Ha! I'm still posting at least once a month! (sort of) :)

It has been a busy time in the country of cold rain.  I have been doing so much and having a really good time.  I shall sum up.

Christmas is honestly the worst part of exchange, I think.  Even though I loved my first host family and had a really good time, it just isn't the same.  I missed my family a lot (first time all exchange), and, even though my host family tried to include me, I couldn't help but feel like an outsider.

But that passed, aided by my friends in Belgium as well as the til-5-in-the-morning Skype session I had with my friends in Iowa.  Don't worry, though.  At most, I talk to my friends in the States once a month, and usually not terribly long.  It's always sad getting off with them, but I like saving little stories to tell them when I get back home.

My host family took me on two mini vacations in late December/early January. I got to chose the place for the first one, and we went to Provins, a historic village close to Paris, and Versailles for two days.  I learned so much about history, culture, and hos to decorated a palace (though I still get the distinct feeling that all the gold in Louis XIV's bedroom has to be compensating for something).  We stayed overnight in a mill-turned-B&B, and it was so lovely that I'm considering it for a honeymoon.

The second vacation was to Amsterdam for the day.  The two other girls from my host club came, along with a girl from Taiwan and my chill friend Alene from Canada (read her blog!).  We had what had to be one of the best days of my exchange.  We went to the museum of Anne Frank, took a boat ride, ate Chinese, checked out cute Dutch boys, looked at thousands of bikes, and even walked through the red lights district, which was only a little awkward, nothing like it would have been with my real family.  I managed to lose my sandwich on the way home, but other than that, it was perfect (and fear not, we found it again.)  So, if you're reading this, First Host Family, merci beaucoup! Je vous aime :)

I spent New Years in Brussels with a bunch of my exchange friends.  We hung out together, watched fireworks, and hit up a club (and I swear we only got in because we were foreign).  We all had a good time, dancing til dawn, and I slept soundly until three in the afternoon.

I switched families, and I really like this one already.  My host mom introduces me as her fifth daughter and takes such good care of me.  I tell her all my problems and she's really understanding and sweet.  So, yes, I am well in my new family.

My big brother and little sister are coming!!!! I'm so excited!!!!!

I'm on my third journal of crazy adventures.  I write every day in school and put all sorts of random stuff in it.  Beer labels, candy wrappers, museum tickets, etc.  I have so much to tell everyone, and not enough time to write it all down.

Before I go, I have one last exciting piece of news.  I MET ADRIEN BRODY, the actor.  The real one. He came to my town for the local film festival to present his new movie, DETATCHMENT, which is a critique of the american school system which I recommend to everyone who wouldn't get offended by a prostitute character.  Anyway, I asked the director, who was also there, a question about the levels of detatchment in the film and he answered.  They were about to move on to another question but Adrien was like, "Wait, I have to say something." And so he anwsered my question even further.  YES, DEAR READERS, HE SPOKE TO ME.

For those of you who had to look up Adrien Brody (like me when my host mom said he'd be there), and for those of you that like classy men, here's a picture.

Yeah, I like this country.

-Greta

PS. Went to Gent and I decided that the Flemish side of the line is pretty chill.

St. Nicolas and Happiness

It has been quite a while since I last posted.  Time has flown by so quickly!  It's hard to believe that I've been here almost four months, but, then again, when I look at my journal and re-read my entries, I am always so supprised. "That happened only last week?  That was yesterday?" I say to myself.  My entire concept of time is so askew that if I didn't get out of school early Wednesdays, I doubt I would be able to figure out the day of the week.

I absoltely love my exchange.  I feel deeply sorry for anyone who didn't get lucky enough to go to Belgium.  It's the best country in the world, probably.  I love its green-ness, the bluffs in the south, the way the churches look in front of a grey sky.  It's December and there isn't snow, but that isn't a problem, because I have to walk to school.  I love that I can get on a train and litterally go anywhere in Europe (not saying I've done that).  I just love this place a lot.

Also, in Belgium, there is St. Nicolas Day, which is basically like an extra Christmas on the 6th of December.  Best holiday ever, and only a tiny bit racist (St. Nic has a black-face partner who definatly wouldn't be allowed in the USA.)  Basically, for the holiday, people just give you candy for the week leading up to it.  Not gonna lie, I'm going to miss it.

