here and there

This post is mostly just a life update, and I have to say, things really do get better every month! Admittedly, I did have a bit of a rough patch about the second week of January. I'm not sure why, but I was extremely homesick, even more homesick than I was during Christmas. But I think it was just the winter blues. Right now, I am really starting to feel at home here in Belgium. My French is getting better, and therefore, so is school. I am starting to make friends, interact with my classes and teachers, and almost forming "my own life" here in Belgium. Last week, I started some drawing classes at this art school in Namur called "L'Acadamie des Beaux Arts". I will take them every Wednesday for 4-5 hours. I think it will be good for me, because I am rather terrible at drawing. In general, life is good! I hope that this is equally the same for you! Winter can be a sad and cold time, but I think that that will change with the rise of the thermometer. Until the next time!
Here are just a few random pictures that I have taken in the last few weeks.

I wrote a letter to one of my best friends, Travis, near the beginning of the year and told him that one thing I really missed about Fall was pumpkin flavored things. So he sent me some pumpkin chai tea! What a cool dude.

(January 3, 2013)

I visited Bruges with some other exchange students and another American who was an exchange student in Belgium 2 years ago. It's a really cool city, but I hope to go again in the Spring when the weather isn't as gray!

(January 4, 2013)

People playing accordions everywhere, just how I like it.

(January 4, 2013)

Give us these daily fries.

(January 4, 2013)

Bruges has been called "the Venice of Belgium".

(January 4, 2013)

And encore...

(January 4, 2013)

My host mom taught me some new knitting stitches. I'm like a new woman. 

(January 20, 2013)

I got some awesome watercolor painting supplies for Christmas, so I have started painting a little bit in my free time. This is based on a photo I took in Peru two summers ago when we were on the sand dunes.

(January 20, 2013)

denmark

The day after Christmas, my host family and I went to a little town called Lemvig, Denmark with the basketball team that my host sister plays on. It was rather cold and windy, but I enjoyed myself very much! We took a coach bus (a "car" in French) and we traveled for about 10 hours. We stayed in a cool little cottage along the shore, about 2 kilometers away from the town. Every day, we went and watched my host sister's team, along with many other teams from around the world, play in basketball matches. Belfius Namur Capitale, the name of the team, played very well and actually got second place in the whole tournament! Even though I have never considered myself a huge sports person, I am starting to really like watching basketball. Who knew that my year in Belgium would turn me into a basketball fan?

En route!

(December 27, 2012)

Stopping to see the ocean.

(December 27, 2012)

In the fields.

(December 27, 2012)

La belle mer.

(December 27, 2012)

(December 27, 2012)

The wind was so strong, it was almost impossible to walk.

(December 27, 2012)

My host mom keeping warm!

(December 27, 2012)

I accidently got freezing water all over my camera lens...whoops.

(December 27, 2012)

Les gens sur la plage.

(December 27, 2012)

Belfius Namur Capitale basketball team!

(December 27, 2012)

Learn some words in Danish.

(December 27, 2012)

The other cottages near ours. I like the red theme.

(December 27, 2012)

After the first day. Time to sleep!

(December 27, 2012)

The view from our window.

(December 27, 2012)

Taking a time-out.

(December 28, 2012)

The first game against a German team.

(December 28, 2012)

An old fishing boat along the harbor. 

(December 28, 2012)

I have no idea what you're talking about.

(December 28, 2012)

Danish pride; there were flags everywhere!

(December 28, 2012)

On the way to the "salle de sport".

(December 28, 2012)

Cool moss rocks.

(December 29, 2012)

On the walk uphill to the "salle de sport".

(December 29, 2012)

My host sister Christelle during a game against another German team.

(December 29, 2012)

The basketball team on the last day of the tournament.

(December 30, 2012)

Noël in Belgium

This year, and the same with many other exchange students, was my first Christmas away from home. While it was sad at times, my Christmas in Belgium was very fun! Like most, or all, countries in Europe, Christmas Eve is more celebrated than the actual day of Christmas. So, on Christmas Eve, my family and I prepared a lot of appetizers and a meal to eat in the evening. I feel like the preparation for the meal is almost comparable to the Thanksgiving meal. We ate the meal in the evening, and we also opened gifts, instead of in the morning as I normally do in the United States, and went to the midnight mass at the cathedral in Namur. After we returned home at about 2 AM, we ate our dessert and then woke up the next morning and went to my host grandma's house (the mother of my host dad) in Rochefort. We ate a big lunch in traditional Belgian style (with appetizers and different entrées and dessert) and then afterwards we went to the parents house of my host mom in Liège to visit. As usual, I will let the photos do the explaining, because they are better at it than I am! 

I hope that your Christmas was great, and best wishes for the new year!

This is my host grandma telling a story about American and German soldiers during Christmas time in World War II. She explains how there was a farm with soldiers who were about to fight, but then stopped because it was Christmas. (Stop! C'est Noël.) At the end, she says how the things that happen at Christmastime are incredible. 

Starting off the meal with some champagne.

(December 24, 2012)

An appetizer with salmon, cream cheese, and fancy eggs on top. (Some of these photos were really dark so I had to brighten them and that's why they are a little washed out).

(December 24, 2012)

Mini bowls of cheese and nutmeg soup!

(December 24, 2012)

Scampi with cocktail sauce.

(December 24, 2012)

 Mini omelettes with mushroom, cheese, and ham cubes.

