3 COUNTRIES IN 10 MINUTESNow for the kicker! After Anabel and I drove 50 minutes to see her friend Bena in Aachen, we decided to take a side trip. Aachen looked like another neat city, but we were there on a rainy Sunday when practically everything was closed. There was not much to see or do, so we decided to drive 10 minutes to Vaals, Netherlands. There, the shops were open. First we went to a grocery store, to stock up on my favorite Dutch cookies and other fattening sweet treats. We also filled up the car, because gas in the Netherlands is a bit cheaper then Germany. But it’s still no bargain, as gas in Europe costs about $5 a gallon! OUCH! On the way back from Vaals I stopped to get a picture next to the German and Netherlands border signs. Anabel said we could add Belgium, because it’s just around the corner. It was only 15 kilometers (9 miles) away. We stopped at a café to get the best hot chocolate ever -- seriously. To get to there we had to drive back through Deutschland. When we arrived at the gateless old border (now a coffee shop), only 10 minutes had passed. We traveled to three countries in 10 minutes -- how sweet is that?! All three countries are members of the European Union, so driving across the border is the same as driving from one state to another. Of course, crossing countries is a lot cooler.