Last night was our farewell dinner in Brussels, a last chance to visit with new friends before we took off for parts unknown. We were at La Porteuse d’Eau restaurant, decorated in an Art Deco style, spread out among five tables. It was so noisy with laughter and conversation, and got louder and louder as the evening wore on and the wine was poured!

I tried to take pictures of everyone in the group, but I am afraid I may have missed a person or two.

On the very first day of the tour, our director, Oda, gave us a detailed itinerary of our 10 days together along with all the menu choices. Believe me, it was hard to remember what we had ordered 10 days ago! I picked the fish entrée but what I really looked forward to was the apple pie!

It was European style and not too sweet, with a slight crunch. I loved it!

The company that I am traveling with is GoAhead Tours, a division of EF Education Tours. EF which was actually started fifty years ago, (“Education First”) and catered to affordable student travel.

Twenty years ago they started GoAhead Tours which is geared for adults. Because of their experience with EF Education Tours, the bulk of GoAhead travelers are teachers, or friends and relatives of teachers, all seasoned travelers. I find them all to be engaging, enthusiastic about travel and adventuresome in trying new experiences.

In my opinion, GoAhead is excellent and just right for me because:

We stay in four-star hotels. There is a big difference in comfort and luxury between 3- and 4-star hotels. Porterage of our bags is mostly included, meaning I don’t have to schlep my heavy luggage by myself! At this point in my life, I am unwilling to stay in a dormitory with shared bathrooms.

The itinerary allows for free time in addition to maximizing the sights of a particular tour. Just think of all the places we visited in the last ten days!—in addition to experiencing chocolate, cheese, sausage and beer tasting, and going on a canal boat ride.

What is nice is that no time is wasted getting lost (unless you go off on your own, as I did!) When my husband Carl and I traveled I am afraid we lost a lot of valuable time being lost!

The tour directors are always excellent—knowledgeable about history, customs and helpful for individual itineraries. Oda on this tour was particularly fantastic; a couple of women on our tour had gone on 27 EF/GoAhead Tours and they said Oda was by far the best!

GoAhead Tours has a loyal customer base, and people travel multiple times with them. Once I heard that a woman had taken 43 GoAhead Tours!

Oda insisted on giving a goodbye hug to everyone!

Thank you and goodbye to GoAhead Tours and my new friends!

With Jake Caveny, our GoAhead representative along on our tour.