It’s been a busy week, and it’s certainly far from over! Thursday night, we went out—first, to a foreign film, then to a café with the group, and finally to Delirium, this crazy bar in the tourist area. It’s huge, and has a beer menu to match; I’d never been there before and didn’t know the selection, so I ordered something “dark and cheap.” It makes me pretty happy that a bartender could go with that alone! This was really one of my first “big nights” here—out till 4 am! Unfortunately, walking home in pouring, sideways rain was a downer, but we still knew a ton of people at the bar, and met foreign visitors of all sorts. Definitely a worthwhile night.
Friday was not much of anything (except getting to see Lost, so people can actually talk about it in front of me now!). Saturday we went to Bastogne (a town in the Belgian countryside which was the central site of the Battle of the Bulge). We saw a lot of sites associated with the Battle, and watched Band of Brothers to really kind of drive home the experience. We also dashed into the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (two foreign countries, and I’ve only been here a month!) to see the American Cemetery there, so those who died in battles in the area. We’ve been studying a lot of World War I here, so suddenly switching to the Second one was a bit odd; however, I know understand it better than I ever did before. The horrors of this war…it’s a wonder anyone made it out alive. Imagine how different everything would be without one, or both, of these wars. Actually seeing foxholes was crazy, and looking down on the village from the same view the soldiers had was a little bit surreal. A lot of people were amazingly immature and callous with the pictures they took, and it really upset me—millions of men died in these wars. In fact, some died exactly where we were standing. Also, considering a number of those in our group had family who fought in the war (and Battle of the Bulge, specifically), and that our guide was there for it and saw his own father die as a result—well, let’s say that I really appreciate the trip, and other did not. It’s certainly a trip I wouldn’t have made on my own, and I really enjoyed the experience as much as one can love something so tragic.
On another note, later that night, one of our group members fell 75 feet out a window and miraculously survived, mostly fine. I don’t have many details about it, and I was in no way involved, but it seemed like something worth mentioning.
Sunday was, of course, the Super Bowl. Even though kickoff was after midnight, the broadcast was in French, and we didn’t get the good commercials, a few of us went to Kate’s house and indulged in ill-deserved birthday cake and junk food. Totally worth coming home at 4:30 to see the Giants win. :-D
Fast forward through Monday—Tuesday is all the good stuff. After going to my first two classes, I got on the bus (or van, as the case may be) and set off to Binche. Binche is about an hour away from Brussels and hosts the largest Carnival/Mardi Gras in Belgium. It’s got all sorts of crazy traditions I had read about even before coming here—all the men and women born in the town get these crazy costumes and are in the parade; there are huge hats made of feathers; oranges are thrown at you, and they’re a sign of good luck. Suffice it to say, it was a good day—the weather clearing up later on certainly helped. Also, Belgium has no open container laws, so there was drunken debauchery everywhere. I was mocked by some Frenchmen for drinking my beer out of a 750 mL glass bottle, but hey! Mardi Gras! I was drunk by dinner (hence the “broken camera, lost the group!” crisis), sober afterwards, and making a valiant attempt for the fire dancers. Amy and I bought the worst premixed drink ever and eventually bequeathed it to someone else more desperate than us. The fire dancers did not dance with fire, but rather around flares—but the fireworks and conversation while waiting made up for that. I did get myself and orange, and also carried everyone’s with me. When we got in, Eric, Everett, Taylor, and myself went to deValera’s by my house to watch some Super Tuesday coverage. They closed early, so we didn’t see much, but its validating to know there are others who follow politics like a sport.
Today involved a trip to the Belgian Federal Parliament—like visiting our Congress. While it was tedious, it was another experience I wouldn’t have had on my own. The building was amazing, really old and beautiful, and it was interesting to learn about how their government manages to function despite all the road blocks. Considering I’ve never been to the US Congress, I especially enjoyed sitting in a Senator’s seat and pretending to vote on something. I then went to class and learned the time had been switched…again. Ridiculous. As I blog now, I’m eating a delicious macaroni/vegetable creation (boo Ash Wednesday!!) and looking down the barrel of a lot of homework.
However, only three more classes left this week, and a presentation. Then on to our adventures in Antwerp this weekend—more stories to follow!!
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