My French is getting better.  I hope, at least.  I understand nearly everything if I pay attention, and this morning, I woke up and realized that my dream had been entirely in French.  Granted, when I speak, I still make lots of erreurs, but it's getting better.  It's no longer difficult to talk and write.  Okay, that's a lie.  Talking and writing are still hard, but I no longer feel like curling up in a ball and crying when I have to do it. 

And I have friends.  I have friends who love me, and friends that I love more than I ever thought I could platonically love somebody.  Sure, I'm not best buddies with everyone, not even all the exchange students, but the friends I do have will be my friends for life, or I will cry buckets of salty, beer scented tears and go broke from calling their international numbers all the time. 

Recieved my first package from home.  It was from my Oma, who's cool.  I couldn't wait until Christmas to open it.  Thanks, Oma!

So, exchange may be going fabulously, and things are getting easier, but I still have an unerring tendancy to make embarassing mistakes in front of cute boys.  For exaple, today I managed to go to the wrong final.  Case and point.  Good thing I don't have to worry about grades this year.

If you love me and/or are related to me, please send money.  I am broke. 

Bisous!

Greta ;)

Things I Love about Belgium, part one

Sorry for never posting.  I've been pretty busy.  And by busy, I mean traveling.  I went to London last week during the break, and I loved it.  I saw the Globe Theater and the Rosetta Stone.  I'd write more, but I've already written so much about my trip to so many people and in my jounal that you're just going to have to make do with that. 

After my four days in the beautiful country of England, I went back to school and spent Friday, a holiday, in Brugge with my host parents, which is one of the most visited cities in the world because it's super beautiful and awesome.  We went to art musames, went on a boat ride, ate in a delicious restraunt, and I bought chocolate.  It was a good day. 

The next day was Saturday, and one of my new friend's birthdays.  Her host mom had planned a sweet suprise party, and my friend just about peed her pants when we all jumped out from behind the curtains.  It was a good night. 

I've had a couple Skype interview with colleges, and I've already been accepted into a couple, so I know that I'm not going to be a bum when I get back to the states. 

I don't know what else to say, so I made a list of everything I love about Belgium.

Fountain pens
Realizing that I understand something
Having better English than my English teacher
Getting a zero on a test and saying 'c'est pas grave' (no big deal)
Keys to doors and wardrobes
Wardrobes
The food at Rotary meetings (seriously, in London, I went through withdrawl symptoms)
Seeing cathedral spires on my walk to school
Churchbells
Being in a place with a history
The desserts
The chocolate
French accents when people try to sing in English
French commercials
Cursive, even if it is hard to read
Other exchange students
Making American chocolate chip cookies
Watching the world pass by from a train window
Chalkboards
Kissing people (expecially cute boys) on the cheek to say hello
Skinny jeans
Natural yougurt with organic sugar
Fresh bread
The smell of fresh bread
Music on the radio
All the swans
People who complement my progress in French
Metrosexual men
The way my name sounds with a French accent
Graph paper
Waffles
Liege waffles
Having different classes everyday
The intro to Secret Story (a kinda stupid show)
The freedom
The people I meet
The people who let me hang out with them even if my French sucks
My host family
My second host family
The colors in the trees this time of year
Seeing the blue of the sky after so much grey
French swear words
The great relationship that I have with my real family now that we only talk once a month
Being an exchange student
Being able to take a train nearly anywhere
Teachers that don't get mad if I don't pay attention
The food
Having better stories

I am never going home

And by 'home', I mean Iowa.  I love Belgium.  I want to go to college here. I want to buy a house with other exchange students and live here forever.  When I hear love songs on the radio, I think of Belgium...

So, a little about my life here before I get carried away.  Last Wednesday, I went to a city called Louvain-La-Neuve.   It's a place with 98 percent college students and 2 percent professors.  Everyone lives in crapy apartments and it's super cool.  Wednesday the celebration 24 heure Velo, when there are bikes going around on the bike track for twenty four hours.  And they weren't just normal bikes, but tricked-out bikes that looked more like parade floats than something you'd want to take on RAGBRAI.

