Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Another Pretty Picture



Not Much to Report, but that Never Stops Me

Although I did have my second waffle today. (That one was for you, Mia)! No class today but I have 6 hours of lecture tomorrow, so don't be too jealous. I went running around Bruges this morning and it was lovely. I then attempted to research a paper topic I have due on Friday (not my thesis, thank goodness), but I really did not get anywhere. I got back to my room just in time to feel the start of a really bad headache coming on. So I scrapped my plans for more research and took a long nap. It was amazing! I am usually not the type to enjoy a nap. They usually do more to mess up my day than to help me recharge, but when a headache is involved, there is nothing better than sleep. I am feeling much better now, even after the mystery lasagna we had for dinner, and am looking forward to going out for a drink tonight with Nasia and a couple of other people. It should be fun.
In other news, Piet Lust, the rotarian I stayed with when I first arrived, contacted me today. While I was staying with his family I helped them pick about 200 kilos of apples and pears from there small orchard. It was great fun shaking the trees and eating some fresh apples (the apple crumble we made was pretty tasty too! I do love a nice crumble - which is really a funny word if you say it in French :) ) . Anyway, every year Piet and Bieke take all of the apples and pears to a man who makes fresh juice from your own fruit. And the juice is finally ready! So Piet is going to bring me a bottle of the fresh apple juice along with some peanut butter! I am so excited! So thank you Piet, Bieke, and Anouk for thinking of me!

Here is to fresh apple juice, and of course, waffles.

Love

Monday, September 28, 2009

This is Where I Live

Two Down . . .

And I am not sure how many to go, but they are going fast! Weekends that is. This past weekend was a lot of fun. Aside from doing nothing much at all with my time, I managed to fit in a few requisite relaxing activities. Saturday does not count because I had class (although I should only have one more Saturday with classes which means . . .FREE TRAVEL TIME!!! YAY!!!!) Anyway, Sunday was just fabulous. I managed to get an invite (along with several Italians) to the Greek souvlaki Sunday event. This entailed about 20 College of Europe students (over half were Greek) descending upon this tiny Greek restaurant in the middle of Bruges to order gyros and other yummy Greek delicacies. The one man working that day had no idea what hit him. It was chaos, but in a good way. When it was finally ready,we took our food to an open square and ate outside, enjoying what everyone keeps telling us is the last of the sunshine. Then, happy day, we went to get WAFFLES!! You can see the pictures. I was a pretty happy camper. Warm, sweet, sticky, still gooey in the center. Life doesn't get much better. But then it does. After the waffles we walked along the canal to a little cafe and had cappuccinos as the sun was setting over the city. What a great day! It makes you thankful that the canteen is closed on Sundays. I hope we do this again sometime. I met some great new people and ate lots of delicious food.
Monday (today that is) wasn't too bad either. There were no waffles and there was class again, but overall it was a productive day. If I can get my paper topics chosen this week I should be golden. So, again, if anyone has any ideas, send them my way!

Ciao!

PS, I really like reading your comments on my posts. If you have any, feel free to write! It lets me know who is reading so I really appreciate them.

Merci

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Waffle Time At Last!!!!




Missing Things

Now is about the time in any trip when I begin to miss certain things, to pine for others, and to be downright angry that where I am is not where I am used to being. This never means that I am having a terrible time or that I want to leave. It’s simply me telling myself that I wish I had access to all of the comforts of home, and some days, home itself. For instance, I have hit my peanut butter week. I want peanut butter. I want a peanut butter sandwich, a peanut butter banana milkshake and for the love of Pete, I want a GIANT Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup. While it can sometimes be scrounged from the depths of an obscure supermarket, peanut butter is a strange and mysterious thing to most European nations, including Belgium it seems. In the words of Goldie Hawn as Private Benjamin “I want to go out to lunch!” (and not have to spend 15 Euros). Where oh where is St. Louis Bread Co.? I want the biggest glass of crushed ice you have ever seen followed by another glass of Diet Cherry Coke – once again non-existent here. Oh, and while we are at it, how about a nice, tall, ice cold glass of SKIM milk? Finally, I want to watch American TV. I want to watch the Office and have Survivor nights with my friends. I want to spend 6 hours on a Saturday (or a Tuesday for that matter) watching House and NCIS with my roommates. Right about now, at the three-week mark, I begin to miss all of these things. You may laugh, and you should, because, in the end, these are small and insignificant. I am in a beautiful city with wonderful people learning very important things. But standing before my closet this morning, looking at the 4 dresses I was able to fit into my suitcase, I suddenly could not remember why I ever left home. I love my family. I wish life made it possible for everyone you love to stay together. But I also love what I am doing and I know why I left. I left because I realized a long time ago that the world is bigger than home. It is a gift that should be explored and appreciated. So too is education. I know that peanut cravings will come and go and some mornings I will stand in my room and wish to be home. But I also know that I am having the time of my life right now and I would not exchange this experience for anything.

