Plaza Hotel Antwerp

... wind dies down, honestly! We have six hours to wait in Heathrow, where we will buy stuff that's either cheaper or more familiar than stuff in Brussels, we will eat something (farewell weight watchers, knew my trousers wouldn't be baggy for long..), probably take the mickey out of English travellers in their football shirts and sit in the lounge and write on the blog.<br><br>Very excited about going to Thailand!!

... but we did get an up close look. We stopped for dinner in Antwerp (Antwerpen) at the Docks restaraunt. Randy had a steak and I had the lobster. We were both quite impressed, great quality, service and atmoshpere at reasonable prices. By the time we reached the hotel this evening we were both quite exhausted, so this will be the end of our story for the day.

... in myself for leaving a few 0-2 and 1-2 pitches over the plate. I think I could have easily had 2-3 more strikeouts had I made a little better pitches in those at bats, but the end result didn't hurt me as I got those guys to fly out twice and ground out once. I worked through for the complete game but my legs were tight and tired in the 9th and I started to leave the ball up the zone, giving up 2-3 hits and a couple runs. More running and squats should cure that!

... Lisa, John &amp; I. But listen to me, I always come off so negative. That's not my intention, but I figure 'write what you know', and right now I know that I'm lonely, and craving the company of Josh, Andy, even my Mom... but I especially crave the comany of Luke. Keep thinking about Paris! Hopefully walking around by the Seine will tire me out and I'll sleep early and well tonight.

... to spend some more time in Amsterdam before going to Antwerp - talking to the waitress last night convinced me to stay. I was actually angling for her to give me a tour but she wasn't interested - I guess the Axe body spray doesn't work after all! On my way out of the hostel I passed a girl talking on her cell phone and telling her friend that "The hostel is great! It's so close to Chanel, Ferragamo, and Cartier!" I laughed because I didn't ...

... Moving from my athletic endeavors of the week, I got to experience two of England's most prominent children's influences in its History: "Peter Rabbit" and "The Wind in the Willows". I saw the English movie Miss Potter at a cute little neighbourhood theatre. I also went to the Royal Opera House to see the play/ballet version of The Wind in The Willows. Although I was surrounded by 5 year olds, I have never had so much fun at a play! There was so ...

... Honestly, I think Brasil is probably the world's most popular country; they have the most popular footballer, Ronaldiho, the best football team, and perhaps the best looking women??? Certainly no USA jerseys being worn around here. The Brasilians had some crazy drums out in the street, reminded me of that movie Drum Line....and made me miss my time in Brasil. Good times. See ya Kenny

... is walking along the river, which everyone does. There are different sections that people live in and according to this tourism guide, they don't like to mix around with each other. On one side of the city, there is the city centre with the bell tower and the church (like every European city) and on the other side, the newer section with housing and other stuff that cities contain. Connecting them under the river is a 500m long tunnel that is meant for large ...

... who spend their days visiting cheap brothels, eating ganja-topped pizzas, snorting heroin and shooting rockets at firing ranges. " Yes, the same city I will go to in/for a few weeks. When Heaven and Earth Changed Place, Le Ly Hayslip. Captivating memoirs of a woman who, despite all the horrors of the Second Indochina War, never loses hope and faith. Highly recommended. The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels. Basically a load of antiquated bollocks ...

... or a result of the latest uprising by the Palestinians, huh? We walked to a nice looking place run by 2 black hats (religious Jews), buzzed, and were invited inside. The 2 guys were both helping 2 couples who looked like they were members of the store's frequent shopper program. I watched as one man peeled off a couple thousand Euros in cash. The salesman was in for something when Julie and I stepped up. He was nice enough to pretend that we were heavy hitters by asking us if we ...