Easter in Belgium

Belgium.  The land of waffles, French fries, and chocolate.  We left Belgium about an hour ago and I already miss all three of these things.  It’s a little sad to admit but my favorite thing about Belgium is their food.  The waffles are always delicious, no matter the flavor.  I tried a plain waffle, a powdered-sugar waffle, and a waffle with chocolate syrup; all were equally delicious!  Belgium invented French fries so it is only expected that they would be delicious as well; golden, thick cut, and with just the right amount of crispiness.  And the chocolate… oh my!  It is the most pure, smooth, and unprecedented taste I have ever had, and I eat a lot of chocolate so that’s saying something.  I almost forgot about another one of their specialties, cherry beer.  I was not so sure about ordering it at first, but I was pleasantly surprised.  I thought it tasted more like juice than beer though, so it was more of a desert beer for me.

We arrived at our hotel in Brussels mid-afternoon and had a short tour of the city.  We had free time after and that’s when I had my first Belgian waffle and cherry beer.  The next day we had a day trip to Gent and Brugge, two beautiful medieval cities.  In Gent we visited several cathedrals and public squares; we did pretty much the same thing in Brugge.  My favorite part of the day was getting to visit the cathedral of His Holy Blood.  I do not know the whole story, but there is a vial of blood on display that is supposedly Jesus Christ’s.  Like I said, I do not know much about it, whether it is actually his or not, but I do know that it was an awesome experience.  We were released from our tour in Brugge and Dan, Devin, Jen, and I found chocolate, beer, and waffles in that respective order.  I bought myself some Easter chocolate to eat today at some point.  I just have to pretend that it came from an Easter basket sitting on my kitchen table at home; that is our Easter tradition in my family. 

I am a little bummed today because it is Easter and I cannot be home for it.  It is difficult, though, to think of an alternative that could be better than what I have gotten to do here.  I got to pray over Christ’s blood the day before Easter.  Not only that but I got to pray in at least 5 or 6 historic cathedrals in Europe on the weekend of Easter.  I cannot be more thankful for these experiences because lately I have found it almost impossible to find a time to just pray, or a time to talk to God when it is just me and Him free from distraction.  I have not been to church in three months, or even been able to have fellowship with another Christian.  I am sure that this has taken its toll on me, especially in the last month, but it has also been a test of faith.  I look at the journey I have been on and think of how far I have come personally.  It has been so hard, but I would not have it any other way!

As the days of the trip wind down, the deadline for my studio project nears.  I have never wanted time to move so quickly, yet so slowly in my life.  I realize I can hope all I want, but God is the one in control here.  All in His timing!