Antwerp, Spain & Germany

So much has happened since my last update!! In the past three weeks I've traveled to Antwerp, Spain, and Germany!! It's so amazing how, here in Europe, with just a short train or flight you can end up in a completely different place.

The last weekend in January a few girlfriends and I went for a day trip to Antwerp, a city in Belgium. After a short train ride there, we walked around a bit before we passed the Rubenshuis museum and decided to go in. This was the home of Peter Paul Rubens, a prominent painter and architect in the seventeenth century. The paintings were cool, but my favorite part was the Italian-influenced villa that he designed himself, which is now the museum (picture below).

We then made our way to the middle of the city to see the famous Onze Lieve Vrouwe-Kathedraal (Cathedral of Our Lady), a large church constructed in the 13th century. I couldn't fit the entire church in my picture, below is the best I could do. After seeing the church, we decided it might be an experience to go to mass, so at noon, we became the only tourists left in this church. It was wonderful! Mass was spoken in Dutch, but just being there was enough and at times when the Lord's Prayer or Apostles' Creed were spoken we at least knew what was happening. It's obvious that Christianity is a universal religion, but it's a cool feeling to see people of a very different background practice it and to have that commonality with them, even if we couldn't understand anything being said.

After walking around town some more, visiting the river and eating at a fun chocolate fondue place, we decided to head home.

February started off with a big bang! Last minute, me and my friend Jackson made plans to visit Spain for the weekend. Our plans were to fly from Brussels to Madrid Friday morning, fly from Madrid to Valencia early Sunday and head back home on Monday. Things didn’t start off so smooth. Friday morning I learnt Brussels has two airports! Yes, we went to the wrong one. After traveling to the other airport, missing our flight and cashing out some unplanned bucks, we were able to find a different way to Madrid. Instead of a direct flight, we flew to a city called Valladolid and took a train to Madrid (we at least got to see the country side of Spain).

Once we FINALLY arrived in Madrid, we checked into our hostel (which was smack in the middle of the city) and explored our surroundings. Because we missed out on an entire day of Spain, we made it an early night so we could make the most of Saturday. The next morning our first stop was at the Prado art museum. I think I’ve seen more art museums than anyone since being in Europe. There are only so many art works that one can look at of Jesus and the Virgin Mary before they all blend into one. There was, though, a really fascinating exhibit of an artist called Francis Bacon that we saw. Francis Bacon is actually a very recent artist, he did most of his work between the 40s and 70s. Just by first glance of his work, you could tell he must have been a pretty messed up man. He drew many pictures of humans “in the flesh”, as that is all he believed we really were. Afterwards, we walked to the nearby Retiro Park. It was beautiful! We spent some time at a small lake in the park that seemed to be a popular place (see picture below). We then began our walk to the other side of town to see the Royal Palace. This palace was huge, and it was situated right next to a beautiful cathedral. The view from the back of the Palace was breathtaking. You could see the outskirts of the city and some mountains in the distance.

The cathedral next to the Palace Me, with the view from the Palace

Our exciting day was yet to be over, I forgot to say, we bought tickets to see a soccer game later that night, a REAL MADRID soccer game! The game started at 7 o'clock, so we got there extra early to beat the crowd and so we could watch the team warm up. The staduim was huge. I think it seats 80 thousand people?!!! It was obvious these games are what some people live for. There was one section in the staduim right behind the goal post, that the fans were standing and singing chants the whole time. They were what created the fun atmosphere.

We really did so much more than these things in Madrid, but no one has time to read my long blogs, nor do I have the desire to write in more excess than I already have. :)

Sunday we had to wake up at 4:30 am to catch our flight to Valencia. It was early. But when we got there, it was so worth it. Valencia is a beautiful town on the coast of Spain. Valencia isn't much of a tourist town during the winter. The only thing to really do there is to relax and hang out on the beaches. This would be the ideal place to go for a week in the summer and just take it easy. When we arrived we dropped our things off at the hostel and started walking towards the beach. I think this might have been my favorite part of the entire trip to Spain. The pictures I took of the beach don't give it justice. We spent a lot of our day there. The weather was perfect, probably around 60 F. We sat on the beach for a while watching some locals play soccer - it was quite comical actually -, then found a restaurant to each lunch. After the beach, we made our way downtown (where there isn't much to see), and then came back to the hostel and cooked dinner. Yes, we had our own kitchen AND a living room in our hostel - and we only paid 20 euros each for one night. Talk about luxury!

You can imagine after a weekend like this, I didn't want to go home. But, class and my internship awaited me in Brussels. This week at my internship I actually got to know my MEP, Dr. Grassle a bit better. Tuesday, I was working in the library and as 7 o'clock rolled around, and no one was answering my e-mails from upstairs, so I decided to head to the upstairs office to see if I could leave. When I walked in, everyone was in Dr. Grassle's office drinking wine and eating cheese, so of course, I joined in! After about an hour, Dr. Grassle invited us to go to an Italian restaurant for dinner, so everyone (the three interns, and Dr. Grassle's assistant) eagerly joined in. We had a nice girl's night drinking red wine and eating freshly made pasta :)

This past weekend five friends and I went to Cologne, Germany! There isn't really much to do in Cologne, except to go see the Dom, but we bought soccer tickets for Saturday so everyone was excited for this weekend trip. Saturday we got up early to go see the Dom. The Dom (the Cologne Cathedral) is the only thing this city is really known for, other than the Carnival (a drunken festival where people dress up and make fools of themselves), which we were one week too early for :(. We paid one euro to climb one of the large doms, and from the top, you could see the entire city!