(December 24, 2012)

A slice of Italy! Tomato, mozzarella, and olive with pesto. 

(December 24, 2012)

Salad with cheese, vinaigrette, and croutons.

(December 24, 2012)

I forgot to take pictures of the rest of the meal, but here was the first plate: foie gras, salad, onion jelly, and brioche. It was my first time trying foie gras. While I wasn't a big fan, it never hurts to try!

(December 24, 2012)

I got the best gifts I could ever ask for! Some watercolor paints, brushes, and some plants (a cactus and a cool rose decoration).

(December 24, 2012)

Every Sunday morning, my host family and I have these awesome pastries. Since Christmas is a special occasion, we had them twice in one week! You eat well in Belgium. 

(December 25, 2012)

My host dad reading the newspaper at my host grandma's house in Rochefort.

(December 25, 2012)

Belgian tomatoes! The real deal.

(December 25, 2012)

Even the plates are festive.

(December 25, 2012)

My host dad and his brother.

(December 25, 2012)

Champagne: day two.

(December 25, 2012)

My host cousin let me use his fisheye lens to take a few photos! Here, we are washing dishes: a team effort.

(December 25, 2012)

Everyone around the table during dessert. It's kind of a bright photo, but I am hiding in the back next to the window. A terrific Christmas, indeed!

(December 25, 2012)

exams, chez callie, and germany

These past few weeks have been exciting, mostly because the normal school days had stopped for the exams! Exam week in Belgium is rather stressful for the students and I have been told that they are the "most dreaded weeks of the year". However, in my opinion, I am not sure why they stress so much because there is only one exam per day. For example, monday is the history exam, tuesday is the math exam, etc. Additionally, the exams only take two or four hours every day, so afterwards, you are finished. In the United States, the finals are during two days, and you have to take two or four exams per day, depending on your school. However, I can understand why the students stress because the exams are a really large percent of the final grade. Yesterday, I got my "bulletin", which is a report card. Surprisingly, I am passing almost all of my courses except for math and I am currently taking that through my school in the United States while in Belgium so "ce n'est pas grave" (it doesn't really matter). Overall, things are looking good for starting at the university next year when I return to the States, so that is a huge relief!

Last weekend, I went to a town about half an hour away named Wavre to visit my friend Callie. While I love my host family and my life in Belgium, sometimes it is really great to meet with a friend, speak in your native language, and take a little bit of a "break" from exchange student routine. We had lots of fun joking around, listening to music, and looking up pictures of outer space on Google. (It sounds lame, but if you have never searched "nebulas", you have to do it! It is unbelievable and you will be occupied for hours). We also met up with our friend Sidney on Saturday, so we went to Wavre and walked around. We bought some ice cream, so that was a tasty treat. Later, Callie's host brother taught us some songs on the guitar. Since I have a lot of free time here in Belgium, I have thrown around the idea of possibly buying a guitar. However, my host dad told me that my host cousin has one that he could lend me for the year, so I am excited to start learning how to play! Maybe I will return to the United States next year with some sweet guitar skills.

Wednesday, my host family and I went to the Christmas market in Germany in a town named Cologne. It was really beautiful and very exciting to visit Germany for the first time! I always thought German was kind of an ugly language, but when I heard people speaking German, I realized that it's actually rather nice. We looked around at the different stands and shops, walked around the city, and drank some "vin chaud" (hot wine), a Christmas tradition in Europe! I took a lot of pictures, so I will let them show what we saw! Sometimes, it just hits me that I am even here in Belgium. A year ago at Christmastime, I had no idea that I would be in another country learning another language, and suddenly, voilà! I am here. I always feel really happy when I think of that, because it shows how much things can truly change in just a year. Who knows where you will be one year from now?

My friend Callie (left) and Sidney (right) in Louvain-la-Neuve after they met me at the train station.

(December 14, 2012)

The morning light from Callie's window caught my eye. Also, I can't sleep past 9 o'clock so I take pictures while my friends sleep. 

(December 15, 2012)

Euros, euros, everywhere

Do I have enough?

...J'espere.

(December 15, 2012)

Sidney and Callie in Wavre with the cool Christmas lights.

(December 15, 2012)

La belle rue.

(December 15, 2012)

Guitar lessons by night.

(December 15, 2012)

Waiting for the tram to take us to the Christmas market.

(December 19, 2012)

Welcome to Europe, home of cool side streets.

(December 19, 2012)

A bike sitting along the Rhine. It's almost too good to be true.

(December 19, 2012)

The Cologne Cathedral which is huge! This picture doesn't give it justice.

(December 19, 2012)

A stand of little wood carvings. 

(December 19, 2012)

A stand of glass ornaments.

(December 19, 2012)

A stand of all things cats!

(December 19, 2012)

Les étoiles dans les arbres.

(December 19, 2012)

The entrance to the Christmas market.

(December 19, 2012)

Warm cashews, a snack like no other.

(December 19, 2012)

My personal favorite stand: bonsai trees.

(December 19, 2012)

I wish I could have all of these to hang in my room. They're pretty groovy.

(December 19, 2012)

We decided to make a stop at Starbucks while we were in Cologne. I used to work there in the United States, so it brought back many fun memories of coffee bean-grinding and milk-steaming. This is my host sister Christelle and her friend Alizée! 

(December 19, 2012)

My host parents, Marie and Michel!

(December 19, 2012)