Wanderlust & Lipstick

The mission at Wanderlust & Lipstick is to increase your passion for travel by providing inspiration, tips, and words of wisdom from experienced Wanderlusters who’ve seen it all!

Though geared towards women, the site isn't off limits to men who can also enjoy travel stories of adventures around the globe; join a WanderTour to Bhutan or India; peruse posts from the ever expanding group of WanderBloggers; read travel tips from experienced globetrotters; learn about Wanderlust and Lipstick-recommended travel gear; and salivate over the glorious photos in the WanderGallery submitted by travelers.

Though I didn't win the GRAND PRIZE in their recent writing contest, they did select me as a finalist and asked if they could put
my story on their site. Sure, I would have loved to win a trip to Vietnam, but I am thrilled they will feature one of my favorite journeys deep into the Dordogne. Enjoy reading about it by clicking here.

A version of this story will be featured in my upcoming book Walnut Wine & Truffle Groves, along with a recipe from Daniele.

Music Brussels Schedule

For those interested, the schedule for the February 27th live music event (see previous post) at Churchill's is as follows:

19:00 Intro

20:00 My TV is Dead

21:15 Garner

22:30 the DIPLOMAT

23:45 the Vogues


For more information contact the organizer Suki Jenkins at: archibunny@hotmail.com

Brussels Rocks!

Music lovers...listen up!

www.musicbrussels.com (Site under construction) is having an awesome opening party and you're invited to Churchill's on February 27th beginning at 7 p.m.

Four top Brussels bands are helping to host an event that will set the tone for live music in the Capital. Featured are Garner, the dIPLOMAT, the Vogues, and My TV is Dead.

It's an historic night you'll want to be a part of. Garner has volunteered to release their new CD at the event. the dIPLOMAT would like us to pick their next single, the Vogues are a Brussels classic coming back to their home bar (give them a warm welcome), and My TV is Dead will have a projection show included in their gig. With a name like that, they have to be cool, non?!

If you have a bent for live music, this is a great way to get to know the local music scene. Some of the bands will bring a limited number of free CDs, t-shirts and posters to the first inquiring guests. And the price is just right...Free!

Don't say I didn't warn you. This night will rock well into the wee hours, so keep your Sunday morning plans to a minimum.

For more information join the facebook page of the same name and keep current on the best of Brussels Music. Hopefully the website will be up and running soon.

One Track Trips

Looking of a done in a day outing in Belgium? Make 2010 the year of discovering must see sites of our mini country (in size only) and check out my latest article in B Spirit Magazine to get you started. Set out on some worthy one-track-trips to these great Belgian towns, and let me know how you like them. Happy New Year everyone. Click here to read full article


Photos by Kimberley Lovato
1. Main Square, Cloth Hall and Saint Martin’s Cathedral in Ypres
2. Beach at Knokke

La Saint -Sylvestre

by Kimberley Lovato

-In French, New Year's Eve (31 December) is called la Saint-Sylvestre and is usually celebrated with a feast, called Le Réveillon de Saint-Sylvestre. You know me, I always choose feast over famine and this time of year, while the weather is certainly frightful, the feast is always delightful because Le Réveillon always includes special items like champagne and foie gras---two of my personal favorites. Foie Gras is French party food. America has its pigs in a blanket, the French have their goose liver. Que sera, sera! Whether it's a party for a group of friends or a dinner en famille for three, le Reveillon, like most meals in France, is a well thought out occasion and reason enough to give thanks for the old and raise a glass to the new. I know I have included a picture of a truffle to the right, and they are in season this time of year too! Another reason to celebrate. See my article about truffles in this month's Together Magazine.

At midnight, everyone kisses under the mistletoe (le gui).

On New Year's Day, le Jour de l'An, friends and family often meet for a meal (platters of shell fish are common) and share more kisses. The end of the holiday season is Epiphany, on 6 January, which includes a traditional cake called la galette des rois in which a plastic saint or baby jesus is imbedded. Whoever bites into the poor thing (and hopefully doesn't break a crown) gets to wear a paper crown.

History Lesson: Saint Sylvestre was Pope from 314 to 335 A.D but there is no real link between Saint Sylvestre and the new year; it just so happens that 31 December is his feast day. Pragmatic, non? La Saint-Sylvestre is feminine because it's short for LA fête de Saint-Sylvestre.

Of course it's feminine. All the finer things in life are.


Bonne Année ! Happy New Year!

Saint Vé: A True Brussels Tradition

photos from esnbrussels.youthuniverse.eu
Over the past week, at the intersection of Quatre Bras, where The Ring intersects Avenue Tervuren and all hell breaks loose if there is one minor fender bender or a drop of rain (remember this is Belgium so…there is a lot of rain), I have been baffled by the young people wandering between the cars in what looks like a white lab coat, covered in permanent ink graffiti, and carrying a large beer mug, shaking it at my window in hopes of a few coins.

Since I am a captive at that intersection every day, I often donate my 50 centimes to whatever cause has adopted this as their fund raising strategy. Except for the limping man who is there 360 days a year. I am pretty sure I have given him 50 euros over the course of my 5 years in Brussels, and I am sure he brings in annually more money than I do. The only time he’s not there is when the white lab coats are begging for money. Too much competition I presume.

