Today was David and Nick’s doubles match. We got to Eton Manor a little early to watch another match and we knew right away it was going to be hot out.

They guys played on the center court. I was worried about having Kaili in there but it actually worked out really well. Cathy, David’s mom found the perfect family spot to sit. The area up behind the seats has an open area for Kaili to walk around and she even napped in her stroller up there. It worked out great.

They played Israel and the match was intense. They won the first set but went to a tie-breaker in the 2nd set finally winning it 8-7. It was a relief when it was over.

After the win we were all wiped from the stress and sun. Shane, Kaili, my folks and I ate at a hopping place next to the Olympic Park entrance, it was just OK, once again.

Tomorrow David is on at 11:00 on Center court and it’s supposed to be even hotter. The weather has drastically changed over the past few days. I didn’t know that happened here.

Today was my first day at the Olympic center and boy is it a site to see. Unlike China, most of the sport venues are located inside the park. There are pros and cons to this. Pro; if we are going to be there all day waiting for matches that are at opposite times of the day then we can just walk to see another sport. We couldn’t do that 4 years ago, we saw tennis and only tennis. Con; the park is ginormous, it is a 20-30 minute walk from the main entrance to Eton Manor. (tennis venue) This is a whole different experience with a squirmy toddler. It takes us 30 minutes to get from our front door to the front entrance of the park and then another 30 minutes to the tennis courts. Expecting Kaili to sit and watch tennis after that is probably not going to happen. My mom was kind enough to take turns swapping places with me so I could cheer on David. I am getting worried about how this will work as the days go on and the crowds get bigger, these Brits don’t mess around!

David was third on after 11:00 am. That is how it works. You are never sure of the time they will play so you just have to guess and make sure you get there early. He played a guy from South Africa ranked 7th in the world. He won!

Kaili had fun people watching and playing on the grass. She spent a good amount of time chillling in her stroller watching some tennis but the nap didn’t happen until our way home.This is definitely a different experience with a toddler, as easy going as she is.

Do  you watch the Travel Channel? We do and we came across a gem on one show. The Real Food Market is at South Bank Centre  located behind the the London Eye. It’s a foodies dream. Risotto balls, fresh pasta, bastilla, schwarma, gelato…I could go on but instead here are pictures.

That is basically all we did today, eat. Oh and we did check out a pub a block away from our flat, Guinness on tap is amazing here. We ended the evening with some ping pong, Kaili wanted to play too.

Today we got out the door early to make our way to the sites. First stop, Buckingham Palace.

From there we walked to see Big Ben and The House of Parliament.

Our walk took us to the river Thames and the London Eye. It’s a beautiful place with tons and tons of people. What we all really needed was lunch so we chose an Indian place. The food was very very good.

After stuffing ourselves we waddled our way to the river. Our plan, catch a river boat to the Tower Bridge. Kaili was a trooper all day and finally fell asleep before getting on the boat.

Now it was time to make our way to the Olympic Village to meet Wags. It’s a privilege to be able to get in and see where the athletes eat, sleep and play during the games. He took us to his dorm and showed us all around. We ended the night eating dinner with him in the food hall. They had food from every country, quite an ordeal. I didn’t do so well on taking pictures, Kaili was getting antsy so my hands were tied up.

We finally got home around 9 pm. Were were all wiped out. Nighty night!

We still are having a hard time catching up on sleep. Along with the dreary weather it’s hard to get motivated to do much. Does that seem weird? Today we waited around for Kaili to have a late morning nap and then headed out for a lunch of fish and Chips.

After lunch we took a small tour of Camden. We picked up some tomatoes and basil at a farmers market and then had crepes at the stables market.

Tomorrow we are thinking about seeing Big Ben and maybe a river cruise on the Thames. I hope the sun shows up!

Oh yeah, here are some pictures of the opening ceremony.

I am sorry it took me a few days to get this written. Tuesday morning we hopped on another train from Brussels to London and then hailed a cab to our flat in Camden. What an awesome little town this is.

