Je suis en Bruxelles!

It seems like ages ago I was saying goodbye to family and friends in snowy Minnesota and making my way across the Atlantic for the semester in rainy Belgium. However, it was only one week ago that my plane landed in Amsterdam, for me to find out the connecting plane to Brussels was cancelled due to "expected heavy snow." To make matters worse, the Brussels airport decided it would be a good idea prepare for the snowstorm by shutting down for a few hours. Diversion #1 had arrived! Solution: Train. Needless to say, it was quite stressful attempting to get my 70 pounds of luggage on to the 2-ft high train platform before the door closed on me. The final lap of my cross-continental journey was complete when I arrived in Brussels that afternoon. And yes, it was snowing. It was only fitting that the terrible weather followed me from the Midwest.

After catching up on some sleep, the unofficial beginning to our orientation week started. It was nothing to complain about as our program directors took us out for traditional Belgian beers at a pub in the heart of downtown. Beer is a way of life in Belgium. To quote one of our program directors, "It doesn't count as alcohol here." It is a beer drinking culture, but not in any way like UW-Madison is. In Belgium, it is customary to go to a pub and talk with friends over quality and locally-brewed beers whereas at school, the quality of beer is not important but rather how fast it can be consumed. After giving light, dark, and even many fruit beers a chance this first night, we were well on our way to becoming beer connoisseurs! Orientation began the next day.

Several days of planned group excursions and meetings followed... After getting to see the city and meet some of the people here I have devised a list of my initial impressions of life in Belgium:

1) If it's not snowing, it's raining.
2) Nothing is open past 6 PM.
3) Whole milk is the only milk available. AND it's kept at room temp... Ew.
4) Late=on time.
5) The waffles are without a doubt the best in the world.

My first Belgian waffle:


Barrels of beer at the Cantillon Brewery, where Lambic beer has been brewing since 1900:


Beautiful park in the City Center of Brussels, by night:



I will soon post a photo of my apartment. It is not as independent as my housing in Madison, but rather a room rented out of a family house. Lucky for me, the house is enormous! A couple (my landlords) lives on the first floor, while the 10 rooms on the second and third floor are rented out to students from Poland, France, and the Netherlands. And ME. The only downside is that I have a long commute to school and the downtown area. Good thing the public transportation system is extremely efficient!

It's hard to believe that it's been a week in Belgium already, but tomorrow is the first day of class! I know what you're all thinking... "Isn't that Martin Luther King Jr. Day?" ...Yet another difference between life in US and life in Belgium.

Until next time... Au Revoir!