Brother Time

My brother in the Louvre 

Things have been slow lately. And then, for a week, things got crazy. Meet my older brother, Christopher. My only brother, in fact. He came to Brussels to visit me this month. Playing host in my tiny studio apartment has its challenges. Its just big enough for one; throw another person into the mix and it gets crowded faster than you can say "bonjour" (and I have thus demonstrated my extent of French).

But we didn't deal with that till a few days later. Within a few hours of him landing, we were whisked off Paris. My first train ride, and soon to be my primary form of travel (more on that later). Why did we go to Paris, you ask? Family, and this time more than just my aunt and uncle. My grandparents, who are missionaries in the Philippines were visiting as well. It was like a mini family reunion for those of us living internationally.

Olivia and Christopher

This was also Christopher's first time seeing cousin Olivia in person. And like with me, she took too him very quickly, as did Elena (whom we have seen a few times by now). They like having big cousins they can climb on. Its like a living interactive jungle gym.

And of course, being in Paris, we have to see some the the sights. I do have to say, Paris is a beautiful city. I understand why films such as Paris, Je T'aime are made. Yet photo nor motion picture can capture its magnificence.

the line.

Same goes for the Louvre. We waited for about 2 hours in line to get our tickets...and that's because they were fast tracking tour groups and museum pass holders. Anyway, you could get lost in there and spend a day in only one section of the museum. Now the Mona Lisa, totally over rated, especially with this massive last supper painting on the opposite wall. Now that is impressive!

And as quickly as we got there, it was time to depart. They were off to Spain, and it was time for us to return to Brussels.

Brussels has a charm all its own. For me, it has kind of become home. But it has this smaller, more rustic feel in comparison to Paris' modern magnificence. We walked... a lot. I'm guessing about 20 miles in 4 days. Everything is within walking distance to the Grand Place, which is roughly a 2 mile walk from where I live. Old churches, the comic strip museum, manneken pis, etc. Fyi, comic books are serious business here and a very different than American and Japanese comics. It is an art form. Way more than just Tin Tin and Smurfs. And hard to find/expensive back in the US.

But over all, the best part was spending time with my brother. We never really talk much when we see each other. He has always been quiet with me. We mostly ate junk food and watched stuff off my Raspberry Pi. It was kind of weird having my brother here. Family, with a few exceptions, is just so separate from this part of my life. I think it was be even more peculiar to see any of my state side friends here.

So now what? After finally recovering and cleaning, its back to work as usual. Still tweaking SFC BRU and the motion graphics. There is no real deadline, so we have the time to get this right. I am currently working on getting some other stories in Italy! I have been talking to the guy who oversees a lot of the AG international churches here in Europe. I am already going to be down that way for All Europe Retreat, so why not float around a bit? Please keep that in your prayers.

I will also have a new vlog up come September. Hopefully I will have a few more updates before then. in the mean time, check out some of the previous vlogs (1, 2, 3, 4) and my photography: Vagabond Tales and The Street Photography Experiment

For now, more pictures: