Janelle's European Lingerie Tour - Day One

Toto, we're not in Colorado anymore.

Lingerie is a European invention, and as such, most quality lingerie is still designed and manufactured there. Which means, for me to properly do my job at SOL (which for those who don't know me, is Marketing Director) ...sometimes Cindy has to twist my arm and force me to go to Europe.

Yes, I know. Poor me. (Squeal!) But I'm taking YOU all along with me!  I'll be blogging for the next 4 days, reporting back all that I've learned and experienced. 

First stop...Belgium!

Van de Velde is a Belgian company that designs some of our most popular brands. They’ve invited bra fitters from six of their top stores in North America to Ghent, Belgium and on then to Barcelona, Spain. We'll get to meet their staff, tour their design centers, do some sightseeing and…most importantly...meet each other to exchange ideas and enthusiasm about bra fitting.    

Have I mentioned yet how much I really love my job?

That's me in the red glasses - just after we arrived.

Inge van Hecke (front right) is their fabulous Director of North America and our welcoming guide. Hi Inge! The women represent stores from Vancouver, Toronto, South Carolina, Connecticut and, of course, SOL!

Look how hard we are all working! Okay, maybe this was taken during a break.

We dined at the Belga Queen and  I shocked a few of my colleagues by ordering steak tartare. It was a good idea, as it just happens to be a Belgian specialty.

Beautiful, no? I love artful presentation almost as much as food!

See that little thimble in the middle of the meat? It held a tiny serving of a special Belgian gin called “jenever."

  
Read more about it here... but suffice it to say, YUM. 

Ghent is a picturesque medieval city, with cobblestone streets and fantastic architecture.

We learned, though, that the weather is usually gray and rainy, in fact, it rained all summer. Fortunately for Ghent, we North Americans brought along some beautiful Denver blue skies with us and our first day was their warmest October day in NINETY YEARS. Yes, NINETY. We are kind of their heroes now.

See, they even had Guards for us!

The outdoor cafes were packed, canals were full of boats and happy people lined the canals and streets, soaking up the sun.

You are welcome, Ghent. Anytime.

As in many parts of Europe with small streets, the main mode of transportation in Ghent is the bicycle. People of all ages and sizes ride around on bikes of all types... but they're mostly older single speed models.

I love his bell!

And a little rain can’t stop you!  Tie on your scarf and you are ready to go! 

 She just pulled out a scarf and kept pedaling!

Even the public art encouraged a bimodal lifestyle. So cool. I love Belgium!

Jet lag kicking in, time for bed. I can't wait for tomorrow. We're going to tour the Van de Velde factory, see more sights, and eat more heavenly food. 

xoxo,

Janelle