Beautiful Art

Franz Marc: Horse in a Landscape, Image from Wikimedia

We saw this Franz Marc painting in the Museum Folkwang in Essen a few weeks ago. It is another example of the "der Blaue Reiter" art movement around the turn of the last century. I love this artist and this period--can't get enough of it here!

Big Storm in Duesseldorf

There was a huge storm in Duesseldorf Monday night--sort of a small hurricane actually. It happened around 9:30 in the evening, when we were home watching a movie. The buildings here are very solid and the windows are tight, so I didn't worry for our safety. When we ventured out on the balcony to see what was going on, it was a wild sight--it seemed as though a wall of trees was advancing on us. I couldn't stand there for more than a few seconds, so terrifying was it. The next day hardly any trams, busses or trains were running, due to all the downed trees and damage to electrical lines, and there still aren't many running today. The cleanup will take quite a while, and many people are still stranded.

Apparently, it's the worst storm of this sort in about 10 years. When the TV weather person was asked if such a fierce storm was proof that climate change is occurring, she answered without skipping a beat that it was indeed proof. I couldn't help but think about how they would have answered this question in the US...they would have probably hemmed and hawed and said no, that violent storms have always occured. But maybe that attitude is changing now in the US too.

Feasting in Brussels

Greg and I took a trip to Brussels this weekend--it's only 2 hours away by train. I should probably tell you about the interesting sights, but all I can think about is how good the food was. We were pleasantly surprised to discover that Brussels has quite the French flair and atmosphere, and this extends to the food. The food is, in short, delicious and well prepared. The beer and pastries are especially divine. Above you see our lunch--steak tartare and the famous pommes frites for Greg, and a filet mignon for me.

Then there are the amazing Belgian waffles...I just never knew what all the fuss was about. Now I do, and I want to go back and eat some more. Here I am buying them from a truck--they are everywhere--after a museum visit.

How to describe them...they may just look like ordinary waffles, but they are more a cross between a cake, a doughnut and a waffle. They are a bit sweet, a bit doughy and a bit chewy. You can get all sorts of toppings on them; above we have caramel, below, strawberries and chocolate. Yes, they do that.

As Greg and I were wiping the chocolate from our mouths after sharing one of these delicacies, I happened to look over at a woman sitting near us, who was also enjoying a waffle. She and I looked directly at each other and both said, at the same time, "This is just so good." It was funny to connect over waffles like that.