Enjoying some winter wonders in Brussels… COMPLETED - Page 5 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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We made our way out of the square through a different exit, which thankfully was a lot less crowded. On the way, we found these odd creations… we couldn’t quite work out what they were decorated with and what it was supposed to show.
The Christmas decorations around here were lovely…
Classic!
We made our way back to the Bourse, which was now beautifully illuminated…
… and they were even doing a light show on the St. Nicholas church too…
I’d spotted a Brussels Christmas decoration that I liked earlier, so we headed back there. My goodness, we had a group of three very rude British women who pushed their way to the front, in front of us, as we were patiently waiting for her to finish a sale with someone else. I figured they’d be buying something, but they picked up a few things, put them back and then went off. Finally, we got what we wanted – a red ornament of the Grand Place.
That done, we made our way through the chaos of the rest of the Christmas market, which was still just as crowded as earlier, then we were back on the main road, with their Christmas decorations:
We poked our head inside one of the shopping malls here, and it was very impressive.
We made our way back to the hotel, and headed back to the room for a break. Eventually, we knew we had to venture out again, if we wanted to see the sound and light show at the Grand Place. We headed down just before 7:00pm, and I suggested that we book a table at the Café Metropole, which is part of the hotel, as it did seem to be very busy. Mark went to do that, while I went to make a note of where the souvenir shop was that sold the cow parade stuff.
I also took the opportunity to get some more photos of the lobby…
… and of their Christmas display:
We headed out, and took a different route, one that took us past the magnificent Theatre Royal de la Monnaie and the skating rink outside it:
We wandered through some of the city’s shopping and dining areas:
On the way, I found a soap shop that sold soap from Marseilles. Trust me, this is the best soap ever. We got some soap in Marseilles when our cruise stopped there in 2007, and it lasted years (and before anyone says anything, it’s not because we don’t use it! ) – it’s because it’s so solid. We bought some more at the Christmas market in Paris last December, and now there was a whole shop of it. I was good and only bought a few bars that came to €12.50 ($15) and went to pay using my credit card, but there’s a minimum spend of €20 ($25)here. Fortunately Mark came to my rescue with some cash, but we definitely need to get some cash out – and soon.
We did find a cash machine, but the line for it was about 10 people deep, so we gave up on that idea. Instead, we headed into Galeries St. Hubert, Europe’s first shopping arcade, which was opened by King Leopold I of Belgium back in 1847. It’s certainly spectacular.
Those poor bound-up figures-- the snowman and penguin. I'd love to know what that signifies as it looks like they're being tortured! The city looks beautiful at night, especially with the holiday decorations.
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Oh wow, it looks fantastic at night! Manneken frite....
And the pirate cow!!! He has a peg leg!!! That's hilarious!!!
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Saturday 6 December – part nine: a magical sound and light show
We headed out of there, and made our way over to the Grand Place, which looked beautiful at night:
Mark spotted the statue of Everard t’Serclaes – remember him? He’s the guy who was murdered in the 15th century and now immortalised in a bronze statue at the base of this building and apparently if you touch him, it’s good luck. Well, all I can say is a) I wasn’t about to, as I dread to think how many germs there are on that thing and b) it’s darned difficult to get a photo of it when all anyone wants to do is touch it.
When we walked back into the Grand Place, we were struck by how bright the moon was tonight.
We didn’t have long to wait until the sound and light show started. It lasted 15 minutes, and it was very cool, although we didn’t recognise any of the music. There was one part where the lights moved so fast that it looked as if the buildings themselves were moving, and it messed with both of our heads, so we had to turn away at that point. Apart from that, it was exceptionally good, and it was really wonderful to see the beautiful buildings in this gorgeous square illuminated in such a stunning way. It felt so magical.
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Great touring of Brussels along with some special treats like the parade and macaroons. 
they picked up a few things, put them back and then went off. 
Finally, we got what we wanted – a red ornament of the Grand Place. 
) – it’s because it’s so solid. We bought some more at the Christmas market in Paris last December, and now there was a whole shop of it. I was good and only bought a few bars that came to €12.50 ($15) and went to pay using my credit card, but 
He has a peg leg!!! That's hilarious!!! 
and b) it’s darned difficult to get a photo of it when all anyone wants to do is touch it. 
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