I suck. I suck majorly. I haven’t posted in weeks. I have a few excuses, but not many and none big enough to justify the lack of posting. Expect many this week though, because it is midterms and I enjoy procrastinating. For instance, I shall discuss my travels, my foods, my occasional I-Miss-America-ness, my classes and the like. Anyway, until then…sit tight and relax?!
To those who have been reading, I apologize. I obviously have not been posting enough, but that will change!!! Additionally, I have been meaning to post more about my classes. That post is delayed because it is GARGANTUAN. Also, I will post about my trip to Bruges this week. So, fear not! Posts will come.
Now, let’s move on to the food. For most people who study abroad, the experience is largely culinary. The chance to go beyond the land of hamburgers and apple pie is savored, quite literally. These foreign lands we college students visit provide our mouths with experiences and flavors you hardly could expect ever to find at home. Brussels and Belgium, although not known as major culinary cities, certainly provide a great culinary experience for those who visit. In fact, the culinary scene here is quite unique. Many traditional Belgian restaurants serve a mix of Flemish stews and French delicacies. Belgium also has its many specialties, namely waffles, fries, beer and mussels. And yes, brussels sprouts do come from Brussels - although I have not really seen any as of yet.
Unfortunately, I came to Belgium knowing I needed to expect a different experience. My food allergies were definitely problematic at home, but America is quite advanced in that arena. Due to the unusually high occurrence of food allergies in the States, in addition to high number of those who choose to have restricted diets, there have been many companies that have developed products for those living allergen-free lifestyles. I’ve grown accustomed to soy yogurt, coconut ice cream, rice milk and my variety of baked goods. Stores like Whole Foods are treasure troves for the food intolerant. That said, I knew Europe was not on par. I didn’t know what to expect beyond having to cook all of my meals myself. I didn’t know if I’d find cookies, bread, or other packaged/produced food to fill my stomach.
In some ways, I have been pleasantly surprised. Many packaged breads are safe to eat, included delicious pre-made baguettes that are a meal in and of themselves when baked for a few minutes in the oven and served with olive oils and spices. Additionally, there are some cookies and packaged waffles I can eat as well as potato chips! Most surprisingly was the fact that one brand of soy-based products is available at almost all stores, including soy milk, pudding, yogurt and margarine. I even live in walking distance to a food intolerance store, which sells brands of cookies and rice milk ice cream. So it has not been incredibly difficult. Additionally, I’ve enjoyed packaged waffles, frozen fries and my fair share of beer. My friends and I are also planning to make our own mussels, which I could tailor to fit my needs. So I am getting more or less a taste of Brussels.
Still, I have my challenges. Sliced bread is nearly impossible to find. Additionally, most European products bear the regrettable allergy label, “May contain” (or in this case, “Peut contenir.”) The two types of cookies and three types of waffles I can have are just that, the only ones that I can have. I’ve only found two types of cereal and I can only have plain potato chips because the flavored varieties all have milk powder. Whey is in everything here, as are nuts. A few common artificial sweeteners are made with milk-based lactose. The issues go on and on, but you get the point. I cannot say that I have tried to eat in a restaurant beyond eating sushi, mainly because I do not have the confidence to do so. The combination of protective ideologies around food and language barriers makes me really cautious to ever eat out. Luckily, the high price of restaurants seems to dissuade most of my friends from eating out regularly.
The food situation, although not as horrible as expected, is still tiring. I hate to feel like I’m missing out on something. Consequently, I have decided to have my own food adventure - cooking. I know how to cook, of course. But my range of dishes and techniques was fairly limited: I make a mean fried rice and I can bake pretty much anything. Given the necessity of cooking for myself, I decided to have fun with it. I didn’t want to get stuck making pasta and sauce every night while I was here. And I’ve found the meat and produce here to be fairly affordable. Not perfect, of course, but it is a bit cheaper than New York City standards.