(Warning: this post may be revised come exam time)

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Shout Out!

I just want to give a huge shout out to Rotary. You guys are awesome! Rotary 6060 deserves a HUGE thanks for for all of their help in getting me ready to come to Belgium and district 1620 has been absolutely fabulous since my arrival - and I have only met a couple of them! But those that I do know are responsible for my wonderful first impression of Belgium and my relatively "facile" adjustment into life here in Bruges. I could not ask for a better host counselor than Paul and I could not have chosen a more welcoming city. Another shout out to the Bruges Rotoract Club who had me to a meeting tonight! Although I only understood about every 50th word of the Flemmish proceedings, it was great to see some familiar faces and meet some new ones. After the meeting there was cake (always a plus if you ask me - please refer to post on batter), and then we went to the Vuurmolen for drinks. It was a great Friday night and I am looking forward to getting to know Rotoract and its members better throughout the year. Thanks again everyone. I would probably be miserable and lost without you. Rotary rocks.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Cafe au Lait

What a wonderful day. I am not sure why, but I was struck today by that elusive contentment that sometimes settles on one's mind when obligation and responsibility are forgotten and you are just happy to be where you are. The kind of peace that comes when you finally realize that life is beautiful and easy and something not to be dreaded but appreciated. I met new people, had a cafe au lait after dinner and a good laugh with new friends. I walked back to my room through one of the most beautiful cities in the world and I looked around at where I was. I watched the sun-streaked sky darken, with my i-pod on shuffle, anticipating the surprise of the next song. I watched the tourists consulting their maps and I listened to the man playing the accordion on the street corner as the horse drawn carriage drove by. I smiled the whole way home. I know from experience that this feeling or more this momentary realization does not last long. It is impossible to hold onto. But for one fleeting moment, you are complete and content and genuinely happy. What a wonderful day.

Tea House: I am totally going to buy a teapot!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Un'amica: Rita!

Help!

This is a plea for my followers (and all of the rest of you occasional readers). My thesis topic is due in one week. That is seven days. That means that I need some ideas, and fast! I am a bit drained of creativity, originality, and academic motivation since my last foray into the world of thesis writing, so I was hoping to get a few suggestions. I am currently studying international relations and diplomacy with a focus on European studies (i.e. the European Union). My topic should have something to do with international political relations but does not have to involve Europe (and please, don't even think about mentioning France). If there is an issue out there that you are dying to read a 50 page well-researched paper on, then PLEASE, let me know what it is! You can email all suggestions to ali.pauluhn@gmail.com. Thanks.

Now for a short update. Today was Bruges Day. Trust me, it sounds more fun than it is; although, we did get out of classes for a day, so I cannot really complain. Anyway, this entailed about three hours of poorly planned and horrendously executed meetings with city officials followed by a two and a half hour tour of ZeeBrugge (Bruges' gigantic industrial port) on a bus, with a tour guide, who felt the need to point out even the cows in the fields and explain their existence. I am not sure why I continually attend things I know will not be interesting. I always feel as if I should participate, but I really need to start evaluating myself a little better. Of several things I am now certain and will forever take into account when future excursions are suggested. 1. I hate tour guides. I do not care if they know everything there is to know about a place or a subject. I have FINALLY realized that I am the type of person who likes to discover things and especially places on my own. 2. Even at this stage in life, most boys have the maturity level of their 15 year old selves. This might be a harsh generalization, but you were not on the bus stuck behind dumb and dumber and their smuggled smelly beers. And finally, 3. No matter where you are, the same social hierarchy exists. It is truly fascinating. The "popular" kids will always be "popular" and they will always sit together. And the genuine people, those with charisma, personality, and a penchant for the extraordinary will sit at a different table (but will most likely have WAY more interesting stories to tell). I will sit with them. Always and forever. And I will never regret it.