But why are the lab coats begging for money? It’s not to help the sans abri (homeless) or to buy toys at Christmas for needy children. The white lab coats are inhabited by students of the Université Libre de Bruxelles/Vrije Universiteit Brussel (remember we have to have two names for everything in Brussels) and therefore the money is for the obvious…beer.

Yes, November 20th is the day during which the two biggest universities of Brussels - ULB & VUB - celebrate their common founder, Pierre-Théodore Verhaegen. In local parlance, this day is referred to as 'Saint Vé'. At the founding, in 1834-ish, there was only one university, but it split in 1970 because, well, that’s how Belgium manages the language divide…by dividing it; The big red line down the center of the back seat that separates one side from the other but still forces each passenger to occupy the same space and breathe the same air on the long road trip.

Saint Vé is a day off for more than 20,000 students in Brussels, who take to the streets in a carnavalesque scene. Most student groups rent large trucks, which they decorate in accordance with the year's theme and fill with a large number of kegs and blaring music. The students first meet at the Sablon and after several hours, the trucks start to move towards the Bourse (Brussels Stock Exchange) on Boulevard Anspach. This takes several hours as well, as the trucks move only at a walking speed and are usually stopped by students surrounding them and on the road. Beer continues to be served while the trucks are in motion. Needless to say, traffic is a nightmare. Eventually, the students disperse, likely to local bars, but reconvene at night at the ULB's Solbosch campus, where the celebration continues before the long procession towards Verhaegen's tomb and monument ensues, and more drinking, of course.

My 50 centimes well spent, I think.

Woman On The Road

Here is a great interview about a brave women and personal friend, Wilna Wilkinson, who took on the Camino de Santiago de Compostella in the dead of winter, on a pilgrimage to support her friend who had been diagnosed with cancer. Her book
"The Way Of Stars And Stones" recounts the trek with great humor and insight and is a must read for any women, person, or
friend looking for the courage to set out on one of life's tough journeys. Buon Camino.
CLICK HERE to read interview.

A Brussels Landmark Reopens!

The famous Chalet Robinson has reopened in Brussels' Bois de la Cambre!

Planted on Robinson island in the middle of Brussels' Bois de la Cambre (Brussels' version of Central Park) with a 'boat' (more like a moving pier) to take patrons across the pond, the Chalet Robinson has reopened a few weeks ago with great fanfare and
after a decade of anticipation from long time Brussels residents.

Built in 1877, destroyed by a fire in 1897, rebuilt in 1924, and consumed again flames in 1991, this local landmark reopened with a modern and stylish renovation inside, and gorgeous surrounds outside, still maintaining the mountain chalet look and parklike grounds that charmed residents and visitors for over a century.

Complete with bar and restaurant, after dinner lounge, large outdoor terrace with sun chairs (optimistic non?), and rentable row boats, this out-of-the-ordinary venue is popular for events and lunches with fabulous friends, and is
sure climb to the top of Brussels' "best" lists in no time.

Personally, I like the 'Americana' themed interior. Why not?! A little slice of home in Brussels is something I like from time to time.

In Flanders' Fields

Resilience & Remembrance
By Kimberley Lovato

If you haven't visited the town of Ypres (Iepers) in Flanders, you should. At least once. And with Remembrance Day (Armistice Day, Veterans Day) just around the corner on 11 November, why not now? It's only a little over an hour's drive from Brussels, or about the same train ride. I went this weekend and took my daughter who hopefully will never know the ugliness of war. But it's important not to forget the sacrifices made by soldiers past and present, as well as take the opportunity to appreciate the history that is in our own back yard.

Ypres occupied a strategic position during World War I because it stood in the path of Germany's planned sweep across Belgium and into France from the north. The neutrality of Belgium was guaranteed by Britain, and Germany's invasion of Belgium brought the British Empire into the war. Ypres these days is called the "city of peace" and maintains a close friendship with another town on which war had a profound impact: Hiroshima. Though oceans and decades apart, both cities witnessed warfare at its worst: Ypres was one of the first places where chemical warfare was used, while Hiroshima suffered after the debut of the atomic bomb. The city governments of Ypres and Hiroshima advocate for cities never to be targets again and campaign for the abolition of nuclear weapons.

The Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres, a triumphal arch and gateway into the city center, commemorates those soldiers of the British Commonwealth who fell in the Ypres Salient during the First World War, before 16 August 1917, and who have no known grave. From October 1914, British and Commonwealth troops began to march East through the Menin gateway from the city of Ypres onto the Menin Road and into the battlefields. It's a fitting location for this memorial gate under which over 58,000 names of soldiers, who never returned and were never found, are etched in stone.

Most touching is the 8 p.m. Last Post. Bring tissues because you'll ball like a baby. Every evening since 1928, at precisely 8pm, traffic around the Menin Gate Memorial is stopped while the Last Post is sounded by buglers from the local fire brigade. The ceremony was prohibited by occupying German forces during WWII, but it was resumed on the very day of liberation — 6 September 1944.