So far, my plan has been a success. I’ve made a variety of dishes, from a really delicious meat sauce to steak with peppers, from home fries and chicken to tonight’s dish: pork chops. I loved pork chops as a kid, especially whenever my mom cooked them in an Asian-inspired style. Seeing cheap pork chops in the grocery store (4 euros for two large chops, cheaper than chicken!), I decided to experiment. I made a sauce of oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, pineapple juice with spices (garlic, onion, pepper, cinnamon and ginger). I then added chopped peppers and onions to the sauce, with a dash of flour to thicken it. I cooked the pork chops in the sauce and made some white rice for the side. I paired the meal with a cheap but tasty white wine and had fresh kiwi fruit for dessert. The meal was delicious, see the picture below (I apologize for the blurriness, my phone’s camera sucks).
So I may not get to enjoy moules et frites or steak tartare when I hit the town, but I am having a tasty experience. It’s hard to miss Dewick when I’m having healthier, delicious meals here that I made myself. Also, this is something I can easily take back home with me. The flavors of Brussels inevitably will stay here, but the ability to cook delicious meals is a skill in and of itself. And something to be proud of.
So I’m not going to lie, I’ve been avoiding doing an update since I have so much to talk about. Not having internet has been hampering my ability to update this blog regularly, bus that will be fixed by Friday at the latest. As I write, I’m sitting in the lobby of the building that houses Vesalius College, enjoying wireless that is complimentary of the Belgian government and available at points throughout the city (all of which are far from my apartment.)
Vesalius is great, but very different in some ways from what I was expecting. The school is dominated by American students here on study abroad programs, but there are definitely plenty of European/international students who attend the school full-time. The other unexpected part for me though was the number of students here with a program. I only knew that CIEE had a program at Vesalius college, but apparent so does ISA, EPA, SUNY, and a bunch of other schools through partnerships. So I’m one of a handful of students who is his own. This knowledge doesn’t stress me out, which is surprising. I guess the hurdles I faced coming here were unavoidable in my mind. Anyway, the only thing that’s really been hard about coming here alone is being alone. Although I theoretically have a housemate, the only thing she and I share is a kitchen. She’s very nice, but I rarely see her and she’s obviously got her own life. She’s a student from Germany, very young, and in Brussels for six months through an internship she got. She’s previously studied abroad in Slovenia and Argentina, so her stories are every interesting. That said, I rarely see her. It’s not been hugely difficult to make friends, but still it’s a bit daunting. Many of the people here have already bonded with other people on their program; some even came with their friends. So I am left feeling awkward at times, trying to navigate how to become part of those friend groups. That said, I’ve gotten to be friends with about five or six people here and that’s been great. They’re very similar to my friends back at home, which is nice.
Still, being alone and not having internet is rough. I made plenty of phone calls during this time, thinking that they only cost 25 cents per minute. I was mistaken, it cost around $1.25/minute. This was a legitimate mistake on my part, but it had huge implications. I won’t list the amount that I spent making calls, but it is huge. I’m already working on plans to get a job when I return to the US to make up the money, but it’s not fun living with this extra burden. Consequently, I’m probably going to take less trips and generally save money much more than I was planning when I came here. Not that I was planning anything hugely extravagant, but I was hoping to see a lot of Europe and this may no longer happen. Sad panda.
Additionally, dealing with euros has been interesting. I always feel uncomfortable when shopping because I don’t have comfort with the exchange. I do the math in my head converting euros to dollars, but I’m still rusty. I always look for the cheapest items, but I’ve also been learning the general price points here. Things that are considered cheap here really aren’t by my standards, so that’s a bit difficult. Certain costs are unavoidable, too. Similarly, I’ve run into some trouble with the acceptance of credit/debit cards here. Because of issues with French cards, the Belgians use a different type of debit card from Americans. That said, my cards are usually accepted, but I’ve run into a handful of difficult situations. The worst was when I was doing a ton of grocery shopping at the discount grocery store to stock my apartment and ran into a situation where credit/debit cards were not accepted. This necessitated me running around to find an ATM (referred to as a MisterCash here), which proved fruitless. So, I had to put back about half of my items and make a mockery of myself in front of all the Belgian patrons of the supermarket. Quel dommage.
I’m adjusting well to life here, all in all. Brussels is really my kind of city. It’s a good mix of new and old for me. It’s not oppressively urban like New York City, but more easily accessible than Boston can be at times. I really like their Metro system and the amount of green spaces that they have. Anyway, I’m starting to tire of writing unfortunately. I will update this weekend about my classes, which have proven to be more challenging than expected, but very inspiring. Needless to say, I’m very excited!
