Dominican Republic Nov'08 (final chapter)

Unfortunately, all these good things must come to an end.So after our last breakfast (of course with Mimosa's), a last look at the pool and beach, we are waiting for our bus to take us back to the airport.

Another nice vacation has gone by.. so where should we go next??

Dominican Republic Nov'08 (part 3)

The last few days, we stayed in the hotel, relaxing.. we enjoued the beach, pool, many drinks but also stayed active, playing tennis. Javier was really hit with tennis fever, and I had to drag him of the tennis court. He also improved a lot after some lessons..

Dominican Republic Nov'08 (part 3)

The second (and final) excursion, was only half a day, but boy, it was fun. We went snorkling!

A shaky road trip (the condition of the road is not the best, so we were really shaken from one side to another), took us to the beach of Bavaro.We then took a speedboat (we had to drive ourselves in these 2-people speedboats), to a platform in the sea.

We were then given snorkling equipment, to go swim with the fish!

The fish were immediately attracted to the food we brought them. It was so much fun!

Dominican Republic Nov '08 (part 2)

After recovering from the 1 hour jet lag, and plenty of drinks to help the process, (mostly on the beach or pool), we decided we also wanted to see some other parts of the island.

Our first trip (for which we were picked up at 7am!!) took us to Santo Domingo, the country's capital). It's quite a drive, so on our way, we stopped a few times, to get some coffee, visiting a cave, and driving by some interesting scenery.

After a long 3 hour busdrive, we arrived in the old part of the town, visiting the castle walking around the old town.

Dominican Republic November '08 (part 1)

We needed a break! As work will start getting crazy over the next few months, this is the perfect time to relax for a few days. But we have high demands! First and foremost, we need sun and warm weather. (yes, I want to get burnt!).

Second, nice sandy beaches, and third, lots of free drinks!

And that's why we went to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic!

Oh my, what a nice place. It was about 90 degrees (just over 30 degrees for the Europeans)! Sunshine from morning till evening, with a nice seabreeze!

And the hotel was gorgeous. Our room had an exit to the swimming pool, so we could jump in the water from our patio. The staff were very friendly and helpfull. The drinks were delicious, and so was the food in the 7 restaurants! (we had an all-inclusive, so didn't have t worry about the bill at the end).

Ok, I'll stop telling you about how good it was, just judge for yourself.

Surprise surprise.... happy birthday mom!

It was a suprise visit in September to Belgium. As I had to go to the US embassy, I timed it so I could bring a suprise visit for my mom's birthday party. As I had to hide on Friday before the party, Ynte, Vincent, Nolwenn and Mila were very kind to host me at their home.

What a great visit! I saw most of the family again, and managed to suprise my parents..

Happy birthday.. Javier

For Javier's birthday, we went to the mid Sunday evening matches at the US Open.

It was a fabulous evening, with a great match between Djokovic and Cilic. Both guys made it a very attractive match to watch, finishing after midnight!

The ladies match featured Olympic champ Dementieva, who easily won her match..

Washington DC (part 2) - June 2008

Day 2 in DC took us on a city tour, visiting Arlington cemetary, Union station, the Capitol, the White House and plenty more. Here are a few snapshots..

Washington DC - June 2008

Too long..

It has been way too long since I last published a new blog. So here we go.

This one goes back to June 2008. Mom and dad came for a visit in Norwalk. Getting rid of their jet-lag, we took the train to the nation's capital. What a nice city! The weather helped as well, as it was sunny the entire time.

Here are a few pics from day 1, a visit to The Mall (and no, we did not go shopping).