My First Family Visitors!

This weekend I played semi-host to Scott and Becky, my cousin and his wife on my dad's side of the family. I say semi mostly because I really didn't do much in terms of leading them in the right directions (my only suggestions were where to eat 2 of the 3 nights...).  It was so comforting and nice to see two familiar faces for a whole weekend!

Friday night, they arrived in Brussels fairly late, so we were able to go out to dinner at one of the best known mussel restaurants in Brussels, Aux Armes de Bruxelles. It was absolutely delicious! The muscles were so good, I ate almost my whole pot of them, and let me tell you, the pots aren't small! We then headed down the street to Delirium, a local bar with the most Belgian beers on tap in Brussels. It was fun, we were able to catch up and share some stories. We also spotted some of my friends from the program on the way out. One of the boys, Peter, had had my Aunt Susan (Scott's mom) for a teacher in high school, and he was absolutely THRILLED to meet Scott. I'm not sure words can express the look of delight on his face. It was entertaining to me, to say the least.

Saturday, I slept in and worked on some things I needed to get done, while Scott and Becky headed to Bruges. I was able to relax a little bit, which was really, really nice. That night, we went out to a restaurant in the Ixelles area called "Les Brassins." It was a low key, fun place. The food was really great, too. 

I spent all day today touring around with Scott and Becky. I met them at their hotel around 10 this morning, and we headed out to explore a little bit of Brussels. First, we stopped and got some coffee (to wake us up!). Then, we headed to the Musee des Beaux-Arts, or the Fine Arts Museum. It had a lot of very cool paintings in it, done by Belgian artists. I was also able to see a couple of Matisse paintings, which I really enjoyed, since Matisse is my favorite artist. 

After this, we stopped for lunch at Le Pain Quotidien before heading to the Cathedral of Brussels. The Cathedral was absolutely beautiful, and had really stunning stain glass windows. They are currently excavating the floor below the church, and in one of the small areas where we were able to see down through to the bottom, there were leg bones sticking out...dead and buried a long time ago! Interesting and cool, yet very odd and slightly creepy. Soon after the Cathedral, we headed to the Museum of Natural Sciences, where we saw exhibits about dinosaurs, evolution and prehistory. It was a HUGE museum and really, really interesting. I had been wanting to go here for a while, so I was glad to get the chance.

Tomorrow morning, the six of us girls head off to Barcelona for our week long Spring Break! As soon as we return, I'll post pictures and write about our trip. Until then, to Barcelona!

Penny Lane, Strawberry Field, The Beatles...Valentine's in Liverpool

I truly believe that this will be the first unforgettable Valentine's Day that I've ever had. I mean, in all honesty, how could it not be? I spent it in Liverpool with four good friends and four awesome dudes who just happen to be really famous and not actually there. This year, my Valentine's day was spent in Liverpool, England.

Our flight out on Friday morning forced me to be awake earlier than I have been in a long, long while. Taking a 6:30 a.m. flight sounded good before it was the morning of! In fact, taking a 6:30 flight meant we had to take a 4:30 a.m. bus ride to the airport. It was well worth it, though, as that meant we were able to spend all of Friday touring around Liverpool. We spent Friday mid-morning and early afternoon walking around the Albert Dock, which is a fun area of Liverpool. There are all kinds of restaurants and museums there.
The dock itself used to be an old port for the city. Though it has an industrial look to it, it's actually quite posh and exciting. There are tons of restaurants on the dock, and we decided to have lunch at one before going on our tour of The Beatles life in Liverpool. We went to a place called "What's Cookin?!" for lunch, and had an absolutely delicious meal. Soon after, we walked down the block to catch our bus. The bus was easy to spot once it rolled around the corner for us to board.
Before getting on, the five of us who were in Liverpool wanted to take a picture in front of it. It looked just like the Magical Mystery Tour bus of The Beatles. We went to a lot of different locations around Liverpool, including the four house in which the Beatles either were born or grew up in.
One of the other locations we went to was Penny Lane. Apparently, the signs get stolen so frequently, they used to paint the street signs on the brick behind where this one stands now. Our tour guide told us that the sign we saw had only been there for a couple of weeks. The stories we heard while on the bus were fascinating. Our tour guide was wonderful, and had actually met Paul McCartney. One of the coolest stories was about the song "Strawberry Fields (Forever)."
Strawberry field is actually an orphanage in Liverpool, near where John Lennon grew up. When he was a child, he used to go play in Strawberry Field, and would get in trouble for it. He didn't quite understand what the big deal was, and say it as "nothing to get hung about," as the song itself famously says. It was absolutely incredible to go to Strawberry Field and take pictures in front of the gate that John Lennon himself used to walk through. The tour was definitely one of the best ways to spend the weekend. I learned so much about The Beatles and saw places that, chances are, I will never make it back to see. One of these places was the Cavern Club. Though the one we saw was a reconstruction of the one that the Beatles had played in, it was still cool to sit in and listen to music.
The Cavern Club played host to The Beatles 292 times. It was where they were discovered by Brian Epstein and where he famously offered to become their new manager (after Allan Williams gave them away!). It is one of the coolest bars/pubs I have ever set foot it. Just being in a place where Paul McCartney has performed (he performed by himself at the new Cavern Club in the 90s) was mind-blowing.

Friday night, we played it calm and just hung out at the Cavern Club for a couple of hours. There was a live singer there, who was absolutely fantastic. He did covers of Beatles songs as well as many popular songs of today. After that, we went to dinner at a Spanish tapas restaurant, though not English at all, it was delicious. We ate more food than I think I've ever seen in my life. It was well worth it.

