A few weeks ago, E. and I headed to France for a bit of holiday time. The purpose of the visit was a little family gathering (something my dad and his sisters try to organise once a year). This year, it was held at my aunt's house in Brittany. Because we were driving up there the day before with my family, we thought we may as well drive a bit further and pop by Normandy for an afternoon visit of the Mont Saint Michel. It is one of France's most famous landmarks and I had never had the occasion to see it before.
I was really impressed by it, how it stood beautifully away from the coast on the sand waiting for the tide to bring the sea back around it. The day was amazingly sunny and hot but once you go inside the abbey, you cool down instantly.

A few months ago, our lovely Australian friends suggested we organise a weekend away together before their visa ended and they had to go back Down Under. After figuring out what would work or what wouldn't (it was planned for the August bank holiday weekend, at the height of Summer holidays in most European cities), we opted for a long weekend in Brussels in Belgium, city that none of us had visited before.
We settled on dates and accommodation, and then met at our hotel on a lovely Saturday morning (E. and I had flown over the day before so had had time to walk around and take notes). The sun was shining for the entire weekend, everybody was relaxed, happy and really well fed. What could you ask more of a mini holiday with great friends!
There was some sightseeing but food was definitely a very big part of our weekend. Brussels is really a perfect city for both of those things!