This weekend, my friend Jennie from Furman came to visit us in Brussels! She is spending the fall semester studying in Groningen, a town in the Netherlands. She hopped a train and arrived on Friday night. We promptly took her downtown to meet up with some people from Vesalius and show her around.
The Vesalius Student Government sponsored "Pub Golf" - a tour of the pubs in downtown Brussels. Some people were very into it, dressed up as golfers and gallivanting about. It was really entertaining. We separated from the group at one point in search of somewhere to dance. We ended up at a bar called Celtica. Downstairs, a man was jamming on his guitar to sweet tunes like "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz. Upstairs, the lights were flashing and MTV videos were playing and music was thumpin. So, in a group of 5 Furman girls, we just danced. It was really entertaining and fun, and even more so when funny European boys approached us and we laughed at them. One asked where I was from, I replied, "The US." Apparently, this made him very pleased. He excitedly shouted at me, "I'm from Ireland!" It was very comical. What's funny about the dancing here is that it really is not nearly as provocative as some of the dancing that I've seen back in the States. Here, people just kind of bop around in their own little area, occasionally moving closer to a dance partner. But there really isn't as much "grinding," which is rather refreshing. It's funny to me that the advertisements are much more sexual and PDA's are much more prevalent when compared to the US, but the dancing etiquette is a bit more conservative. My friends and I agreed on this, and found this to be an interesting observation. After dancing for a bit, we stopped to get Jennie some Belgian frites with mayonnaise - a delightful treat. All in all, it was a pretty fun night.
On Saturday, we decided to show Jennie some of the sights near our apartment. It was a beautiful day weather wise - warm and mid-70s, so we thought we would take advantage. We took her to the European Parliament buildings, and walked her through Parc Leopold, and then on to Cinquantenaire (the park with the giant archway). For dinner, we ordered some authentic Belgian Chinese food and had it delivered. It was surprisingly delicious! Later on, we took her to Grand Place to see all of the beautiful buildings lit up at night. We set her up with a true Belgian waffle and a Duvel beer so that she could get the full experience. We also took her to Delirium, an international style bar with over 2000 types of beer. There were lots of Americans and international visitors there, so it was a fun atmosphere.
Today is a day for getting work done, unfortunately. We leave for Venice on Thursday, so I'm trying to get as much done as I can before then. It's funny because Jennie says that her classes are relatively easy (in one of them, 80% of the grade is based on attendance), and most of them are cancelled. In comparison, we have barely had any free time between internships and Vesalius classes. It puts into perspective for me just how much I am pushing myself on the trip, and I really appreciate how much I am learning - not just in my classes, but in daily living and working in a foreign city.
Brussels has designated today "car free" day in the city. There are hoards of people just walking in the middle of the streets, and riding their bikes, and playing music, and being very loud outside of our building. It is certainly entertaining. Let's hope I can actually muster up the strength to be somewhat productive!
The Vesalius Student Government sponsored "Pub Golf" - a tour of the pubs in downtown Brussels. Some people were very into it, dressed up as golfers and gallivanting about. It was really entertaining. We separated from the group at one point in search of somewhere to dance. We ended up at a bar called Celtica. Downstairs, a man was jamming on his guitar to sweet tunes like "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz. Upstairs, the lights were flashing and MTV videos were playing and music was thumpin. So, in a group of 5 Furman girls, we just danced. It was really entertaining and fun, and even more so when funny European boys approached us and we laughed at them. One asked where I was from, I replied, "The US." Apparently, this made him very pleased. He excitedly shouted at me, "I'm from Ireland!" It was very comical. What's funny about the dancing here is that it really is not nearly as provocative as some of the dancing that I've seen back in the States. Here, people just kind of bop around in their own little area, occasionally moving closer to a dance partner. But there really isn't as much "grinding," which is rather refreshing. It's funny to me that the advertisements are much more sexual and PDA's are much more prevalent when compared to the US, but the dancing etiquette is a bit more conservative. My friends and I agreed on this, and found this to be an interesting observation. After dancing for a bit, we stopped to get Jennie some Belgian frites with mayonnaise - a delightful treat. All in all, it was a pretty fun night.
On Saturday, we decided to show Jennie some of the sights near our apartment. It was a beautiful day weather wise - warm and mid-70s, so we thought we would take advantage. We took her to the European Parliament buildings, and walked her through Parc Leopold, and then on to Cinquantenaire (the park with the giant archway). For dinner, we ordered some authentic Belgian Chinese food and had it delivered. It was surprisingly delicious! Later on, we took her to Grand Place to see all of the beautiful buildings lit up at night. We set her up with a true Belgian waffle and a Duvel beer so that she could get the full experience. We also took her to Delirium, an international style bar with over 2000 types of beer. There were lots of Americans and international visitors there, so it was a fun atmosphere.
Today is a day for getting work done, unfortunately. We leave for Venice on Thursday, so I'm trying to get as much done as I can before then. It's funny because Jennie says that her classes are relatively easy (in one of them, 80% of the grade is based on attendance), and most of them are cancelled. In comparison, we have barely had any free time between internships and Vesalius classes. It puts into perspective for me just how much I am pushing myself on the trip, and I really appreciate how much I am learning - not just in my classes, but in daily living and working in a foreign city.
Brussels has designated today "car free" day in the city. There are hoards of people just walking in the middle of the streets, and riding their bikes, and playing music, and being very loud outside of our building. It is certainly entertaining. Let's hope I can actually muster up the strength to be somewhat productive!
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