After Lille, we took the train to Belgium. Bruges first, then a day in Brussels before flying home. Bruges is the prettiest place I have ever been, so this one is mostly photos.

Bruges: August 14 - August 15, 2026

My favorite photo from Bruges. It’s also the background of this page.

From the water.

The Markt, the main square in Bruges. The statue in the middle is Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck, who led the 1302 Bruges Matins uprising and the Battle of the Golden Spurs against French rule.

JP and me at the Belfry of Bruges.

Me looking cute on a bridge.

Boniface Bridge (Bonifaciusbrug), with the Church of Our Lady in the background. Also proof that JP improved his skills at taking my picture on this trip.

Every street looks like this.

Café Vlissinghe. Established in 1515, it’s recognized as the oldest continuously running café and pub in the city. We unfortunately did not get to go.

Blinde-Ezelstraat, which translates to Blind Donkey Street. It’s named after a medieval inn that once stood nearby.

Canal boat tour

Church of Our Lady (Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk)

A memorial on the wall, skeletons and all.

Virgin and Child, inscribed with Dutch text reading “H.-Maria Voorspreekster van den vrede, bid voor ons” (Holy Mary, Intercessor of Peace, pray for us).

Michelangelo’s Madonna and Child, finished around 1504. It’s the only sculpture of his that left Italy during his lifetime.

St. Magdalene’s Church (Heilige Magdalenakerk)

There was a swing in the middle of the church, so obviously I sat on it.

Halve Maan Brewery (Huisbrouwerij De Halve Maan)

The view from the roof.

They mean it.

The reward.

Basilica of the Holy Blood (Heilig-Bloedbasiliek)

On Burg Square.

The upper chapel.

Brussels

August 16, 2026

One day in Brussels before we flew home.

This was right after I landed. I tried to power through the fatigue and we walked around Brussels a bit. You can see how tired I am just looking at this waffle.

Royal Palace of Brussels

This was the last day the Royal Palace was open to the public for the year. It had just reopened after two years of renovations.

I spent most of the visit looking up.

Church of Our Lady of Victories at the Sablon (Église Notre-Dame du Sablon).

Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium

Old Masters at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts.

Palace of the Count of Flanders (Palais du comte de Flandre).

That’s the end of Eurotrip 2026. Thanks for coming along.

August 9 - August 13, 2026

The street right outside our hotel, Hotel Maison Louise, in Vieux-Lille.

Méert, open since 1677.

The Méert gaufre, on the menu since 1849. It looks like a stroopwafel but it’s a soft brioche-style waffle filled with Madagascar vanilla paste.

Opéra de Lille.

The belfry of the Chambre de Commerce. It’s in the background of half my photos.

My favorite photo from the trip. The belfry over the Grand Place, on film. It’s also the background of this page.

Rue de la Monnaie, and the building with the sun on it. Both on film.

L’Ogre. Didn’t get to go, but next time.

I thought this was the smallest house in Lille until I googled it while putting this together. It’s actually a passage through to the Place du Lion d’Or, and it’s been there since the Middle Ages.

The Vieille Bourse, built in 1623. Merchants did their trading here. Now it’s a secondhand book market.

Notre-Dame-de-la-Treille Cathedral

Église Saint-Maurice

Dinner at Brasserie Campion. Steak with béarnaise, fries, and an espresso martini. Not pictured: the homemade vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce I devoured before taking a picture.

Dinner at La Bellezza with JP’s new work friend Dragos and his wife Jennifer.

JP and Dragos. Me and Jennifer.

Dinner at L’Abbaye. I had the Flemish carbonnade. It tasted just like my grandma’s beef stew, so I cried.

P’tite Poutine. Didn’t go in, but I figured my Canadian family would get a kick out of it.

The view from where we watched the eclipse, on film.

After the eclipse we went to Le Toit-Terrasse, the hotel’s little rooftop bar. This was the view.

Pharmacy haul number 1…

Roubaix

La Piscine Musée. A former public swimming pool built between 1927 and 1932 in an Art Deco style, now a museum.

The main room, with the pool in the middle and sculptures all around.

The death of Mary Magdalene.

For my friend McKenzie, whose dog Lewis looks exactly like this.

Inside La Piscine, on film.

Part 2: Postcards from Bruges and Brussels.

That is the exact opposite of what we did. We took our happy asses to Costa Rica. Together, we had delectable dishes for every meal, watched stunning sunsets, and truly connected with one another in a way I didn’t anticipate.

The Litson team & our plus ones at a Nosara mountaintop restaurant called Coyol. Approximately 1,269 feet up!