Saturday morning, we got breakfast at the hostel, then made our way to Albert Dock again to go to the Maritime Museum. It was a very, very cool Museum that documented all different parts of Liverpool's history. On the first floor was an exhibit about the Lusitania, Empress of Ireland, and the Titanic. It had actual items that were from the three boats, as well as miniature models of the boats.
The items, like the life vest from the Titanic, were really cool. Also, we were able to see things that show just how the boats sinking affected Liverpool. On the floor above that, we were able to see an exhibit about the history of Liverpool. There was a movie that showed how Liverpool had developed from the 1200s until now. It was an incredibly well done video and I felt like I actually learned a lot about Liverpool.

Later, we took a train to Manchester and went out to dinner at a fun restuarant in the Printworks area there. The next morning, we hoped on a flight back to Brussels.

Sunday, I spent the day with Maria and a couple of friends that we met in Brussels. Maria's Belgian "boyfriend" plays soccer for a semi-professional team in Brussels, so do all of his friends. On Sunday afternoon, we went to see one of the friends, Dempsey, play with his team. It was the semi-pro team for Jette, which is a neighbor of Brussels that I go through everyday on my way to work. The game was really fun, and we were able to get a little bit of Belgian culture.

Today, I went to check my mailbox, as I was expecting to get a small package from my mom. Turns out, I had two packages, one large one from my mom (which I LOVE), and one from some Theta's at Mizzou. What a Valentine's Day! It was so nice have such a wonderful weekend and come home (in Brussels) and have a little bit of home (the US) come to me!

Get Lost in Amsterdam

This past weekend, I was able to accomplish something that, for lack of better wording, is on my "Bucket List." I went to Amsterdam.

I've heard stories of what a fun, beautiful city it is, and always wanted to visit. A friend on the trip previously asked me why I wanted to visit Amsterdam so badly, and unable to describe exactly why to her, I just said, "I've always wanted to go there. It seems so different." I wanted to experience the culture, the msytery and the history of Amsterdam. It was a place that held so much interest to me, just because I had never been able to see something like it before.

Luckily, for just €44 roundtrip, we were able to catch a train. Arriving at 8:30 p.m. Friday evening, we immediately took a taxi cab to our hostel. The hostel was very nice. In fact, the beds were more comfortable there than in my flat. I wanted to steal the mattress.

That evening, the four of us that had ventured to Amsterdam for the weekend (myself, Sara, Maria and Lindsay) met up with another group of six girls. Two of the girls go to Mizzou but are currently studying in Florence, Italy. The other three were friends of those girls. One, as it turns out, was a Theta at U of I! Small world. All nine of us went to dinner (we got Mexican...it was the first time I've had salsa since leaving the US!). Then, we proceded to venture around the small area called Liedsegracht. It was a beautiful part of town.

Saturday was full of sightseeing. We got up early that morning to enjoy pancakes (a Dutch specialty) and wonder around the city. I was able to see the Anne Frank house, which was an eye-opening experience. It was the house in Amsterdam that the Frank family actually inhabited while in hiding during World War II. This was easily one of my favorite parts of the trip. It was so interesting, and yet, so awe-inspiring. I can't imagine being confined to that space for years, and not being able to even look outside. One of the coolest parts of visiting the museum was that we were able to see the actual diary in which Anne Frank wrote. It was the red, checkered book she was given, with her writing inside. It was absolutely amazing. That evening, we walked around the Red Light District. It was an interesting experience to say the least. We felt as though you can't visit Amsterdam without walking around the famous Red Light District!

Sunday, we did more sightseeing and museum hunting. We went to the "I amsterdam" sign and took tons of pictures, as well as to the Rijks Museum, which basically holds mementos from Dutch history and culture. Inside, my favorite room in the museum was one displaying dollhouses from the late 17th century. These were replicas of actual houses in Amsterdam at the time. It was a status symbol for a woman to have a miniature replica of her home displayed inside. They were gorgeous, and very unlike the Playmobile dollhouses we played with when we were little. Though, I am sure Playmobile was a bit more durable.

Here are some pictures from our adventures in The Netherlands (another country to add to my list!).

Sara and I standing in front of our favorite letter of the "I Amsterdam" letters. Both our names start with 's' so it must be the best letter there! Behind it, you can see part of the Rijks Museum, which is a beautiful structure.

The city itself is absolutely beautiful. This is one view overlooking a canal. Amsterdam is filled with them (something I hadn't known before this!).


A canal, absolutely beautiful.

Four of us girls in a wooden shoe! It was just sitting in the middle of a sidewalk, so we decided to hop in and take a picture! From the back left, Catherine, me, Katie (the U of I Theta) and Sara.

Living the Life

I've been here for just about a month exactly, and I feel as though I'm settled in. This weekend, Rachael, my roommate from school, came to visit. It was really great to see a little bit of home overseas, but I felt like I actually live in Brussels, playing tour guide. We went to the Grand Place, saw the Mannekin Pis, and wondered around through the main part of the city. It was a weekend well spent, here in Brussels.

We've planned to go to Amsterdam next weekend, and are finally starting to get travel plans for the remainder of the trip while were here. I'm really excited for the upcoming three months, but I can't believe how fast its going. I've finally been able to uplode some photos, so I've posted a few of them for you all to browse!

The group of girls, from left, Marissa, Lindsay, me, Sara and Patty, in Bruges! This was our first day trip, and definitely was worth it. Bruges is a beautiful city! 

This is pretty much my apartment. It's small, but there's plenty of room for one person. I have a bed, a desk, a small kitchenette (with hot plates) and a bathroom all to myself.  It's pretty nice and has definitely grown on me since we've been in Brussels.

Sara and I in front of the Atomium, one of the day trips we've taken while here. As I mentioned in a previous post, it was built for the Fair in Brussels in 1958. As you might be able to tell from the picture, it's no Eiffel Tower, but it's definitely cool!