View from the top of the Dom and the girls, by the Rhein River, the Dom in the background.

At 3:30, we arrived at the stadium to see FC Koln play! The fans there were mad. It must be something about the Germans, because you would assume the Real Madrid game would be more intense than this smaller league game was, but no way - they won by a long shot. The game ended in a tie, kind of anti-climatic, but it was still worth every penny.

While I was in Germany, I also ate a Leberkase sandwich :). mmmmmmmm!

Wow, I've had a really good month :). I'm so lucky to have this opportunity to be studying and interning in Europe and I'm even more grateful that I've been able to travel so much and experience what else there is to Europe. Next Friday my mom is coming to visit! I'm SO excited! I miss my family and friends so much, but I know it has been easier for me than it has for them, because I'm here doing all these amazing things and keeping very busy. While she's here we have planned to take a trip over the weekend to a city in Belgium called Bruges. I also hope to give her a taste of Brussels, and show her how I've been living here. I'm sure she will come back with many good things to say about Belgium!

With love - Lindsey

Amsterdam

So I’ve found the perfect time to do my blogs… While I’m at the laundromat! It’s so close to my place that I can actually get internet service from here. Bonus! I’ve actually been sitting here the past 10 minutes trying to translate the words on the box of detergent that I bought, praying that I don’t find the word “bleach” anywhere. I probably should have thought of that before I used it.

My house is the white one to the right of the brick house!! (I'm on the second floor)

(the laundromat!!)

Since last week, I’ve been getting used to the life that I will be living the next few months. I thought I had got the hang of the transit system, but then took the wrong tram going to school, (a straight shot from where I live) causing me to be late for my second class. My first day of work was on Tuesday this week, which I also showed up late for (not because I overslept – mom). My roommate Caitlin and I got a letter in the mail last week in French. I guess after a few days Caitlin thought it be a good idea to translate it to see what it said. It was a letter telling us that we had to appear at our local police station before Tuesday so they could confirm that we were, in fact, living in the studio and so our registration process at the commune could continue. Long story short, we got lost finding the station causing me to show up 30 minutes late for my first day of work. I don’t think they were so bothered though; later that evening (they kept me there until 7:30), Dr. Grässle (the member of parliament that I am assigned to) invited me to have a glass of champagne with her and we toasted to my arrival.

My first few days of work have been good. They actually have been giving me hard and legitimate work. My first assignment was to read a 20 some page paper on the Agencies in the European Union (you wouldn’t want me to explain in any more detail), and summarize it in my own words. If I’m not mistaken, Dr. Grässle reads these summaries before meetings so she can be reported on relevant information. There are two other interns working in the office with Dr. Grässle. They both have been very nice and have shown me the ropes around the Parliament, which is a huge building. There are two cafeterias, a library (which I’ve been doing most of my work in), dry cleaner, travel agency, newspaper shop, a few cafes and probably many other things I have yet to discover.
The square in front of the parliament Part of the Parliament building

Last weekend, four other friends and I traveled to Amsterdam! It was a great weekend trip. While we were there we toured Anne Franks house, visited the Heineken Brewery (which was my favorite – see picture below), and went to the Rijks Museum of Art and History. Besides all of the museums that we went to, we also did a lot of walking. We got lost a few times, but Amsterdam is a beautiful city to get lost in. Almost everywhere you turn, canals line the street. Apparently just a month earlier, some of the canals were frozen over and people were able to ice skate on them! For a good laugh, we also took a walk to the red light district to see if it was all it’s made out to be. I don’t think I’ll go there again.

ME! In the Heineken Brewery!

Tomorrow I will be traveling to Antwerp, a city in Belgium, for the day. Antwerp is the second largest harbor of Europe, is the diamond center of the world, and is supposed to be one of the best fashion cities of the world. I’ll let ya’ll know how it goes. My friends and I have also bought tickets to go see FC Köln, Cologne Germany’s soccer team, the second week in February. I was recommended to go see this team by a die hard European soccer fan (thanks Joel), and he says they’re games have an awesome atmosphere, so this is something I’m really looking forward to.

Well right now the third episode of The Bachelor just finished downloading on itunes, so I’ll say goodbye for now so I can catch up on my American reality TV!!

Love from Belgium - Lindsey

Bonjour!

Hello all!

I’ve created this blog to keep everyone updated on my travels abroad to Brussels, Belgium – the capital of Europe – this semester! Hopefully my time spent here will be a life changing experience that will open up many opportunities for me in the future!