Litson brought the majority of the team and our plus ones to Nosara. I believe the actual count was 30 of us. Not only did I have my husband James with me, but also my built-in best friend and cousin, Laney. Her husband is a co-founding partner at the firm.

Laney captured this beautiful aerial shot of Nosara in her “puddle jumper” plane on the way back to the Liberia Airport.

Litson group on top of the mountain at Coyol.

Even though we had a jam-packed itinerary, the relaxed lifestyle was infectious. The locals call it “Tico time,” which basically just means they will get to their scheduled events whenever they feel like it. They define their lives not by deadlines and urgency, but by ease and peace. Did I mention we’re a small boutique law firm with a lot of competitive, high-performing litigators and Type-A personalities?

“Breathe, open your eyes… stop for a moment. Life is happening right now!”

The Litson team at sunset.

I went back and forth on how best to capture the week. I danced the line of living in the moment and making sure I didn’t forget the little things. And of course, I battled the ever-present urge to take pictures and videos to share online. I bought a small journal to write down special moments. Laney didn’t miss the opportunity to get a dig in on this one: “Oh, you wanna wite down youw wittle feewings?” Yeah, I did! And my favorite moment of the trip was with her!

I’m just going to wing this post. No AI assistance here, folks.

Laney and I at sunset at Playa Guiones beach. Some of the team were wrapping up a surf sesh as the sun was setting.

The picture above is from the day I made my favorite memories. Laney and I wanted to see some surfers and also catch another mind-boggling sunset. It was Laney’s last night (she left early) and we just ~leaned in~ to the moment. We swam in the ocean—something I don’t typically do—just laughing as the sun was setting. The waves assaulted us when we forgot to go under them. We are typically Gulf Coasters, so we’re used to jumping any waves. We tried to body surf like we did when we were kids. It was just such a pure moment of child-like fun. I felt so lucky to experience it with Laney.

Speaking of surfing, did I mention—ok psych! I definitely did not surf. But I did pose for a picture like I did. James managed to shred some gnar, and I was so proud! I have a reverent fear of the ocean most days so I decided not to risk it.

Another reason why this was my favorite day: have y’all ever seen monkeys in the wild? Because I sure hadn’t. I learned that howler monkeys sound like actual demons if you impede on their territory. Lemme tell ya, when the power goes out, your sound machine shuts off, and you hear the guttural growling of those suckers around 3am, well… it’s not something you’ll soon forget. But they sure are cute in the daylight!

I learned that these monkeys are constantly on the move. They don’t have a “home” they return to at the end of each day. They have territory they keep to, but regularly travel in “troops” of 4 to 20.

In the above video, you will hear some of our commentary regarding one male’s massive… balls. There’s simply no other way to put it, y’all. Apologies.

Beautiful photo of two rainbow Macaws taken by Litson law clerk Ridwan, with full permission to be this close.

From growlin’ howler monkeys to talking birds. I mean come on, these guys were just stunning. Paradise Villas, where the majority of the group stayed, had a bird sanctuary on the property. They were YAPPERS.

Let’s talk accommodations. Because honey, it was fabulous. As I mentioned, the majority of the group was at Paradise Villas. This property had a massive pool dining lounge area where we had the majority of our meals.

Morning view from the pool lounge dining area at Paradise Villas.

We had a couple of team meetings in the pool. As well as a serious game of red light, green light. We’re diverse.

Night view of the pavilion where we had our meals.

And while this was the main meeting point, James and I stayed right down the road at a VRBO called Casa Bonita. The main house had three rooms with two separate casitas in the back. James and I had a little casita to ourselves. It was peaceful and beautiful.

Casa Bonita casita where James and I stayed for our trip.

The view from our casita at night.

A look back at our casita from the main house’s back porch.

We were well fed. The team from Alegría prepared and served up the tastiest, healthiest, freshest meals. I am what many would consider a picky eater. I’ve even fondly described myself as having a chicken tender palate. But hear ye, naysayers! I enjoyed everything that was prepared. The team was so kind and thoughtful. You could tell they put their love and passion into every meal. I certainly was grateful for it.

Juan Pablo & Chef Casper.

We also had some delish food and elite vibes at the two restaurants we went to for dinner. Coyol is mountaintop restaurant that’s approximately 1,269 feet above Nosara. The ride up the mountain was treacherous, I won’t lie. Big ole vans driving on precariously unpaved roads. No bueno. But we made it. And it was worth it!

Coyol restaurant.

Laney & I at Coyol.

James & I at Coyol.