Peace, love, and waffles.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Monday, September 21, 2009

Ich heise Ali!

Happy Monday everybody! German started today, and that was fun and intimidating all at the same time. I had forgotten how unnerving it is to begin a new language. It is hard to make mistakes if front of people and really hard to wrap your tongue around a new pronunciation system! But the prof is great and I am sure it will be loads of fun. In other news, after spending over an hour of my ridiculously long 2 and a half hour lunch break (whatever happened to the twenty minute sandwich scrabble in between bells?) backtracking my way through the shops of Bruges, searching for that elusive and ever important student card. Alas, my efforts were to no avail. I finally broke down and paid 15 euros for a new one. It was rather funny actually, because the woman in the front office was trying to convince me to wait three or four days to get a new one because she said it would be a shame to pay 15 euros and then find the card later. I proceeded to inform her that it would be far more uncomfortable to go three to four days without regular meals (and not to mention expensive if I ate out!) than it would be to just buy a new card and forget the whole thing ever happened. She found my argument rather amusing, but made me a new card all the same. So that ordeal is over.
Things are looking up on the social front as well (not that they were actually ever looking down :) But I have actually begun to hang out with a solid group of people and someone even loaned me a film we had talked about over drinks on Saturday night! I also have an invitation to someone's house in Venice for the Christmas holidays in case my family plans fall through. So life, while lonely at times (starting over is really, really, really hard) is full of new and caring people who could possibly become true friends.

On that sappy note (which should hopefully offer those of you going abroad a little encouragement) I will start on my reading. A bientot, bonne nuit, ciao!

Saturday, September 19, 2009

AAARRRGGGG!

So I have managed to lose my student card already. Yay me. (Please note heavy dose of sarcasm). So I could not eat dinner tonight. All week I have been absolutely paranoid about losing it and have managed to do pretty well. Then today, I think I left it on my lunch tray. I went back to the canteen to see if someone found it (apparently this happens a lot) but no one had! So then I spent half an hour walking the streets of Bruges, retracing my steps, trying to find it. I am so mad at myself. It is not in my purse, not in my room, and apparently not at the canteen. So that means it is either at Hema or Fruidit, neither of which are open on Sundays. Thanks. I just feel like such an idiot! In all four years at Furman I never ONCE lost my card; NEVER! I did not even misplace it for more than an hour. And now I lose this one in the span of a week. To make matters worse, I had about 40 euros loaded on it to buy the rest of my books and I am pretty sure I don't get that money back if they have to replace my card. So, it has pretty much been the cherry on top of a week of ups and downs. Let's just hope some wonderful soul finds it and returns it. Peace.

Friday, September 18, 2009

I Want a Vespa

Batter is Better

So for today, a random thought that has nothing whatsoever to do with school, but everything to do with waffles. As many of you know, I love batter. All kinds. Do I thought it would be a good idea to commence a short discussion on it. First, let's get one thing straight: things are simply better before they are cooked, baked, grilled or fried. It is a simple fact of life and a standard to which I intend to adhere no matter how many times I am warned of the dangers of eating raw eggs. I just love batter.
I don't think I have ever met a batter I did not like or was unwilling to try; however, there is a clear hierarchy.

A list of my favorite types of batter, in order:
1. Zucchini bread batter
2. Pancake or waffle batter
3. White cake mix batter
4. Banana bread batter

And now, onto some batter technique. Zucchini bread batter is an interesting experience. One full of sugar, cinnamon and delight for sure, but also a surprising texture. The zucchini makes the batter rather slippery, so I recommend attacking the bowl after (most of) the batter has been poured into the pans. On Saturday mornings after my dad makes pancakes or waffles, I usually go after the bowl with a spoon, or even better, a spatula. Sometimes I forgo the formality and just use the measuring cup to pour some onto my hand. This is the best part of the whole weekend. Cake mixes are another joy, especially Duncan Heinz or Betty Crocker. The white cake mix beats chocolate any day and someday, I will eat an entire cake mix on my own. That is a promise. The problem with cake mixes is the fact that it does not stick to the beater as well as some others. And you can never get enough of it. A spoon is almost always required. As for banana bread batter, as long as there are no nuts, count me in! Banana muffins are the best because there is usually some batter left over; not enough to make a whole muffin, but definitely too much to risk rinsing the bowl. It simply must be eaten and is rarely ever shared. I believe that covers my list of favorites, but there are others(brownie batter for example).
There is only one batter rule that must never ever be broken! Never ever put the bowl in the sink if there is any trace of batter left. Days have been ruined for me by this tragedy - and tragedy it is! When you come back into the kitchen after eating your cooked pancakes only to find that the remaining batter has been diluted with water and Dawn dish soap, you may as well kiss the day good bye. When you come downstairs after hearing the kitchen aid mixer go off only to find the perfectly good beater lying in a puddle in the sink, it is one of the most disappointing things a person can experience. Trust me, I know.