I moved into my apartment on Tuesday, as you all know, and then started orientation at Vesalius (VeCo) on Wednesday. Unfortunately, said apartment has no internet yet and I just signed up for the Brussels free wifi service, which I can only get in certain locations. SO. I’ll update you all in depth when I get the chance. Everything is going well though! Much love!
In minutes I shall finally be leaving what has been my home for the past…however many days. I don’t want to figure out how long I’ve been here. It feels like decades, ages, centuries. But it’s only been a few days.
MY stay at 2Go4 was good. I’ve never been to a youth hostel before, let alone stayed at one, so it was something of an experience. 2Go4 is rated as one of the best in Europe, let alone Brussels, so my experience hasn’t been awful. Besides, they put me in a nicer room than I had booked because they felt bad putting me in one of their less pleasant rooms since I was staying here for much longer than their usual clients. The hostel itself is very, very clean and new-feeling. Most of the furniture is definitively from Ikea, but I like it. It’s sleek and refined and doesn’t make me feel like I need to take a shower after taking a shower. Plus, the bed I had was ridiculously comfortable.
However, there is definitely a culture to youth hostels, or at least this one in particular. 2Go4 was unique because it had a kitchen, which a majority of the people staying here frequented. I only used it to make tea and keep medications cold. But every time I went downstairs, there were people cooking, eating, and drinking. There was a particularly rowdy group of Australians that have been here during the tail-end of my stay, and I was quite amused to eat dinner while they played “Never Have I Ever” next to me. Also, they’re disgusting people and I wanted to bathe after hearing what they had done. But that’s the thing. 2Go4 attracted a much more…crunchy (?) group of people than I expected. There were some typical student travelers, like one of my recent hostel-mates, who came from California and was doing a fairly typical backpacking trip across Europe. But the usual client here has an abundance of piercings and doesn’t seem to bathe frequently. These both could be things they had picked up during their travels, I don’t know. And I don’t mean to say it’s bad. Sure, sometimes I don’t feel like taking a shower and I do have a piercing. But these people were decidedly more outgoing in a way that I’m not entirely sure I’d want to be.
I don’t really know where I’m going with this. I’m basically trying to say staying here was nice, but I’m excited to start school next week and (hopefully) be surrounded by people who are more my speed. I know I want to backpack across Europe someday and stay in plenty more hostels precisely like this one. But I’ll be more like California boy than Australian hobos. Also, I won’t travel alone. I like being alone right now, but I can tell that a backpacking adventure is most definitely the type that needs to be shared with at least one other person. I love exploring and experiencing the new culture here, but I can see how a month of that would get lonesome. That’s what I’m most excited about when it comes to school starting. I’ve really enjoyed the short amount of time here so far, but the loneliness is creeping up on me a little bit. I haven’t made a friend in Brussels yet, and that’s what I’m most looking forward to. But it’s not really that bad. I miss my friends and family back home, especially Justin. But with phone calls and Skype video chats being so easy and readily available, it’s not hard. So for now I treasure those moments more than anything as I await the friendships that will certainly/hopefully form this next week.
So here’s the mini-update. It’s ridiculous that I’ve only been here four days. At times, it feels like it’s been a month, while at other times it feels like I just stepped off the plane. I guess that’s how school always feels to me. But this still doesn’t feel real to me yet. It’s still some sort of strange vacation. That said, I’m starting to adjust fairly well to life in Brussels. I’m getting more accustomed to the metro system, which I absolutely love. Seriously though, this is possibly the best public transportation system I’ve ever used. It’s very convenient, organized and runs frequently. The only weird part for me is that it seems to run on an honor system. Many stations don’t have turnstiles or anything of the sort, so you can basically walk on through without paying. I have not done that though because I still live in fear of being expelled from the country.
I have done a bit more touristy stuff since the last post. I walked around the major park of Brussels, which was a bit underwhelming having been in my beloved Central Park less than a week ago. That said, the annual festival put on by les Théâtres Nomades was setting up for the day, which was cool to see. Plus there were plenty of beautiful statues to gaze at. Afterward, I decided to make an impromptu visit to the Royal Palace, which sits at the edge of the park. I did the tour inside and loved it. It was ridiculous the whole time though - I was in awe of how much gold and marble there was. It’s strange to see stuff like that, especially when it isn’t even the residence of the royal family (they live just outside Brussels in another palace). I dunno, something about this extravagance is off-putting. Couldn’t they sell that marble and help people? Whatever. I did some more walking around the city, touring Sablon and seeing the Manneken Pis (picture above). I still find it hilarious that the emblem of Brussels’ spirit is a boy peeing. Oh, Brussels. So classy.
