One rainy day, my friend Wendy invited me over to her house in Venlo to learn how to blog. Wendy’s blog is wonderful—I love reading it! To me, she’s brave, adventurous, and full of stories that make me wish I had half her energy. She’s an avid walker tackling the Pieterpad https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pieterpad, hopping on trains to her starting point, walking her route for the day, and staying overnight with fellow hikers or biking groups. She meets the most interesting people along the way, and I could sit and listen to her stories for hours.
After our Blogging 101 session, we treated ourselves to a warm ham and cheese toastie and French onion soup, perfect comfort food on a rainy day.
Venlo sits right on the border between the Netherlands and Germany, and I had never set foot in Germany before. Naturally, we had to make my first crossing! We stopped at a rest area, found a “Welcome to Germany” sign, and captured the moment on camera. Bucket list checked!
Next, we drove to the little town of Kaldenkirchen, aiming for a grocery store full of American products. But as often happens on adventures, we got distracted by a thrift store. And oh my—what a treasure trove! We stuffed our bags with finds, delighted not only by the prices but also knowing the money was helping children in need. We’ll definitely be going back there.
A rainy day turned into a small adventure filled with stories, discoveries, and a little shopping magic. Tut tut… looks like rain, but honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Blueberry Pancake Publishing 