Tours of surrounding battlefields are offered in town, as well as to nearby cemeteries. www.Overthetoptours.be

Why the poppy?

Flanders is the name of the whole western part of Belgium and it saw some of the fiercest fighting in WWI. The area was completely devastated, razed beyond recognition. Buildings, roads, trees, and natural life simply vanished, leaving only muddy terrain, the graves of men, and the living men who fought there. Only one other living thing survived: The poppy. Poppies flower in uprooted and disturbed soil. Disturbed is an understatement. A Canadian doctor, John McCrae, wrote the now famous poem In Flanders' Fields, about the poppies.

I can only imagine he was inspired by the beauty of these delicate flowers, brave like the soldiers who dared to stand where others had died. The poppies, blood-red, are so symbolic to me of the life lost here. But most astonishing, however, is the resilience of these blooms to grow anew in such horrific surroundings. Is there anything that could symbolize hope more than these flowers? It's fitting then that the poppy became the symbol the world over of soldiers who have died in battle, of remembering their sacrifice, and of hope.

Today, a poppy is worn in remembrance for two weeks before 11 November, or sometimes, for the whole month of November.

I bought a few pins and will wear them proudly and with great appreciation for those who have died in battles around the world. And equally as important, in thanks to all those soldiers at war today. I hope you come home soon.

Fry Master

Photos from Michel Mes @ belgianfries.com

Follow Your Fry
By Kimberley Lovato

While Belgium has much to offer visitors and residents alike, the country is known the world over for one thing in particular: French Fries (Frites in French). Michel Mes, self-proclaimed “Missionary of the Belgian Fries”, started his popular website Belgianfries.com back in 1995. He now receives at least 10 emails a day from inquiring fans, and travels the world promoting franchise opportunities, while spreading the word about the true Belgian fry, proper tools and techniques, and most importantly, how best to eat them.

Your site, Belgianfries.com is an homage to Belgian Fries. What prompted this endeavor?

As an IT guy some 15- years ago when the internet was opened for the big public consumption, I needed a subject to practice the new HTML programming language. I chose "The Secret Recipe for Belgian Fries". I thought it would be a good idea to promote this great Belgian food and let the world know where “French” fries really come from. It was an instant success. Everything grew out of proportion from then on.

What is the secret to making the best Belgian fry?

The trick is very simple: Belgian fries are double-fried. First there is the cooking process, then the fries need to cool down and finally, just before serving, they are fried again to make them crispy and golden brown. Of course, the correct type of potatoes is very important, as is the choice of frying oil. Fries should always be fried in animal fat. In Belgium it used to be a mixture of horse and ox fat. These days most shops will use an ox fat and vegetable oil mixture. Details on how to do this at home are on my website.

Do you use a recipe?

I have no recipe. I use the 2-stage frying method, but as potatoes are a
"living" raw material (i.e. their structure changes throughout the season)
you need some experience to cook them to perfection. It is different every
time, you need to watch and listen, especially during the first frying.
It is very hard to explain but practice makes perfect.

What is the biggest mistake people make when trying to recreate
the Belgian fry?

Don't put too many raw potatoes strips into the fryer for the first frying!
The temperature of the oil will drop down dramatically, the water in the
potatoes will not escape quickly enough and thus the result will be too
greasy. For a perfect final result you need to pay close attention to the
first frying. The second frying will not correct any mistakes made earlier.

How should Belgian fries be served and with what kind of sauce
do you prefer?

I never eat sauce with my fries. Good Belgian fries will have a lot of
taste on their own. Don't spoil it with sauce. A bit of salt is ok. And please serve
in a paper cone. But if I need to make a choice I would go for mayonnaise
(home made of course) or a spicy sauce like Banzai.

Do you have a favorite location in Brussels to eat fries?

Chez Martin (Place Saint-Josse). He used to run a very nice looking stand next to the church
but had to move recently to somewhere else in the area of the Rue des Deux Eglises. A lot of
tourists know Chez Antoine (Place Jourdan) but I don't like their fries. The toll of their success I guess.

Does it bother you that they Belgian fries are referred to as “French”?

Not at all, because it is a totally different product. Once more, after the
chocolate, pralines, and a lot of other products, the term "Belgian" stands
for freshness and quality. Also, the term “French” fries does not link to the French people or
country. It is derived from the old English verb "to french" Originally they were called "frenched fried potatoes".

How often do you eat frites?

Maybe two times a month. You should never exaggerate the
good things in life!

Rouge Tomate New York Is Now A Star

Only open 11 months, the New York branch of the Belgian-owned restaurant Rouge Tomate has been awarded a Michelin-Star this week! Bravo! CEO Emmanuel Verstraeten opened the original Rouge Tomate in his native Brussels in 2001 in a townhouse along the fashionable Avenue Louise. Rouge Tomate New York opened in October 2008.

Looking For Something To Do This Fall?

What's On In Brussels This Fall? CLICK HERE

and to find an agenda's worth of activities for any culture vulture in Belgium.