Yeah, that was cool, except the part when I missed my train because I was looking for the other girl who was supposed to be on the same train and a little bit of cell phone confusion.

Friday, I had a halloween party, and I'd like to thank the Brazilians for taking over the music.  It was awesome, and, even though halloween isn't really a big deal here, I had lots of friends who came in costume.  After that, I went out on town with some of the coolest people in the world (my exchange friends) and we had a blast.  I love meeting new people when I go out, and Friday night, we go really lucky.

Right now, I'm staying with my future second home.  My sister is in my class at school, and my future mom is great.  They like cats, horses, and singing.  That's kinda like the story of my life.  They have a kitten names Mushu, like the dragon from Mulan, and, if you know me at all, you'll know that Mulan is kinda like my hero.  And then we had chocolate for breakfast.  I think I'm going to really like it here. :)

Yeah, so, life is good.  I'm happy.  I feel really sorry for my real family, because I'm planning on seeing them like once a year for the rest of my life.  But I love Belgium, and I love who I am here--more wild, less judgmental, and not exactly fearless, but a whole lot less afraid to make mistakes.  And so, give me three reasons to come back and maybe I'll visit for Christmases.

Also, I love French. I mean, I still love English a lot, but sometimes, I'll be thinking of a poem, and I use the two languages, and than I'm like 'crap.' French is just so much more beautiful, and the books in French are deeper and more philosophical, and...it's just really nice.

I love Belgium.

:)

Sometimes, I feel like I'll never be dry again

Today marks my two month anniversary of being in the beautiful country of Belgium, and, unfortunately, I can't feel my toes. It rained on my way to school today, and I got really soaked. I need to crack down and buy some rainboots and an umbrella.  I'm not sure how I made it through two months without those essentials.

I've been starting to have some really great days.  Not every moment is filled with excitement and energy, but I'm having conversations with classmates and understanding sarcasm.  The first month really is the hardest, and I understand now that it's not going to magically be easy someday; I have to work at everything.  But, really, things are better.  I have people who are nice to me (and say I'm nice too!) and my French progresses a little every day. 

I've Skyped my family twice since I've been here, and I'm really glad that I'm not doing it more.  I mean, I love my family, sometimes, but I really don't miss them.  Except my little sister, which is weird because we didn't really get along well before I left.  It's my friends that I miss a lot.  I see things all the time that I want tell them about, so I write them postcards and try to deal with it. I know it will take a while to have Belgian friends that I'm close to like that, but trying to make them is part of the experience.

I'm really lucky to have a nice Rotary club.  I've heard a lot of stories about kids who rarely went to the meetings and never participate in the activities, but I like my club a lot.  They always ask me if I have any problems and if I'm making friends, and the president is really nice.  When I told him that I wanted to be a writer and miss reading in English, he got me a copy of The Wind in the Willows, which is really a charming little book.  :)

Speaking of books, last night I finished my first book in French.  Oscar et la dame rose.  It's about a ten-year-old kid in a hospital, dying of cancer.  The whole story is written in letters to God, and it's really, really sad.  I didn't understand every word, but I got the gist of the story.  It is a beautiful book and I encourage the litterary types out there to search for a translated copy.

I think I forgot to mention some unique Belgian things, like fries with mayo (I don't even like mayonaise, but OHSOGOOD) and that everyone wears scarves.  They pay 50 percent taxes here, drink coffee after dessert, and stay out late.  The streets are cobblestone, thus impossible to navigate in high heals, and nearly everyone has perfect skin.  They don't eat peanut butter, but the speculos is amazing, and life, generally, is pretty good. 

Je suis content être en Belgique. 

Bisous!

Greta

Cock-A-Doodle-Do is the Funniest Sound a Rooster Can Make

Seriously.  Everyone laughed for about a minute when I told them. 

I also have to note that, about three hours after I posted 'Pic est Mort', we recieved the family of Pic (his mate and two children).  They are named Picette, Pico, and Pic.  They built their nest in the garden and will hibernate for the winter.