Shane and I arrived at the flat a few hours before our folks did. I was pacing anxiously waiting to see Kaili. Once we saw them strolling down the street I ran outside and received the biggest smile from my little love. She was eager for my to pick her up and gave me the biggest hug. Pure LOVE! Sadly we didn’t get any pictures of this as it was the last thing on any of our minds.

Once everyone was settled in, a few of us headed to the store to fill up our kitchen cabinets. For dinner we ordered in Chinese.

Kaili is having a bit of a hard time dealing with the jet lag. The night was hard so none of us got much sleep. We spent the next day just wandering around our neighborhood while Shane and Gordon went out to pick up all of our Paralypmic tickets.

Shane, my mom and his mom all headed out to the opening ceremonies while I stayed back with Kaili and the men. As much as I wanted to go, I didn’t want to leave Kaili so soon. Plus her night-time sleep isn’t back to normal yet.

I promise to take more pictures and keep up on my writing. We have a few days before Wags starts his matches so today on the to-do list, Fish and Chips!

After some coffee Shane and I headed to the train station to catch our train to Brussels.

The train ride was nice. We sat in first class where we served a little lunch and enjoyed free wifi. Once we reached Brussels we paid an obscene amount on a taxi to our hotel. Turns out there is a metro station right around the corner from our hotel and it’s just a short ride from the train station. I didn’t do my homework…

Our hotel is in a pretty good location to all the sites. Once we checked in we made our way out to the Grand Place. First things first though…

The chocolate museum is not open on Monday so that was what needed to happen first. It was eh…just OK. Some good information but not enough for the entry fee.

This town has such an awesome vibe. Cobblestone streets and amazing old architecture. We walked along the Grand Place and were in aw of the buildings.

Pomme Frites, the thing to try here in Brussels. We stopped at the place with the line. I ordered mine with mayonnaise, Shane with ketchup and onions. They both were good.

Next up was nap time so we went back to the hotel for a sieste. Dinner was Thai, outskirts of the tourist area we found some pretty good Thai food. I had the Paad See Ew, Shane the Paanang Curry.

This morning we woke up around 8:30. I  didn’t sleep well. There is no AC in this room, the pillows suck and my book kept me up all night. It is that good.

This morning we  caught the  continental breakfast and a couple of cups of coffee. If you decide to travel  here, learn now that hitting up a boulangerie and a market can get you the same amount of food for a lot less. If breakfast doesn’t come included at  your hotel just walk outside to the nearest cafe, better deal, better food.

We only have one full day to do it all.See the  sites, eat the favorites and  drink the Belgium beer  We could have spent over $100 to have someone take us to several bars, walk us several miles and give is several beers. Or…we could just choose our own adventure. We chose the latter. I won’t bore you with the details but we hit a handful of different places trying different ales. It was fun.

After a few beers we went back to see the Mannekin Pis, he was dressed nicely today.

We ate waffles, sorry no pictures. We couldn’t pass up trying the mussels or moules as they call them here. They were very good!

Later in the evening we found ourselves at a little bar next to a hostel near the Grand place. This place reminded me of a bar in Beijing so guess what I did?

Next up, live music with the locals. This was the highlight of our entire trip for me. Just plain awesome!

Tomorrow afternoon we are off to London. My folks, Shane’s folks and my Kaili bear are arriving about the same time as us. We will meet them at the flat we rented in Camden. Cheers to part deux of our European adventure~

Today we took the opportunity to take in our neighborhood in Paris. We walked all around making our way to the Latin quarter which should be called the Greek quarter. Greek restaurants and gyro stands are spotted all along the quarter but I took the opportunity to try some moules. I was unimpressed. I should have had a gyro, oh well.

Later in the day we stopped at a cafe to people watch. Then we had dinner at a nice restaurant my our hotel. We indulged in French champagne and creme brûlée. It was all delicious.

 

 

 

 

Oh did I mention that Shane took a spill in the Louvre? Somehow he tripped going down some stairs. This is what his ankle looked like a day later.

It looks even worse now. He has been a good sport about it and just hobbles around everywhere.

Tomorrow morning we are heading to the Paris train station to catch a train to Brussels.