Firstly, I promise all of my blogs won’t be this long, I just waited a bit too long to do my first one :). During my time in Brussels I will be studying at the Vesalius College and also interning at the European Parliament (how exciting!!). On Saturday, January 10th, my dad and I arrived in Brussels. I was lucky enough to have him agree to accompany me here early so I could enjoy a few days of getting to know the city with him. On Sunday, we found a local Belgian who specialized in giving tours around Brussels and the surrounding area. He knew a lot about the country’s history and architecture, and he was even born the day that Belgium was liberated from the Germans all the way back in 1944!!

Monday was the beginning of my life (at least until May) here in Brussels. The program director planned for all the students to meet at the hotel that we would be staying in until Friday, when we moved into our permanent housing. The rest of the week’s agenda included orientation at Vesalius College, a tour of the European Parliament, and exploring the city of Brussels. At orientation on Wednesday we received our class schedules, heard a few speeches, took a tour of the college, and were able to meet other students attending Vesalius. The college is very small, classes aren’t any larger than 35 people, an atmosphere I’m not used to after going to UNCC. Vesalius also has a student government that organizes monthly get togethers, so they planned for us to meet back at the college that night so they could show us a few popular bars downtown. One bar they took us to had more than 2000 beers!!! We made sure to get home early enough, though, because we would be taking the tour of the parliament the next morning!

This was one of my most favorite parts of the week. When we toured they gave you a headset (that can play in all official languages of the EU – which I think is 22), and they took you into the debate chamber where they have their party plenary sessions which cover approval of reports by committees and questions to the commission and council. These plenary sittings are held in public so I’m hoping I’ll be able to attend one during my stay here!

The debate chamber in the Parliament

The group in front of all the flags of the EU

Friday, all the people from my program were finally able to move into our permanent housing, which we were all very excited about. Myself and one other girl are staying in a studio in a commune near the university (Brussels is divided by communes – they have 19); the other 4 girls are living in a house together where the family lives on the first floor and they have the top two, and the one gentleman in our group got his own studio. As some of you may know, I have been spoiled throughout my college years and haven’t had to have a roommate (at least one living in the same bedroom), so when we moved in, I have to admit, I was in a state of shock the first day. My roommate and I are sharing a trundle (see picture below), and we have one dresser, one desk, a pretty nice kitchen, and a bathroom (and no TV). I will just say, this will take some getting used to. There are many benefits though, with my accommodation. It’s directly next to a bus and tram stop, where the bus can take me downtown, and the tram is only a 5 minute ride to campus. It is also close to many restaurants, bakeries, butcher shops, and has a laundromat directly across the street. With all these delicious options for food near me, you might say I will be coming back 10 pounds heavier, but with the price of food here, I’ll probably resort to starving myself near the end of my trip so I can get all the traveling in that is needed (just kidding mom and dad).

Our trundle bed..

The rest of the weekend I spent touring Brussels and getting to know the area where I’m living. Sunday, I went to the Museum of Natural History with a few friends, which was really exciting! It had a Dinosaur Gallery (the biggest in Europe), a gallery on different animals ranging from whales and other marine mammals to insects you can find all over the world, among other things.

A big dinosaur!

the mouth of a huge whale!!!

Monday was my first day of class, which went very well. I’m taking the European Economy and Introduction to the European Union (which will be a great help with my internship). Today I had my interview with my supervisor at the parliament! I’m working in the offices of a German Member of the Parliament (MEP), Ingeborg Grässle. My program director told us we may not even meet our MEP (considering how busy they are and all the traveling that they do), but I was able to meet her today! There are four other people working for Dr. Grässle, which is a very busy office for a normal MEP. I was told that there would be a maximum of 2 people, so telling from that, Dr. Grässle must be a busy woman and I can expect to learn a lot by working in her office. Dr. Grässle is a member of the Committee on Bugetary Control (which she is also the speaker for), the Committee on Budgets, and the Delegation for relations with the countries of the Andean Community. What all this entails, I’m not quite sure yet, but hopefully I can learn quickly. Besides the Parliament being split by country, it is also split by the political party that the MEP is a part of. Dr. Grässle is in the Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats), which is the most conservative group you will find in the parliament so that is also good news!! Their office is also located on the top floor of the Parliament! There is an amazing view of the entire city, you can even see the Atonium (the atom shaped structure built for the 1958 Universal Exhibition in Brussels) which is on the outskirts of town.

On the bus ride home from my interview today, I spotted a cheese shop! If you don’t know, I love cheese, and have been searching all over Brussels for a fromagerie – I’m practicing my French! The man inside was very nice, and I asked him if he spoke English then told him to cut me a big slice of his favorite Belgian cheese. I wish I could read what he wrote it was, either way, I came home and had a Brötchen with some cheese on it :) .

I miss everyone very much! Until next time – Lindsey

PS. Don’t hesitate to keep in contact with me by e-mail or skype (I have a 704 # you can dial that will go to my computer)
Skype name – loggy1987
Skype # - 704-557-0322
e-mail – logden@uncc.edu