Auxiliary Water Heater

We have abundant hot water in our apartment at all of the faucets, and in the winter our apartment (like most (all?) other apartments in Moscow) is heated with hot water registers.  However, sometime in the spring or early summer ( depending on your location) the hot water is turned off for about one and a half weeks for maintenance.  Some people have auxiliary hot water heaters, some plan to spend their time elsewhere, some heat water for bathing, some visit friends to borrow a shower.  Our apartment was not equipped with an auxiliary hot water heater, we had no travel plans, to bathe all of us I'd have to heat a lot of water and the friends that we know well enough to borrow a shower were on the same hot water turnoff schedule as we were.  Thankfully a auxiliary hot water heater and the installation was a reasonable expense and was quickly accomplished.  We appreciate the extra effort by R's translator to help him shop for said heater and to arrange delivery and installation AND to be here when it was installed to translate its use for me.  It has been in use for nearly a week now and I must say it works very well.  Again, I was reminded of how many things we take for granted and how appreciative I am for hot tap water. 

R is Home and He brought the Loot!

The Antwerp Hand, the Cathedral and "Noses"

He found this bell to add to my collection.

At both of our dinners out, as a last course, they served coffee, tea and candies.  On the candy plate were these purple cone shaped candies.  The Flemish pharma rep explained that they are called cuberdons or purple noses and they originate in Ghent.  According to tradition a pharmacist was making cough syrup and ended up with these delightful confections instead. . .

_Back in the USSR_, My Apologies to the Beatles and to Russia!

Sheremetyevo Airport

Not sure what this sign means, I jokingly told R it meant "No Transformers"

We had a smooth flight, no challenges leaving Belgium or entering Russia.  R, the driver, picked us up at the airport and brought us to our apartment, then took D and her son W home to their apartment.  Y, the nanny, left and I gave the children their postcards and pencils from Belgium.  We looked at the pictures I took in Belgium and headed to bed.  R will be home Thursday night.     

In the Air

In the Airport

R saw this famous sculpture when they briefly toured Brussels.

Our Plane

On the Way to the Airport

Windmills

Poppies

Cool Bridge

Brussels to Washington

Brussels Airport "Welcome to Europe"

Dinner at Potiron in Kasterlee Belgium

We had pork, as appetizer and main course, from one of the farms that R, A and the pharma reps visited for dinner.  It was delicious, as was the dessert!  And after the dessert came the coffee, tea and candies.  We ate outside on the deck on another delightfully warm evening.