not after we've flown over to ...

Today Dorina took me to Antwerp, Belgium. Our train was an hour late arriving at noon and we had to be back on the train at 2:00, so we didn't have a lot of time to spend there. It is a lovely city with a mixture of new and old, modern and historic buildings. We managed to buy some Belgian chocolates and have some lunch before we had to be back on the train. Thank you Dorina; it ...

... here is freakin awesome, and unfortunately, I really didn't know what I looking at most of the time, since this city isn't as bilingual as the Netherlands. Aside from random wanderings, the church that I toured is absolutely amazing. It was built in four stages over a couple hundred years, and is the largest gothic cathedrals in the low regions. It had two massive pipe organs, quite a bit of art by Antwerp's leading ...

... has officially started and so far so good. She has kids from a handful of different countries and is currently training them in the rules and ways of the world of kindergarten. She'll post more about her first weeks sometime in the near future... I'm enjoying life as a freelance writer. There's no shortage of work and let me tell you, working in your pajamas is much more comfortable ...

... hit a deep sac-fly to the warning track in center. Then my 5 trip, I hit a lazy fly ball to right field. I'm seeing the ball real well and have been fortunate enough to get some good pitches to hit. I take till I get a strike in every at bat just so I can see some pitches and get my timing. Its been working out because I've been getting ahead in counts and sitting on fastballs. I forgot how much I miss hitting!!! Later ...

... that rowing is truly a drinking sport where more emphasis was put on the drinking and socializing part than the actual erg itself because during my erg my coach didn't stay in the room and I only saw him pop in once. At the bar, however, he was right there buying his rowers drinks, insisting that I stay, leading a group in a game of pool, etc. Needless to say this was very foreign to this Leander Rower who is used to fleeing the premises immediately after ...

... English, but now it seems people refuse to speak to speak it now. English really is the Lingua Franca now, but it seems the French can't let go. Everywhere we got there is American and British music. The TV shows are pretty much all American. People where clothes with English on it. Our movies dominate the theaters. Our pop culture really conquers. Its funny, even Budweiser is the only beer that you can drink at the World Cup games. How could a ****** American beer hope to best German beer?

... those senseo coffee makers), and orange juice. These guys were just so nice and hospitable that it made the breakfast that much better. We had a long day of travel and we needed to leave early so the guys drove us to the train station and dropped us off to we could avoid the torrential rains pelting Antwerp. If I thought the 45 minute walk in was bad, that would have been much worse. Off to Cologne

... in a napalm attack during the Second Indochinese War (Vietnam War), famous for one of the most well known photographs of all time. Sorrow of War, Bao Ninh. Tale about the Vietnam war from the perspective of a North Vietnamese. "A magnificent achievement ... takes its place alongside the greatest war novel of the century, All Quiet on the Western Front" Independent. The Tao of Pooh, Benjamin Hoff. Tao explained using Pooh, and Pooh explained using Tao. An ...

... he could sing and play. I think he is homeless but I don't know for sure but he definitely looked it, not really what I would think a bar would want pestering their patrons. It's weird but he was actually good and people ended up singing with him, gave him money, and the guys we were talking to even bought him a beer. It was a fun night! The next morning, over our normal breakfast of bread, cheese, and a very special delicacy - Nutella - I told Chris the bars from last night were ...