The second spot we went to was a beachfront restaurant called La Luna. Some of us went during the day for drinks, and as we were walking, a lovely gentleman named Frank pulled up in his 6-seater golf cart. He asked if we were looking for a ride, and we said yes. I know that’s typically frowned upon, but I’m telling you… the safe, friendly, positive lifestyle was infectious. Also James was there so we wouldn’t have done that if he wasn’t.

Beach view daytime from La Luna.

We probably should’ve asked the size of the pizzas on the menu. The majority of pizza orderers had a massive 16” pie all to themselves. It was thin-crust though?

Left front: Ashley (attorney), left back: Joey (slightly hidden chief investigator), Back right: Brent (new firm partner), right middle: James, right front: ME!

Sunset at La Luna through the trees.

I mentioned our packed itinerary. It was intense. On Day 1, a lot of folks took part in surf lessons. I did not do that. But I was happy to cheer them all on.

Day 2, we split up between ATV riders and zip liners. James and I went ATVing, and it was DUSTY. I was glad I packed some of my dad’s bandanas. But it really didn’t make a difference. We were covered in dirt.

The dusty group after ATV excursion. I was reaching an unpleasant stage of exhaustion and grime.

From L to R: Me, Sloan (attorney), Alicia (attorney), Victoria (BevLaw Group account manager), Ally (lead paralegal), Ashley (attorney), and Caitlin (legal ops coordinator).

James & I near the waterfall. Does it look bigger in this picture? Because we’ve seen bigger waterfalls in Tennessee. NO HATE, just saying.

We had a few stops along the way. We hiked down 154 steps to get to this swimming hole. The waterfall was lacking in majesty, but we did have fresh watermelons and coconuts. The hike back up was brutal. I was wheezing. Thought I was going to faint.

The stairs from the waterfall. I was in flimsy water shoes from Walmart.

Once that brutal hike was complete (nobody warned me in advance), we got to make our own pure sugar cane juice! The owner of the property was trying to get some of us to go faster when juicing the stalks. I simply could not be bothered.

But the juice was delicious and sugary and pure. I can taste it now as I type this.

We also had some vaca (cows) blocking our path. I told JP to keep honking. He wanted to let them meander along as we lost the rest of our group. All ended up just fine.

I am hopping all around on the chronological order of events here, but stay with me. It’s probably just my family and friends sticking around at this point.

Another excursion was our last full day, and we went kayaking. The group split into two, with one following a German woman who was very structured and to the point. Usually, that would be me. But not on Tico time. We ended up in the last group with a local guide who gave us all kinds of fun facts about the environment and the animals.

Massive air roots grow into the riverbed and transfer water to other trees that cannot reach the banks. Because ya know, all trees are connected.

We didn’t see any crocs, but the first group alleges they saw a baby one. Jury’s still out.

The team also went on a catamaran at sunset, but I did not attend. I was reaching my breaking point in needing some isolation and quiet time. I think it was probably in everyone’s best interest that I did so hehe

Throughout the week, we split into 4 teams and competed in various tasks. Bocce ball, cornhole, trivia, pool games, beach kickball, pickleball… we barely slept! But it was amazing. There was no drama (at least that I was aware of) and everyone just sat wherever they wanted at the dinner tables. We mixed it up regularly. It honestly couldn’t have gone better.

Pro Se Gringos team. L to R: Zack (co-founding partner), JR (partner), Sloan (attorney), Victoria (BevLaw Group account manager), Alicia (attorney), and me!

I couldn’t wrap up this post without thanking the people who made this happen. First, Alex Little, who wanted to share a piece of paradise with the team he built at Litson.

Alex is a busy man. He needs naps.

Second, Catie Toole, who was heavily involved in the planning and execution of a huge group traveling internationally.

Catie was also not pleased with the dusty nature of the ATV ride, but did we complain? No we sure didn’t!

And third, Heather Miller, of Retreat Planning Nosara. She helped in countless ways to ensure that every need was met, every hiccup quickly addressed, and managed all of our personalities! I don’t have a picture of her. But if you’ve ever watched Below Deck, consider her the Chief Stew who listened to every request and whim of our massive group with a small on her face. We are grateful!

One of the best parts of the trip was seeing the night sky without light pollution. The moon and stars were so bright. Obviously that does not translate into pictures.

If there’s one thing I’m taking away from this trip, it’s that sign a few scrolls up:

Respira, abre los ojos… detente un instante. La vida esta sucediendo justo ahora!

Oh and Tico time. I’m going to be saying Tico time for the foreseeable future.