The food situation has been pretty good, too! I haven’t used my hostel’s kitchen like I was expecting to, but I know I’m going to be more than alright once I get my own kitchen in my apartment, which I should be moving into this week. Reading ingredient labels in French is not that difficult and it’s all made easier because they have similar standards to America. For instance, almost all foods have some form of an allergen statement. I’ve fallen in love with the waffles I’ve eaten (I should note here that these have comprised the majority of my diet since getting to Belgium.) There’s plenty of familiar foods around. The only difficulty I’m finding is the presence of milk in unsuspecting places. Many flavored potato chips here have milk in them, as do most brands of sliced bread. The most saddening milk-tainted food were Oreos, which live up to their cookies-and-cream demeanor in Europe. Still, I can eat plenty of gaufrettes et speculoos, so everything is good.
Well, that’s all for now. I’m boring and will probably be heading to bed soon. Hopefully, I will make my next update from my new apartment on Rue Bordiau. Until then, my lovely friends and family!
So I’ve been in Brussels for two days now and what a whirlwind of an experience it has been. Well, sort of. My body is all kinds of confused by the time change, mostly because I was exhausted from a jam-packed week of packing and friends and boyfriend before leaving. Consequently, I’ve done a lot of sleeping these past two days. Thank god I chose a hostel with 24-hour access. At the moment, I’m alone in my room since my 3 Swedish hostel-mates have gone out for the evening. Yes, I’m boring and have decided to stay in tonight to relax and update this blog rather than go and get my first taste of Belgium’s famous beer. I’ve seen enough people drinking it at awkward times though (such as 9 am), so I’m good drinking it at any point apparently. I would give an exhaustive update if I had the time or the patience, but I don’t have the time or patience. So, this post will be a hodgepodge of thoughts and feelings as they pertain to the start of my four month journey. In all honesty, that’s how this blog is likely to function. I hope you enjoy.
Where to begin: OH RIGHT EUROPE IS FUCKING BEAUTIFUL. Oh, but before I get to that - let’s discuss the plane ride. It was really nice. I enjoyed the trilingual safety instruction video immensely, since it got cheesier with every language. I had a great window seat (#fuckaisles) and sat next to an Israeli couple. They thought I was vegetarian when I asked for just a tray with salad and crackers at dinner, but actually understood when I described my allergies. (Before you get worried - I didn’t starve. I cleverly ordered bloody mary mix with my tiny dinner, which tasted enough like tomato soup to keep me full. And I had half of the breakfast that they served, so all is well.) The first in-flight movie was downright atrocious (Win-Win, starring Paul Giamatti and Amy Ryan). I slept through the second one, even though I wanted to watch it (Morning Glory, with Rachel MacAdams and co.) The two highlights of my flight were courtesy of my beautiful window seat. Flying into the sunrise is something I will never forget, it was gorgeous. And then the first glimpses of Europe (the coastline of Ireland and the rural parts of Belgium) came into view at the tail-end of the flight. I just about died from the beauty.
Getting of the plane was a mind-fuck, with all of the multilingual signs and use of French. Those have been two of the many highlights of my time in Brussels thus far. I can already tell that my French is improving tremendously even after only two days. Thankfully, people here speak enough English so that I’m never really in trouble. Some people didn’t even realize I was American? I’m thinking they were just trying to flatter me. Okay back to the update. So Brussels is beautiful, despite everything I had heard to the contrary. Maybe I’m biased because I’ve never been anywhere ever, but the older parts of the city are beautiful, especially La Grande-Place, which I visited today (see the photo at top.) There is a lot of construction though at the moment, which is bothersome sometimes. The EU district is very modern, which is kind of jarring when compared to the older buildings, but I’m not too opposed given that I’m used to Florida’s ugly architecture.
