A Day at the Beach

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Today is the last day to use our eurrail pass. Though it was quite cloudy and chilly we made plans with the Clasens to meet at the train station in Oostende. We biked to the Leuven train station and managed to catch the 9:35 train (only because it was 15 minutes late otherwise we would have missed it). The train was packed but it was an easy 1.5 hour trip and the kids were all good; they must be getting used to it. We arrived shortly before Zoe and Christian and so we got a cup of coffee. Once together we walked along the street to the beach. Though the town isn’t very pretty but the beach was fairly empty (probably due to the weather) and the kids had so much fun running around and playing in the sand. I forgot how much they love the beach. If it had been a nicer summer I definitely would have taken them myself. We collected a lot of shells while we were there and brought them home to make necklaces. Emma had so much fun playing ball and Frisbee with Jonathan and by the later afternoon the clouds had been replaced by sunshine and it turned out to be beautiful.

After a few hours on the beach (only Abigail was brave enough to actually submerge her whole body in the water) we wandered back towards the train station. But first we stopped for ice cream. Then we stopped for fried fish. Then we stopped for fish soup (this was to take with us for dinner one night this week). Then we stopped for what can only be described as a seafood salad. All along the water are these little stands, each selling pretty much the same things for the same price. After tasting how fresh the fried seafood was I decided we had to partake in one of the baskets of seafood and sauce. It was incredible, perhaps the highlight of the whole day. Then we stopped for more coffee (to take with us on the train). We were able to get a little area for ourselves on the train ride home and had a great time playing trivia games with the kids. Biked home and while Jonathan bathed the girls I made the last of the precious mac and cheese that cousin Eric had brought the girls. They were in bed by 8pm (a record perhaps), pooped after their busy day and excited for their camp field trip to Pirateland on Monday. It was fun being at the beach all day and it was nice to give the kids a trip where there was nothing to do but play.

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Photos

View of Oostende
Emma and I took a long walk out onto a pier and this was the view back at the beach where we spent the day. The town of Oostende isn't exactly beautiful, but luckily we weren't there for touring pretty buildings.

Henry and Eliza
These two spent most of the day digging in the sand.

Busy at the Beach
Jonathan and Emma play catch in the background, while Christian builds a castle and Abigail supervises.

Fish Skins
We weren't quite sure what these were for, but opted to skip them and instead head for the fried seafood shack.

Seafood salad?
This was some of the most deliciously fresh seafood. The pieces of crab and shrimp were huge and the sauce on top was a treat!