Wow! Where to begin? I feel like I have so much to update you all on! This last week we didn’t have school, so 7 other girls and I went to Belgium for the week. We spent 5 days in Brussels and 2 in Brugge. I loved both places. Brussels had a big city feel to it, but was still small enough for us to walk around easily. The first day we were there it snowed all day, but that didn’t slow us down too much. We saw the Royal Palace and Mannekin Pis (which is a fountain of a little boy peeing and is oddly famous!), and we went to the Cocoa and Chocolate Museum. We thought that was appropriate for Valentine’s Day.
On our second day, Monday, we took it easy. We went into the center of town for a little while and then out to Atomium, which is a giant structure meant to look like an atom that was built for a World Fair. Not quite as pretty as the Eiffel Tower, which was built for the same purpose. It was funny because I read and had heard that Brussels is not a pretty place, but we were very pleasantly surprised. I loved it, and I think the ugliest city in Europe is still prettier than any of them in the USA. That night we made dinner at our hostel, and then went out to a bar that had over 2,004 kinds of beer. Across from the bar there was a statue of a peeing girl, Jeanette Pis, and we found that way funnier than the little boy. It was a statue made by the bar to get publicity, and it definitely worked.
On Tuesday we did a whole ton of sightseeing. We went to a big flea market, and then over to the Palais de Justice, which was huge! After lunch we went to the Musical Instruments Museum, which was really cool. They gave you a pair of automatic headphones, and when you stepped in front of an instrument, it would start playing. From there we went to the Brussels Museum, where we learned a little about the history of Brussels, but our real interest was the top floor, where there was a display of the costumes that have been given to Mannekin Pis. There were some really funny ones, including a yellow jersey for the Tour de France and Elvis. We also made sure to eat some Belgian waffles, and oh my goodness were they delicious!!! It was great!
Wednesday was a day trip to Luxembourg. Unfortunately, it was a little rainy and cold, and there just turned out to be not a lot to do there. We went to the tourist office to get some suggestions, and a round lady with a thick, and slightly terrifying accent said to me, “There is nothing to do here”. Even the tourist office employees admitted that their city was boring! We ended up walking around a bit, seeing some churches and old buildings, and when we tried to take a bus to the European Union building we got on it the wrong way, rode it for half an hour, and then decided it was time to go back to Brussels. My advice to anyone thinking about going to Luxembourg… Don’t plan on more than a day, and don’t go if the weather is bad! We actually had a lot of fun just hanging out with each other, we’re glad we saw it, but I don’t think any of us will be returning.
Thursday morning we got up and took the Metro to see the L’Arc de Triomphe of Brussels before heading to Brugge. The train ride only took an hour and we got there around 2:30. We checked into our hostel, which was very cool. It was called the Snuffel Hostel, and had a bar attached that was actually a pretty popular place! We spent that night just wandering the town, and I fell in love with the town. It was so beautiful. We tried to go into the Church of Our Lady, but they were closed, so we just wandered around. There must have been at least 50 chocolate shops in this tiny town! A couple of us ended up going into a little café for drinks that night, and ended up with the most hilarious waiter I’ve ever had. He just waltzed around the restaurant in a very flamboyant manner and gave us neon yellow beanies that looked ridiculous, but of course we wore them. It was a very fun night.
We played extreme tourists on our last day. We saw the windmills, went to both the Church of Our Lady to see Michealangelo’s Madonna and Child, and Church of the Holy Blood to see a vial of the blood of Christ, and did a Brewery Tour after lunch. After that we wandered around the town a little more, and walked around the main square. That night we hung out at the hostel’s bar and ended up making friends with a group of British boys that were also staying at the hostel. They were very funny and we ended up going out to a couple of clubs with them. We all got a kick out of the music that was being played, including a medley of songs from Grease.
Saturday was a travel day, and it took us about 8 hours to get back to Aix. The train ride was relaxing, and it was fun to watch the French country side. All in all it was an amazing trip. Even though we struggled to keep warm, we had a really fantastic time, and I’m so glad I got to see that part of Europe.
I’ve only been back for a day, but I haven’t had much down time. Today Kerri, Clare and I went to Le Carnaval de Nice. It was so beautiful! We had about 4 hours to walk around Nice before the parade started, so we walked up and down the beach on the sunny, beautiful day we were lucky to have. We also walked through the market that was going on in old town Nice. Everything was so beautiful. Carnaval was amazing. It’s the closest thing the kids have to Halloween, and a lot of them were dressed up. Everyone was lining the streets with silly string and confetti at the ready. The parade started, and as the floats came by everyone started throwing the silly string and confetti at the floats and at each other. It was impossible not to get covered in both. We had a little silly string war with a group of men and women standing next to us and a little boy on his brother’s shoulders. The floats were fantastic. The theme was saving the planet, and I think our favorite float was one that had Obama as a super hero. The whole experience was amazing, and I’m so glad we went.
Tomorrow is going to consist of homework, laundry, and errands. It’s time for me to start planning for Eric, Sarah and my mom each to come for a week. Next weekend I’m going to Germany to visit a friend from high school that lives there. I can’t wait! Thanks for keeping track of me! I love hearing from you guys, so feel free to shoot me an email! À toute à l’heure!!
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