Brussels, Amsterdam, and... home!

We saw plenty of Brussels, but only from the train. It turns out the train was direct, stopping briefly in Brussels and Antwerp. It was a very easy and comfortable trip.

Brussels

Brazilian snack upon arrival in Amsterdam, at a place very close to Number One's

Number Four and I walked to Anne Frank's house. 

I read the book when I was 13, and I identified so much with her. She liked to write, and journaled every day. She had a pretty older sister named Margo, and so did I! 

It was awesome being right there... where it all happened.

There were many of these around... I called them "half-cars"!

The canals are just beautiful.

Thomas found an interesting store...

Number One's place!

From across his canal.

Our Italian fabulous dinner 2 blocks away!

... and ice cream. I took this picture about 5 minutes after almost been run over by a huge bike!

Airport breakfast next morning!

Met a famous friend at the Van Gogh Museum store at the airport where I did some last minute shopping!

Bye bye tulips, bye bye Amsterdam, bye bye Europe!

Chicago O'Hare was showing old local stainglass windows on the hallways towards immigration & customs.

Nice to be greeted by sacred art!

The Annunciation

Number One said we must have a Tortas Fronteras Margarita! We befriended a couple of flight attendants and had a very interesting chat!

Home, Sweet Home.

My sister Marta and her life in the Abtei St. Walburga, Bavaria

My sister Marta, aka Nina, writes to her siblings and close friends weekly from her Abbey life in Eichstatt, Germany, and she sent recently this account of Corpus Christi celebrations in the Abbey's village, and some photos too.

A short email in the great feast of Corpus Christi! We had a procession in the city all morning, starting in our beautiful - Today crowded - Gothic cathedral, with our young bishop and priests from Africa, India, Russia and etc.. The choir was really wonderful (the conductor, also very young, is our good friend here at the Monastery) and is beautiful to see the profound traditions of Bavaria: those women with colorful dresses, men in shorts, leather, all groups represented the city from the firemen to the police, the mayor, doctors, teachers of the Univ., students, children, etc, etc.. Seems like Brazil in the old times! The procession lasts 3 hours and passes through the city all decked out with their altars and flowers and red cloths hung from the windows of the houses. A joy!

The photos below show her with her sisters, her work in the Abbey's Kindergarten, and the Corpus Christi procession.