I'm not quite two months into my adventure, but I'm already finding it hard to keep posting regularly.  My weekends are just so action packed, and I have choir Monday night, then Wednesday is middle of the week break night, so I don't want to post then, Thursdays I don't finish school until past 5 o' clock, and Friday night is Friday night.  I know I'm making excuses, but prepare to have the posts slowing down.

I had a crazy weekend.  It was awesome and wonderful, and I didn't realize the importance of sleeping during a 60 hour period until I could barely keep my eyes open while trying to sing Mozart's Requiem yesterday.  I just kept saying to myself 'I can sleep when I get back to the states.' Next time, I'll plan crashing time.

School is school, and I think I finally figured out a good schedule for me.  I basically got to pick and choose all the classes that I wanted and nudged them around so I get out early Friday.  It's not like my courses actually matter, since I've already graduated, and I really don't understand them at all.  In fact, I think passing notes in French is better for my language skill than trying to pay attention to the lectures.  Mostly, I doodle in the margines or write little notes to myself. 

In Belgium, we go to school for a lot longer, and I'm pretty sure there's more homework, but they don't seem as intense as my Central Academy courses (but it's way harder than most Valley classes.)  It's really hard to compare them right now, and I'm sure I'll do a better job when I understand them more. 

My weekend, as I mentioned before, was awesome.  There was a meeting for all of the exchange students where they talked about the trips and the rules for them.  It was terribly boring, but I love all the exchange kids enough that it was a blast.  Then we all went on a boat ride, which was fun but my feet almost froze off, and then they let us go.  A bunch of us hung around though and bonded. 

After that, I took the train to a little villiage for a soirée.  It was all about learning to swing dance, but most of the kids were already really good at it.  Me?  I've never been the most graceful swan on the pond, but I really enjoyed myself. 

Sunday, I went to Brussles and spent the day with more exchange students sightseeing until we were tired of the rain. 

I don't want you all to think I just hang out with exchangers.  I meen, I sort of so, but I'm starting to have Belgian friends too.  It's really hard when you don't really speak the language, but it's coming along.  I've always found it a little difficult to make friends, and being an exchange student doesn't make it easier (except when you meet other exchange students) but give it time, I think.

Oh, yeah, did I mention that I'm going to London?  No, I don't think I did. 

Oh, yeah.  Going to London.

Pic est Mort (and Other Tradgies)

So the hedgehog died.  Granted, we didn't have it very long, and all it really did was curl up in terror and shuffle around the garden, but that was a sad day.

Life as an exchange student is crazy.  Emotions are totally out of proportion, and mood swings happen about as often as family meals.  There are times when everything seems to go against me (the language, for example) and other times when it feels like you completly belong.  I've had horrible days when all I want is to curl up and cry because I really miss my friends and family and moments when I can't even imagine leaving this country.  With the other exchange students, there is an instant conection, which I totally didn't believe until I felt it.  I think it's because we're all battling the same emotional roller coaster.  I just want to be friends with all of them, hang out all the time, and never, ever say good bye.  It's so weird for me, but I already love them, after just a few conversations.

Speaking of which, I didn't have school on Tuesday, so a bunch of exchange students and I went to Anvers/Antwerpen/Antwerp for the day.  It was a lot of fun, but we didn't have much time.  We hit up the Diamond Musame, where we saw the world's largest uncut diamond and a lot of other sparkly things.  After, we walked to one of the cathedrals, but you had to pay money to go inside, so we just hung out, bought cheep flags, and bonded.  I said this before, but I love them.

No big deal or anything, but that's the train station.  It's even prettier on the inside.

School in Belgium is hard.  More difficult than Valley, less difficult than Central.  In fact, I actually understand some things in school, just because I already studied them.  Every time I have science, I thank Mrs Stroope for AP Bio.  I didn't understand it in English, but now I have a chance to comprehend in French.  Mostly, though, I just sit there in class, trying to take notes or hear something that I recognize, but I usually end up writing (which I've always done in school), and I've already finished one short story. 

Went kayaking with the exchange students in a really beautiful part of Belgium yesterday, and my arms are sore today.  I really like kayaking for the first hour or so, though.

I have so much more to say, but I'm tired from too many days with not enough sleep.  I may or may not write another time this week, because this is just a short post.

Until then,

Greta