So please, the next time you are baking, invite me over, share the batter, and I'll take care of the bowl.


Tomorrow I will talk about Belgium, I promise. For now, HAPPY FRIDAY!!!!

Thursday, September 17, 2009

After School Snack

Thursdays

Today was a good day. Thursdays are generally good in my book, being as they are the day before Friday and , therefore, the day one can usually begin to relax a little (especially where school work is concerned). Thursdays have always been my favorite. This Thursday is no exception. I had what I believe one would call my first academic success today. The last hour of class (a general review of the European Union institutions and decision making processes) was set aside for group discussion of the question: how do we make the European Union more democratic? My group of about 20 people was asked to contemplate the direct election of the European Commission and the Commission president. Then we were told to assign an official rapporteur to present our group's ideas to the entire IRD department of 85 students. Everyone stared at one another in awkward silence for a few moments before, somehow, appointing ME (the only non-European in the group) as the rapporteur. I can't say I was thrilled, but neither was I surprised; because, as in the case of the smoking residence, these things have a tendency of falling onto me. After about thirty minutes of rather heated discussion, we had made zero headway, come to no conclusions, and were out of time. At that point Prof. Lord called the rapporteurs up to the front where we each gave our presentations. I presented first and did rather well (if I do say so myself) earning the comment "fantastic" from Prof. Lord and a sound round of applause from my fellow classmates. It was actually a thrilling experience. I earned the appreciation of my group and some general recognition from the rest of the department. Not a bad thing. Anyway, after weeks of stressing about failing in the classes and being behind everyone else as an American, I left class feeling a little more sure of myself. I then spent my free hour wandering the streets of Bruges, generally content with life and my place in it. That is, until the informational meeting on our required courses brought me back down to earth. But for today, that is neither here nor there.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Markt . . . Not the best picture, but you get the idea.

So Apparently . . .

I am a novelty. A real life American, right here in Bruges! Whatever will anyone do? It has been a bit strange meeting people because a lot of them seem to have heard of me already. There are four Americans this year and no one can understand why on earth we would come here to study Europe. I did not realize how difference this would be from my experience in France, although I should have. In France, no one knew I was American because, as a general rule in Paris and beyond, one does not make eye contact, speak to, or sneeze in the general direction of someone one does not already know. But here, the top four questions are : 1. What is your name? 2. What country are you from? 3. What program are you in? and 4. What residence are you staying in? So from the beginning, it is obvious that I am not even close to being European. I LOVE IT. Although I am a bit disappointing to those who want a rousingly positive report on President Obama and his "European" healthcare plan. Fear not, I have never been and will never be ashamed to be a republican. It just makes for more interesting conversations with new friends. Ah, ok, onto a little less of a hot topic. I am certain I will have the opportunity to continually explain my extremely foreign political views to my fellow students throughout the year. Should be fun. :)

In other news, today was the first day of class. And I must say, after 6 hours of lecture, I can tell that being back in school is going to be an adjustment. I believe I took 15 pages of notes today. I can promise I will be needing a few more pens and notebooks. But Professor Lord was highly energetic and the course was a great review.

I am still settling in to my new home. I can finally get here without getting lost; and have discovered that Biskajer (my residence), although smoke ridden, is by far the best when it comes to location and socializing. I do believe it will be the place to be this year.

I went to Fnac today to buy a printer. I had seen one there last week for 35 Euros. I should have kept my big mouth shut about it because when I got there, the last two were going home with Mario and Nasia. It was ok because they sold me the display. The only problem is, when they boxed it up for me, they failed to include that tiny insignificant power cord that was supposed to come with it. So I have just begun to set it up to print out my readings for tomorrow and I cannot print a darn thing. I suppose it is back to Fnac tomorrow to see if they can dig one out of the back for me. So cross your fingers please! I really do not want to have to pay .05 centimes to print every page I need. This will be a wise investment as long as I can acquire all necessary parts in the near future.

