My mother and my father spent four days in Belgium from Saturday till Tuesday. We had a lot of fun (and food :D) together! On Saturday (I planned to go to the airport, but I slept over, so I met them only at the train station… such a shame…) we just walked around Leuven. But we walked a lot (~15 km). We went to the Botanic Garden (one of the most beautiful sights in the city during this time of the year with all the flowers), the Arenberg Castle and the Great Beguinage. Then we had a great lunch (or early dinner) in the Domus (good Flemish food and Belgian beers). And finally they managed to see the square in front of the library free of any view-blocking installations (if you are from Leuven you know what I am talking about…).

After three weeks of great, dry, sunny and warm spring (25.6°C on Friday) the weather changed. To crap. On Sunday, we get off the train in Brugge in rain and cold wind. So – to put it in a more touristic point of view, or way of thinking – I could easily show the so called typical Belgian weather to my parents. (Which is not at all as bad as some locals claim it in their non-stop complaints, but that is something I will have to prove during their next visit…) They were really happy about it (place sarcasm mark here). And no, my mother was “not” wearing a skiing coat :D

Anyway, the worst part of the storm (as it was a nice small thunderstorm indeed) ended pretty soon, so we could leave the small church of the local Beguinage and start our looong walk in the city of Brugge – the most touristic place in Belgium. I am sure there are more foreigners in the city on a normal summer day than Belgians. And I am quite sure that every third shop is a chocolate store… (torturing me with the smell and the view of their windows…) But I can not deny, that the old city is beautiful. My parents also agreed on this. And we ate fries, chocolate, waffles with strawberries and whipped cream, so we did what a foreigner has to do in this country :D Around noon, we even had some sunshine, so we hopped in a boat and rode around the canals of the city. They loved it. (Me too.)

On Monday the weather was extremely cold (come on, maximum temperature of 7.1°C in May…), so I went to work and they went to Brussels, but at the end of the day, we had a great dinner in De Kansel. (Nota bene: new bear taste – Steenbrugge Blond.) And I gave them the best Neuhaus pralines I have ever tasted as a present. On Tuesday, we only met at lunch (again in Domus, so my mother finally tasted my favorite waffle with the warm cherries…), then after some shopping (e.g. cycling bag for my mother’s bike) they flew back to Hungary :(

I am very happy that they came. And I have no idea when will be the next time we see each other. It may not happen before Christmas… But for the near future, I really hope my brother can come somewhen during the summer, because I miss him too ;) Oh, and last but not least, my parents brought me some bottles of high quality Hungarian wine, home-made cake (thanks Mom!), Túró Rudi (check Wikipedia) and a Hungarian Apple keyboard – which makes blogging (ok, writing in general) much easier :) So thanks for all!