The supermarkets here are great. I’ve been to Carrefour/GB and Delhaize and have had no trouble finding something I could eat. Obviously, packaged meals are a little less easy to come by, but there’s lots to choose from. I have not ventured into trying a true street waffle, since I’m sure I’m allergic, but I got a packaged one from the waffle aisle at Delhaize AND IT IS DELICIOUS. I also had the best orange juice of my life (in a sugar-rimmed glass) in a cafe on La Grande-Place. It was expensive though. That’s the other thing, it’s taking some adjustment in my head to get used to euros and doing the conversion to dollars in my head so that I actually know how much I’m spending.
Finally, I’ve done more than just sightseeing and eating/drinking. Indeed, I have conquered the two biggest hurdles necessary upon arrival. I have secured a place to live. I will be subletting a room in a townhome on Rue Bordiau near the European Commission. So far there are only two other people living in the townhome (both are young professionals who work for the Commission), but more may come. I have my own, bright little room with bed, desk, etc. And there are currently two full kitchens and a bathroom with washing machine. Eventually there will also be a TV, pool table, and internet. The townhome also has a very nice little patio. It’s really close to a metro station, so it’s only a 20 minute commute to Vesalius. Today, I got my European cellphone. It was pretty cheap (the phone was about 25 euros and I started with 15 euros of calls/texts) and Mobistar seems to be reliable.
Anyway, I’m pretty tired at the moment and shall be heading to bed soon. More updates are sure to come, especially since I’ll be doing much more exploring the next couple of days. I start orientation for Vesalius on Wednesday, so fun times are ahead. Oh yeah, I forgot I was going to school…
Hello dear readers,
I apologize profusely for delaying these posts. This past week has been hectic to say the least. Among last minute errands, my best friend and boyfriend visiting me in New York, and the packing that has gone awry, I had little time to post. I shouldn’t really blame the boyfriend, since he did remind me about Sassy Travels on more than one occasion. Alas.
I am departing the country in roughly 5 hours. I am leaving my apartment in two. So, forgive me for this short, short list, as I have little time to think at the moment. Maybe I will expand upon each of these in the coming weeks? Maybe not. But in any case, in technically 12 hours I will be in Brussels. When I arrive I must rush to my hostel, drop of my belongings and make myself presentable, before I go to find food and the find housing. I hope this all goes according to plans.
But in those moments of hectic awfulness, I know I’ll miss these five “things”:
5. Tufts University - Over the past two years, “home” has changed many times. Nowadays, nowhere feels more like home than my beloved college.
4. Warm weather - To be fair, I’d also miss this in Boston. Unfortunately, my summer will be ending fairly abruptly - Belgian summers are more like Florida winters.
3. My best friends - They give me the joy that I need. To name a few: Brittney, Hayley, Lina, Martine, Bennnnnn, T3, TTIIBoard. I miss them already.
2. My family - Gotta give props to them people that raised me. My mom helps me look at things logically. My dad helps me get my act together. My grandparents give me unconditional support and encouragement. And my sister is my reason for smiling, laughing, being who I am.
1. Yeah, yeah - Justin. It’s only been four months, so I sound kind of ridiculous probably. But I am madly in love with this boy. In my times of stress, he knows the perfect things to say to cheer me up. He’s become one of my best friends in such a short span of time and I can’t imagine anyone it’s going to be harder to be away from.
The hurdles will be updated as I arrive. That’s when the real trouble starts. Wish me luck, everyone, as I cross the Atlantic. And to those who I never got the chance to say goodbye to - I LOVE YOU. See y’all in 4 months.
Love, Sassy
So now that it’s the final countdown (SIX DAYS), I have combined these two threads and will post once a day until I leave on August 17th.
Things I’ll Miss - Texting (Easily)
I know that saying easy texting makes me out to be very spoiled. But for me, texting has become a vital form of communication with many people. For instance, with my best friend Hayley, our friendship has long been built on amusing text exchanges about the ridiculousness of our lives. And I should consider myself lucky that I’ve figured out how to send texts abroad in general (a combo of an international addition to my calling plan and an added data plan from AT&T). But, the general frustrations of the process inevitably will curtail my ability to text easily. The new process is as such: I can receive unlimited texts. To send texts, I must use one of the many websites that send free text messages. However, I don’t have a smartphone. So accessing the internet is quite annoying. The java program must load. I must type in the URL. The page must load. I must type in phone number and a no-more-than-150-character text. So, I will probably really curtail my texting over the next few months. It’s a small loss, yes, but it’s also something that will make me feel that much further from home.
