The Land of Milk and Honey

Do you use Twitter? I DO, of late. I don't really know why, but I think it's a fun. Fun is just about as lame as adjectives get, but I'm resorting to it. Anyway, as my tweet from April 16 at 4:42pm (and subsequent tweet six minutes later, unbeknownst to me) reads: "It's raining in Belgium. No lie." Not that you need proof, but here's a picture from my charming bed and breakfast's window outside of Maastricht, Belgium.I just Googled it, and the "land of milk and honey" is actually a Biblical reference to Israel, However, I use it to describe places that I think of fondly. Belgium doesn't exactly pop to the top of that list, as much as Hawaii or rural Vermont might, but perhaps that's the irony that makes me chuckle. Alternatively maybe the title of this blog entry should have read, "The Land of Rice Cakes and Dirty Roads." Rice cakes are fairly easy to describe, so I'll do so first. Please don't think of those desert-dry perfectly circular rice cakes made of popcorn... instead think of heaven. These Belgian rice cakes are like mini custard pies, I'm sure with bountiful egg, sugar, and rice. Or protein, simple carb, and complex carb. Perfect. Here's a fresh batch just out of the kitchen. The picture doesn't give justice to just how delicious these are, since they basically look like English muffin pizzas, so you'll either have to trust me that they're wonderful or hop on over to Belgium and try one yourself.As for dirt roads: BELGIAN BIKE RACE and CLEANLINESS are two entities very foreign to one another. Be it Roubaix, Flanders, a cross race, or what have you, these two do not go hand in hand. I'm stating the obvious here, so assuming you know a thing or two about bike racing, this information is pretty much a given. Kind of like, "a bike has two wheels." And in similar fashion to how this blog entry started, I'll provide you with a picture as proof of this thesis. I give unto you exhibit A:That's my face. Please note the artistic star-like pattern on my forehead where my helmet sits, and of even greater aesthetic pleasure is my uni-brow, which I have dubbed a "dirt-i-brow." It's going to be sooooo in for 2010!Given that there's not much substance to this blog just yet, I'll throw in that I am on the comeback trail from my busted wing at Tour of CA. After two successful races in the states - a second place and a victory, I finished a pair of European 200+km races of the season, in the Ronde van Drenthe in Holland and GP Schildeprijs in Belgium. I'm pleased with my performances; namely, I'm happy to have contributed to the cause in both races by rotating the front, moving guys around, fetching bottles, jumping in  breakaways, I'm also happy to have finished in the front group both days, and I'm happy that Dom was able to fetch some fine finishes, with a 5th and a 3rd. Both very most excellent.Surely the mythical land of milk and honey is also a land where beer flows like wine and the women instinctively flock like the salmon of Capistrano. Similarly in this utopia, there are three bike lanes with two designated to bicycles and just one for cars and trucks. Yes, my friends, I'm talking about a place called MAAAAAAAaaaaaastricht. See for yourself...I've never witnessed such a lovely sight! Perhaps more impressively, this is seemingly the norm in this neck of the woods, since every other road has this trifecta coming together in perfect harmony.And with that said, it's bedtime and Amstel Gold first thing tomorrow. Neato.