Ketchup

I know sooo many of you are following this blog.. I'm sorry that I haven't posted in awhile. No fear- I'm going to catch you up on the basics.

I went to Paris with a group of five other people from UF two weekends ago. We saw most all the famous monuments and explored a couple of popular museums and sites. I can see where Paris' romantic reputation comes from based on the Eiffel Tower and the Lourve, but not so much from the other areas of town. I was a little disappointed with the huge tourist culture, but it's for good reason. Paris has a lot to offer.

My favorite part was picnicking under the Eiffel tower with friends and watching it get lit up. I also enjoyed going to le Orangerie- the Impressionist art museum. Monet's Water Lilies series was breathtaking. There were two rooms displaying four sequential pieces in an oval. Both rooms let in sunlight from the ceiling so that the colors in the works transformed and thus modified the piece. I spent a good deal of time sitting and staring, interpreting, reinterpreting after brighter sunlight, etc.




Mizzou peeps went to Leiden this most recent weekend. It's a quaint, college town in Holland. The trip just reaffirmed my love for the Netherlands. It's pretty much official that I'll be moving there as soon as I graduate and learn Dutch. Leiden was just as full of bikes, pretty people and pancakes. It also offered the perk of a rich Pilgrim history. That's the main reason why our professor set up the trip. I learned a lot about America's actual founding fathers while indulging in fantastic (free!) meals. The seafood was delectable.

Three Weeks In

That's right. I'm about three weeks into my program. I'm getting pretty acclimated to Brussels and Europe in general. I'm also adjusting to the independent living.. mainly the budgeting and finance. But let's not talk about that.

I've done a little more sightseeing around Brussels, including a trip to the atomium. It's this massive structure modeled after the atom. Why it was constructed and in Brussels of all places, I couldn't tell you. All I can say is that it's huge and a bit of an upgrade from the bean in Millennium Park. There is fantastic ice-cream served at the base of it too.



The gang has planned a trip to Paris this weekend. The girls (there are three of us) leave early tomorrow morning.. around 6:45.. and the boys leave an hour or so later. To be expected. We've planned a (free) trip to the Lourve Friday night, Versailles on Saturday and monuments on Sunday. Ahhh, fashion capitol here I come!

I AMsterdam

I have my first weekend trip to report on! Where else to begin my European travels than Amsterdam?

My roommate, Jenna, and I have been spending most of our free time with a group from the University of Florida. We organized a weekend, transportation (train) and a hostel reservation in the land of tulips and canals. It turned out to be quite the ideal trip, at least for me. Actually, Amsterdam appeared to be the ideal location for me.

Let me break it down:
-The 'dam has a huge bike culture. There's a bike lane right alongside the automobile/tram ones everywhere and just as much traffic, if not more.
-The fashion was inspirational. I swear the people of Amsterdam breed model, well-dressed babies. I was astounded by the chic ensembles I saw in all situations: biking, casual walks, sightseeing, museum hopping, etc. I couldn't help feeling like a bum in my leggings and cardigan, which would be considered more dressy in the U.S. Sorry, you know me. This observation was probably the first and most often one I noticed.
-So many museums, but so little time. We went to the Van Gogh museum, the archaeological museum, the Anne Frank House and the tulip museum. I left plenty of museums to go to when I return, hehe. Van Gogh was my favorite destination by far. I spent hours in there just standing in front of his pieces, captivated by the vivid imagery I saw before me. I realized art has this certain presence you can only experience in person. I loved feeling that intensity and the specific art of Van Gogh.
-The pancakes are magical. I did some research before hitting up the 'dam and read that its specialty was pancakes- sweet and savory. The girls went to a sweet little pancake shop by the Anne Frank museum on the last day. Oooh, and did we save the best meal for last. I opted for savory and got a pancake cooked and topped with spinach, brie, olive oil and pine nuts (my mouth is watering as I write).


There's just a summary of my weekend. I made the most of it. Now, I have another week of classes and will be planning another excursion for next weekend. I think Paris is in the works...

Holiday

It's my second holiday spent here. I'm beginning to believe that the Europeans use any excuse to call off work or school. I have no problem with that.
I've learned a few more things about Europeans and Belgians more specifically-
basically by learning what NOT to do:
1. Don't leave your grocery shopping for Sunday, or holidays for that matter. Europeans close their shops down.
2. Don't order ketchup with your french fries. That's sooo American. Real Europeans ask for mayonnaise.
3. Everyone loves jazz, especially when it's performed on five different stages over the course of three days (my weekend).
4. Europeans love their weekend markets- so much that I could barely walk from one stand to the next without being run over by a herd of older women lugging grocery buggies.
5. They wear comfortable shoes knowing they have to walk everywhere. Unfortunately, I've learned that the hard way and have a few blisters to prove it.
Oh, the trials and tribulations of being an American. I'm still on my quest to become as European as I can while I'm here. Learning French might help.