The Fourth Hurdle: Luggage
In preparation for my transatlantic travels, I decided to purchase new luggage. This was probably the easiest of all the hurdles that I have faced and that I will face. I have been lucky that my old, reliable suitcase was so large. It easily could fit a good chunk of my wardrobe without much trouble. So on something of a whim, I went to Macy’s to look at their luggage. This is easy enough at normal Macy’s. What makes this a hurdle for me is that my Macy’s is the Miracle on 34th Street Macy’s. So every tourist and their mother is in between me and my beautiful new luggage. After a less than comfortable elevator ride, I find myself on a floor filled with beautiful luggage. Right in front of me in Tumi and Samsonite. And their price tags. Even after the (surprise!) 50% sale being run on all luggage, these suitcases cost upwards of $300. WHAT?! But then I strolled around the floor and found cheaper luggage. One suitcase caught my eye. It was bright blue and had the coolest feature ever!!! (It was a little handle that when pulled could sense whether the suitcase and its contents were over 50 lbs.) I quickly realized though that I knew nothing about what distinguishes a good suitcase from a dud. So, I gave up my search and went home to research suitcases. Surprise! When I got home and looked up suitcase ratings, the blue beauty was well rated! The next day, with mother and sister in tow, we returned to Macy’s to get the blue beauty. Everything was going fine until we met the most enthusiastic salesperson ever. But actually, she was crazy. And when we strayed from blue beauty for a few moments to look at one its lighter (and slightly cheaper) competitors, she flipped out and would not leave us be. So blue beauty won out in the end. He now sits in my living room, awaiting clothing. And that shall be the next hurdle, how to pack for unknown climates as a gay Floridian.
Now, I really shouldn’t complain here. Unlike the vast majority of students who study abroad, my classes will all be in English. In my own defense, I’m attending a college that is a division of a Flemish university, so I would literally have no idea what was being said if that were not the case.
Still though, traveling to Belgium will prove to be the most French I’ve ever spoken, period. Belgium, for those who don’t know, is an oddball of a country. The northern region (Flanders) speaks Flemish (Dutch) and the southern region (Wallonia) speaks French, with small pockets of communities in the East that speak German. Brussels, which technically is in Flanders, is officially bilingual. That being said, certain parts of the city are supposed to be Flemish-only, but the city largely speaks French. Here’s what complicates the matter: Flemish and French people hate each other. Well, they don’t hate each other - Belgium is basically after Switzerland in the list of most peaceful countries in the world ever. But the two regions are in much political conflict, especially when it comes to language. And you don’t want to mess up and speak the wrong language to the wrong person. Common sense would have it that I should just use English! Many Europeans speak English right? Yes, many do and many Belgians do. Although even this is complicated. As I was told by my family friends who lived in Brussels for about 2.5 years, you always want to request to speak to a Flemish operator whenever calling a phone company or something of the sort. This is because almost all Flemish people speak perfect English, whereas the French are typically less capable of speaking English.
This all being said, I’ve already had to become accustomed to the areas in life where English is not an option. The most difficult for me (and most life-or-death) are ingredient labels on packaged food. These rarely come in English, since Flemish and French are indeed the official languages of the country. Consequently, I have had to learn words I never needed to know before in French, such as whey and albumen. Some of these are cognates; some are not. This all is fine - obviously after 6 years of French I am capable of learning new vocabulary. What is scary though is the fact that these words rarely “jump” out at me. I really have to second guess each word. For instance, I know that the word ‘farine’ means flour. However, every time I read it I initially think it means cheese. ‘Fromage’ is cheese. Not ‘farine’. Silly Sassy. But for reals, this shit scares me. Beyond the ingredients labels, I’ve lately been dealing with contacting potential roommates and landlords about the whole living situation. Except I’ve been doing this mainly in French. I know very little French when it comes to stuff like that. For instance, I’m pretty sure one person told me that they couldn’t afford furniture but I was free to bring my own. Yeah, not happening François. Oy, I just want to speak English like the good ol’ American that I am. This is making me seriously doubt my ability to be a citizen of the world.
