ARRIVED IN HURGHADA (Egypt)

On Thursday morning my mobile woke me up at 4 am ! Suitcase and everything was ready, so together with Dominique, Mr. G. picked up Nicole and drove us to the airport. We left a cold Brussels (6 °C) behind us and arrived 4 h later in Luxor and then finally at 3 pm in Hurghada.

Going through the passport control is a real adventure and you have to be armed with a lot of patience and humor ! Hundreds of tourists waited to get one stamp in their visa, and there was only one counter open, with one working man, who stamped and stamped and stamped and I am sure he will continue stamping while he is sleeping in his bed. Behind him were two "controllers" who chatted and chatted loud about something very interesting and they laughed they were probably talking about their women or maybe the impatient tourists. None of them had the idea to open another counter. It took about an hour just to get the stamp with a big smile ! People are very friendly !

The bus which took us to our hotel was already there, we were welcomed and got a nice room, one for Dominique and me and one for Nicole. We were very tired unpacked our suitcases, had an apperitif and then went for supper. Nothing had changed, the restaurant was still so beautiful and we had a lovely dinner. After that we dropped into our beds ! Unfortunately a mosquito had decided to share the room with us, so we woke up several times because this friendly thing had stung us and it itched despite the fact that we had put a special product on our arms but we had forgotten our fingers ! This night we will pay more attention that none comes in !

In the morning when I woke up I had this wonderful view right out of my bed.



I went on the balcony and had my first cup of coffee ! What a pleasure it was 7.30 am and already 23°C ! After a very good breakfast we started our "work" at the beach at 9 am. The sun rises so early
and sunset is already around 4.30 pm so it's better to start the day early morning and go early to bed !



Here we are observing the tourists ! Nothing escapes our eagle eyes ! This year there are a lot of English an German people, less Russians and less other Eastern country tourists. The seawater is delicious, warm and blue and full of tiny little fishes. It's a pleasure to swim in there as the salty water carries you so that you just lay down and move a bit. In the afternoon we had 28°C !

There is also a restaurant at the beach where we had a cold lunch. Vegetable salads, cheese, local cold things but you also could  have a warm meal. But twice a warm meal per day is too much.

Dominique and Nicole did Acqua Gym, tried out belly dancing and gymnastic. I was too lazy and chatted with English people.

After lunch we lay there and relaxed before I went back to the room to "computer" a bit,  I had enough sun for the first day  !






People had fun at the beach, the young man "buried" his girlfriend and decorated her as camel !



The sea is so, clean and clear and has a whole blue based color shape.

This was our first day !

For those who are worried about me being in Egypt I can only say here at the Red Sea there is nothing. The people are adorable, very friendly and helpful. We are far away from Cairo (500 km) where the troubles are.

FRIDAY's FAVE FIVE

more participants at Susanne at Living to tell the Story.

1. The week was very short. My legs and back were hurting a little from our 2 days painting exposition where I was on my feet almost the whole day. But after Aqua gym, I felt "normal" again.

Ilona and Chantal came in the afternoon to pick up their paintings which I had taken home. Good opportunity to have a little chat and a cup of tea together.

2. I went to my favorite deep frozen food store (I mean the food is frozen not the store) and bought Italian plates for the whole time I am gone on holidays !

3. and that's what I did last, preparing computer staff and checking my summer clothes and then packing my suitcase.



So when you read this I am probably laying at the beach, warming up my old bones together with my friends Dominique and Nicole. (unless of course, the plane falls on the head of somebody or into the sea) !
This post is pre-scheduled, if I can I will add some pictures it depends on time and internet connections.

BATHE IN WINTER !

more participants at Jenny Matlock's Alphabet Thursday
 

For the next 12 days I will be busy with bathing and swimming in the Red Sea in Egypt ! But I certainly will find some time for blogging too ! When the sun disappeares and we will have the whole evening to do what we want, watching a show, or just playing cards or whatever, then I have time. We will be three friends needing some rest and sunshine !

From today on I will try to post every day a sort of diary and comment depending on time and Internet connections ! 

