Aujourd'hui

Voila, la maison.

Voila, the house.

I went shopping with Anne-Michele today. We went to a grocery store kinda thing and bought two types of wine, some cheeses, strawberries, cola, laundry detergent, and some other stuff. There were tons of waffle-shaped cookies. I've seen them at every store I've been to so far.

We also went to la commune again, but this time it was to get my visa verified. The woman who worked there wrote something in my passport, made some copies of it, and then asked if I had any information from my school here. I said, yes, in my room at home. So, Anne-Michele and I went home, got the paperwork, and took it back over. So now, I'm all set to go.

I'm still getting used to my new phone. It's turned off most of the time because I don't have a charger for it yet. I'll have to get one one of these days. I don't know how I'm going to get to Carrefour though. I'll have to talk to Anne-Michele.

I finished "Naked" by David Sedaris today. I must say, he's one of my favorite authors. His essays are easy to read, humorous, and I just love to read them. I wish he wrote in French (he does have a house in Normandy, after all), but after reading about his struggles with languages in "Me Talk Pretty One Day" (I think it was that one), I can understand why he doesn't. Maybe I'll be able to find them in French at a bookstore. I need to find a bookstore first, though.

I finally got around to taking some pictures of my house, so here they are:

The front yard.

The back of the house and part of the soccer net.

The driveway.

The kitchen.

The bathroom. Note how the toilet is next to a window.

People here are really into mineral water, and it's driving me crazy. I don't know if I'm just not used to the flavor or what, but I really detest it. I didn't like it in the U.S., I don't like it here. Oh well, it's better than getting some sort of germ from the tap water. Anne-Michele said that it's possible to drink the tap water, but that l'eau minerale (mineral water) is better. So, here we are.

So, you know when you give someone directions for how to do something? Like, "You put the candles on after the cake is baked, not when it's still batter," or "You go right at Apple Street, then you go left at the big cow statue, then you go right again at the field with all of the old cars. If you hit the ocean, you've gone too far." In the U.S., we always say "you." You do this, you do that, you attack that baboon with a leaf. Here, they say "one." Like, "One can take the bus anywhere in Belgium," or "One can find lots of school supplies here." It's proving to be a challenge for me to switch into "One Mode." But I think it makes more sense to say "One does this, one does that, one puts her right foot in, takes her right foot out, etc." Plus, with the formal and informal "you" that the French speakers have going on, it's no wonder they say "one." It would be too complicated to use "you."

I'm not really sure why people say Belgium is so dreary and rainy. Yes, it has rained every day so far, and yes, when I wake up in the morning, the clouds are so dark that it could be anywhere from 4 am to 8 pm, but there has also been sunshine every day I've been here as well. Not nearly as much as there is in Colorado, but enough for me. It's sunny right now, and I can feel the rays warming up my hands as I type this. The sky is blue, with tons of puffy white clouds overhead. It's pretty much a paradise, at least for me.

I think I may be the only person in this country who does not own a pair of leggings.

Other things I've noticed about fashion:

• EVERYONE wears skinny jeans. At least, the women.
• Women also wear lots of flats as well. I brought a pair with me, yes, but not tons of them. It's very common to pair skinny jeans with flats.
• Women also wear 3-4 inch heels as well. While shopping. And pushing large carts at Ikea. I don't know how they do it. Maybe they've just acquired the balance after years of practice? I'd try heels, but I'd probably die. So, I'll stick to my apple shoes. Nice and flat and non-threatening.
• I have not seen any tennis shoes here besides the ones in my armoire.
• No one wears tank tops. I think I've seen one girl's shoulders since I've been here. It's making me crazy, since I only have 3 shirts I can pair with my tank tops to cover them up.
• People wear the same clothes two days in a row. I do that with jeans all the time, because they're such a pain to wash. But here, people will wear the same shirt and sweatshirt/sweater/jacket. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing (it's great if i ever forget to do my laundry), but I've always thought that there's something nice about putting on a new, clean shirt in the morning. It's refreshing. It helps me start the day off right. Or maybe I'm just a little weird.
• There are tons of rain boots in my house.
• Body piercings are not nearly as common as they are in the U.S. I saw maybe five facial piercings at Ikea. A few women have double ear piercings, that's all. I feel like a pincushion compared to them.
• I've only seen two people with tattoos. One older man who had an eagle-ish bird (I couldn't see from where I was standing) and a young woman who had three stars on the inside of her wrist.

One thing many people associate with America is obesity. And in all honesty, I can't blame them. America is not a healthy nation, mentally, physically, or spiritually, at least in my opinion. I've always heard how healthy Europe is, with the fresh foods, walking everywhere, and overall interest in health. I thought that when I came to Europe, I'd be surrounded by tiny, stick figures posing as women and muscular, athletic men. I've found that it's not the case. I've seen a number of overweight or obese people at the store, at parties, and out on the street. I don't mean to criticize them in any way; I just wanted to point out that there's a bit of a misconception about Europe. Sure, overall the people here appear to be healthier than most American's I've seen, but it's not as though everyone here is crazy about exercise. I don't think I've done a very good job explaining myself here, but at least I tried.

Apparently, you have to have a special uniform for gym classes here. I am now 107% determined to get out of fitness, as opposed to the 104% I was yesterday.

Stores:

Every store I've been to except Ikea has had the carts I've always associated with Aldi's. You have to put a coin into a slot on the handle to detach the cart from the one in front of it. After you're done shopping, you put the cart back into the line and put the little key thingy from the one in front of it into the box with the coin in it, and voila, you get your coin back. I know that's not the best explanation, but that's the best I can do for now.

I haven't seen anyone chewing gum since I've been here. Anne-Michele bought some today, but I wonder if it's for some other purpose... I don't know what that purpose could be, but still...

Well, I think that's all for now, folks.

Mikayla