HURRAH FOR THE BELGIAN ROYAL FAMILY !

The royal family has a second palace set in beautiful parkland in the commune of Laeken, on the outskirts of Brussels, though still part of the city.  Every spring, for 3 weeks, they open up their greenhouses to the public so that people like myself can enjoy the beauty of the flowers, plants and trees.

King Leopold II (perhaps familiar to you because of the Congo) decided in 1868 to build the enormous greenhouse complex.  He called on the leading botanists, nurserymen and suppliers to turn the greenhouses' collection of plants and flowers into one of the continent's loveliest.  He spared neither expense nor effot to make his glass city something unique.

And it shows.  I have never seen such a layout, such an extravagant show of colours and sorts of flowers, plants, ferns and trees.  It was breathtaking.  We walked through greenhouses, winter gardens, pavilions and galleries, each one more beautiful than the one before. Azaleas are in full bloom right now: what a glorious, spectacular show of orange, red, pink, white, yellow and all the shades in between!  And I think I saw every colour imaginable of geraniums.  And of course, many of the flowers are arranged in settings with mirrors or sculptures or exquisite Eastern urns or statues.

It was so outstanding I went twice!  As a treat for your eyes, I'm sending you via email my web album of photos taken in the royal greenhouses.  Here's just a wee taste below. Enjoy!

 

UNITY IN DIVERSITY !

A few week-ends ago, the 20s-30s group at St. Andrew's invited me to come along with them on their annual week-end retreat in the countryside of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.  I was flattered and of course said 'yes'.

And what fun we had!  Lots of singing, laughing, talking, preparing meals and cleaning up.  One of the young men, Evan Lamos, led us in meditative reflexions on the Christian's walk with God.  Saturday afternoon we took a long hike through a beautiful forest with steep, twisting valleys made intimate by woodlands, rushing streams and dramatic rock formations.  I was proud of myself for being able to keep up with these young people, though ..... I was the last one in the line of hikers!

The thing that struck me the most, as I walked, talked, ate, slept, meditated and sang with all these young people, was their unity in their diversity.  These are Christian young people who are united in their desire is to serve God and live a life that is pleasing to Him and, at the same time, diverse in that they come from many different countries: Belgium, Holland, the USA, Congo-Brassaville, Nigeria, Hungary, China, India, Ireland and Indonesia.  It will be fascinating to see how God will use them in their own countries once their work or studies are over here in Brussels.  It was a beautiful image of the Body of Christ/the Church as it should be.

After leaving on Sunday afternoon, we stopped at a covered butterfly garden before heading back to Belgium.  And what a spectacular visit that was!  The most gorgeous, exquisite, fragile butterflies I've ever seen!  Even beats the Botanical Gardens in Montreal.  I was amazed at their colours and variety as they flew freely around us, in the midst of gorgeous orchids and tropical plants.  I didn't realize that butterflies could literally eat fresh fruit: there were hanging feeding trays of fresh fruit all over.  I'm sending you via email my web album so that you can enjoy all this beauty too.

What a special guest!

A few weeks ago, my niece Rebecca Klinck visited me - my first overnight guest.  We had a wonderful time together as I showed her "my" Brussels.  We went walking around the old part of town, meandered throught the sereine park of my Commune Ixelles (and sat outside in the sun and had coffee) and visited the Horta House museum.  Of course we ate out and had Belgian dishes and of course, she tried our Belgian beer!  It was the week before Easter, so she came with me to the Passion Week evening services at St. Andrew's and saw where I "work".

Interestingly, this was the first time I had attended evening services every night of the week leading up to Good Friday and Easter.  What an excellent preparation for the Resurrection service on Sunday!  We meditated and reflected on that last week in Jesus' life and the meaning of the Cross, and expressed our gratitude for the death of Christ for the forgiveness of our sins.  Easter Sunday, Resurrection Day, explodes on one with greater power after such a preparation.  Thank-you, Jesus!

May Day

May 1st in Europe is like Labour Day in North America, traditionally a celebration of solidarity among workers and a holiday.

However, here it also officially celebrates the beginning of summer. On May 1st, 1561, King Charles IX of France received a lily-of-the-valley as a lucky charm.  He decided to offer the same each year to the ladies of the court.  At the beginning of the 20th century, it became custom to give a sprig of lily-of-the-valley, a symbol of springtime, on May 1st.

And so I did.  I took a small bouquet and a delicious brioche to some friends' apartment and had breakfast with them :)

... and I followed that lovely beginning of the day with a visit to a show of antique porcelaine and ceramics.  There were exquisite vases, dishes, serving pieces, figurines, crystal bottles and flasks, clocks, urns and much more from many countries in Europe and the East.  The colours and designs, the intricacy and the shapes were candy for the eyes.  I loved it!