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

more participants here

A SCAFFOLDING AS X-MAS TREE IN BRUSSELS

Each year on the Grand' Place in Brussels, a beautiful Christmas tree is erected with lights and Christmas decorations. Usually the day where the tree arrives, people are gathered there just to watch how the huge tree will be put up. For years the tree was a gift from Finland and later it came from the Belgian Ardennes.



Like this one. In the evenings there is a sound and light show and with the old buildings the place looks very christmassy and young and old enjoy it very much.

However this year, the City of Brussels (I wonder who had this "glorious" idea) is installing an electronic Christmas tree at the Grand-Place: the 'Xmas 3' ! This awful looking "Christmas tree"??? looks like a metallic scaffolding and you need to have a lot of phantasy to imagine it as even only a tree, not to speak about a Christmas tree ! 

This 'Xmas 3' horror is a 24 meter high monumental electronic thing, made of steel, covered with wood and a screen. For 4 euros, visitors can climb the installation during the day. The collected money of these visits will go to an organization which helps the homeless, which at least is a Christmas gesture !

When I arrived at the Grand'Place, I almost jumped out of my shoes !



I saw this, which reminded me of a scaffold ready to hold up a building !



The white boxes are supposed to be the Christmas light bulbs !



You really get a christmassy disgusted feeling when you see the foot of the so said tree !



I walked several times around this "beauty" trying to see a tree in it but the more I looked the more I got furious !



What has this to do with Christmas ??



If they want to built modern art scaffoldings, they should do it on roundabouts but not putting such a thing in the middle of an historic place !







There is not much more to say, now this thing stands up, protesting failed, apparently Belgium has no economical crisis, because this beauty only costs around 45.000 € (58.300 $ !) that's at least what I have been told by other shocked Belgians !

Now maybe that some people like this kind of "Christmas tree". I prefer the traditional one, cut in the woods and which have this special Christmas smell. 

WHAT DID YOU DO THIS WEEKEND ?

Helps you to remember what you have done on the weekend of November 24. If you participate please put the little logo on the top of your post and leave your link.

It often happens that I have nothing special to do during the weekend, but this time it was a very busy one !

We had our yearly painting Exposition in the party hall of the Waterloo retirement home.



When the paintings were all hanged up, we started with the flower arrangements which Annie had made herself at home and her husband helped to carry all these pots and baskets and we put them on the table.
Here I am with my accessoires and then posing in front of my paintings, except the clown which was painted by Annie. (in the blue pullover)



We put the flower pots and baskets and my little things on the tables. It looked very nice.

In the evening I went to the theatre together with Dominique and Nicole as we have a season ticket and it's once a months



We first had our supper in the Theatre's restaurant, which is very cosy and then crossed the court of this old farm to the entrance of the theatre.



Three cats watched over the spectators presenting their tickets.



The play was "La Dame en noir" The woman in black (story here) by Suzan Hill. It was a real thriller only performed by two actors  and very poor decor ! Two chairs a ladder, an old desk and a wooden trunk with secret papers in it. It was amazing, how they played sitting in the train or carriage with the appropriate sound and the movements on their chairs, and I had to laugh when I saw the poor young notary in a bedsheet which represented mist !

The play had started in London's West End in 1989 and is still being performed there, becoming the second longest-running non-musical play in the history of the West End, after "The Mousetrap. We enjoyed the play very much.

The opening of our Exposition went very well.



The entrance to the Exposition hall, leads through the reception hall of the retirement home.



We were ready for our guests with salty and sweet goodies, champagne and juices.

The next day we opened again at 11 pm and slowly, slowly people started to arrive.



In the afternoon, I thought my head would explode, from all this talking and explaining but it was a lot of fun too. At 5 pm I collected all my decorations and my paintings and dispeared discretely. I was so tired from being there the whole day together with two other volunteers, while the others only came for an hour or two. I thought they also could work a bit. There are always some people in a group who are very talented to do the less possible !

When I came home Mr. G. was in Bresil to watch the Formular 1 and I rested my burning feet and after a movie on TV went to bed early.

BUSY, BUSY, BUSY .....

Busy weekend ! We have our yearly painting exposition. As you can imagine the three cats but not the clown are my "masterpieces" !