Sorry this post is so long, I will try and wrap it up. I am looking forward to a relaxing weekend full of a lot of sleep, reading, and more sleep. It has been the longest week of my life, but I finally have a good feeling about the year ahead. Cheers!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Still no waffles

But a whole lotta languages! Sweet mercy. Anyway, today was my first day at the College of Europe. No orientation, no class. They just handed us a huge packet of papers and our room keys and said "Good luck." No kidding. I like my room, although it is in a smoking residence. This was somehow not surprising to me, however. Because in July, when they sent the email asking whether we would like smoking or non, I of course wrote back in all caps and with several exclamation points that I would prefer to return home smelling like myself, not an ashtray. Life seems to foil my plans in this regard. Every single time you can "request" something but are not necessarily guaranteed to get it, I am guaranteed NOT to get my request. I do have to laugh at the irony. Let's just hope that I won't get sick due to all of the courrants d'air in my room thanks to the windows being open. :) Anyway, it was a fun day, but I am feeling rather emotionally numb. Too much social stimulation I believe. Ha! So it is off to dinner soon with some new acquaintances - Aurore, from France, Rita, from Italy, and Toulant, from Kosovo - a fun bunch, but aren't we all? I hope dinner was better than lunch (Furman DH is actually winning). And finally, I am sooooo thankful that I DO NOT HAVE TO TAKE THE FRENCH LANGUAGE PLACEMENT EXAM!!!!! I am sorry. I am a little excited. There is nothing I dread more than an entrance exam. Ok, maybe a final exam, but I still have a while before those are upon me. A bientot, ciao, dag, later, Ali

Friday, September 11, 2009

One year, two suitcases, a carry on and one personal item.

So I have decided . . .

That these first few days in Bruges are very similar to orientation week at Furman. There are a lot of fun activities (this time furnished by Rotary and Rotoract), they keep you very busy. It almost seems as if you are on vacation. I am in Europe after all. I even went to the beach today! (Only fifteen minutes away!) But then, they hit you with classes. I just keep reading the line in my letter from the College of Europe that says classes will be held six days a week and that "students should accept this schedule. The work load will be quite hard." Gee, thanks for getting me excited about all of this. I am just starting to feel better and then I will start classes. Yikes! I really don't remember who thought it was a good idea to start grad school right after undergrad; and try to finish in ONE YEAR. Oh yeah, that was Dr. Brent Nelsen. Thanks. I hope it works out. But at the moment I am FREAKING OUT!!! Because I know the fun can't (and won't) last. Classes will be hard. I know I will be fine, I just have to go through my annual school freak out as my mother can attest to. Well, I still have a couple days of freedom. Wish me luck and lots of prayers! Love from Bruges.

Thursday, September 10, 2009

In Bruges

So, here I am qt last, in Bruges. The trip went off without a hitch and I was greeted at the airport by Paul, my extremely nice host counselor and his wife. I spent the day settling in at Piet and Bieke´s house. I had a lovely time playing with their ten year old daughter Anouk who does not speak any English. I have not had to speak French yet and am really thinking that Dutch would have been a good thing to learn. Too late for that. I am just going to have to pick it up as I go. After a sleepless first night blessed with the stomach flu, I struggled through my tour of Bruges with Astrid and Marie from Rotoract. I tried to make the most of it, but to be honest, I felt miserable. Maybe tomorrow will be better. That´s it for now. No waffles yet, but I have a feeling I will make up for that soon enough.

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Off to . . . Nebraska?

So, in a crazy leap of family loyalty/togetherness/absolute sheer stupidity, I am off to Nebraska tomorrow with my Mom, Dad, and little brother, Jordan. We are going to watch one of my little sister Mia's college soccer games. I have decided to sacrifice a very essential 48 hours of packing time and mental prepardeness in order to see her play. This may be my only chance to watch her play in college and she would kill me if I did not come. Needless to say I am feeling the pinch of time as Tuesday sneaks up on me; however, I am excited to spend some extra time with the family. It's just too bad that entails 14 - plus hours in the car. I wonder if they'll mind if I paint my nails? Answer: yes. Alas, perhaps I will work on my blog. Until Tuesday, Ali.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

The Countdown

Only five days to go and then I am off to Bruges! Look for updates on my adventures here in the coming months. I will be posting pictures, stories, quotes and more! Thanks for following!