The next morning in Brussels, Katarina and I had not booked
tickets for the Brussels Chocolate Tour, but the boys were set to go at 10:30.
So while they walked to the center, we scootered around town (a very difficult
thing to do on the harsh Brussels cobblestone). We came upon a very cute coffee
shop right next to the famous museums. As we waited for them to open, I got a
special latte and we walked to take pictures at the Royal Palace. We went to the
Royal Museum of Fine Arts Belgium- which I really loved because they had pieces
I studied in high school like Rembrandt, Franz Hals, and Hieronymus Bosch.
Katarina and I had lunch at a noodle house- some of the best
food I’ve had all semester. We walked around the Grand Plaza- which was
absolutely gorgeous, and then we stumbled upon a beautiful market as we were on
our way home.
Katarina and the boys went to their bus and I rode a metro
to my host mother’s boyfriends apartment. She picked me up and took me back to
the apartment to get her things and for me to meet the neighbors. Two adult
couples and four children- they all spoke French and were unbelievably
friendly. They greeted me with hugs and kisses and gave me so much food and
about four glasses of wine. I used all the French I knew, and they were so pleased
with how much I could say and I was ecstatic that I could understand their
conversations. I’ve never even taken a French class! But over the course of my
life, I’ve picked up enough to make it by. I’ve never been so content. My host
mom drove me back to Bonn and we continued our great conversation about what
success means and we even had an awesome discussion about etymology and the
meaning of happiness and how distorted it can be across cultures!
I went home content. Ana and Madyson stayed the night and we
got our Karneval costumes together to go to Cologne with the rest of the
students the next morning, Rosenmontag. I love those girls. We got to Cologne
and eventually were the last to find the group- getting there at about 11:30.
That was such a good day. Everyone was happy and free without a care in the
world. Even though I broke my teeth at the end of the parade, I can still say
it was one of my best days! Somehow I still got home and ran into Ana and
Madyson at the bus station in Bonn and we arrived home at 6:30, flopping into
bed to take a group nap.
All was well. I texted Dr. Wasser to tell him about my
teeth, and I had them fixed by 11 AM the next morning! Shoutout to caring
teachers, AIB, CISI, and the German healthcare system. I'm sure Wasser will tell my story to future students now, just like all the stories we heard of past students. (Ex: Appendicitis Boy)
After classes were over,
I went for a run along the Rhine- probably the most scenic run I’ve had in my
life. It was so blue and beautiful, and I definitely want to start doing it
regularly. Wednesday and Thursday were just full of classes, but I started
feeling very sick Thursday and stayed home on Friday to rest and recover before
Spring Break. My host mom’s family came over after their ceremony of spreading
the ashes, and I was able to speak with her 90 year old father completely in
German. We had a conversation about his family and his hometown and wine. Then
I spoke with her brother-in-law about folktales and travel locations. I was
very proud and excited to navigate a social situation in a different language
for the second time that week. At 9 PM I was driven to the Flixbus Station, and
at 1 AM I arrived in Frankfurt to wait until my 6:30 flight to Athens.
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