The Detailed Post That I Promised

See? I'm good at keeping promises. So here we go. Two days ago, Thursday, I woke up (around 1pm) knowing that it would be my last day in my normal host house. I had already done the majority of my packing and it didn't seem like there was much left to take care of.

Boy was I wrong. There was much more than I thought. And that is because things were hiding out in places that I forgotten about. Like my stack of envelopes, or my two teddy bears, or my food, or my clock. All these were things that I had to take with me, but didn't take into account when I started my packing. So, at the end of it all, I ended up with three big suitcases, another big carry-on type bag that I bought here (with a really cute vintage floral print, I might add), three shoeboxes, an H&M bag, my computer bag, and my purse. I'm definitely going to have to do some trimming down at the end of the year... Or my parents are just going to have to bring me empty suitcases :) Nah I think I'll donate some of the clothes and such and everything will be fine. After I finished packing, I spent some time on my computer since I literally had nothing else to do. Around 7 30pm, my second host parents came over for dinner. The original plan was for me to go back home with them afterwards.

They came, and we began things the way Belgians do with the "imperatif" (sp?), which is like the little chips or munchies before the meal. We sat down in the living room with those and a small glass of a sort of wine that was fruitier than the others that I have tried and I actually found that I kinda sorta liked it. Then we went to the table for the soup, which was made from peppers and had cheese in it. I really do love homemade soups. How will I ever go to back to Campbell's condensed soups?? Actually I don't think I'll have a problem, but anyways... That was followed by a salmon and vegetable quiche, which was also quite delicious. Salmon is so wonderfully flavorful. The main course came next, and it was the curry chicken over rice with cooked mangos on the side. The curry chicken has definitely become one of my favorite dishes here, though I'm not sure that everyone in Belgium makes it. But at the Crismer house, it's delicious. I need to get the recipe for that... Throughout dinner we talked and my host dad made annoying jokes about me and my faults and Ryan and all that. But you know, I find it humorous and I laugh and to be honest, that joking around is what made the first four and a half months of my exchange what it was. And I wouldn't have had it any other way.

Since it was the epiphany, we did the normal European tradition of the King's cake. What it is, is there is a round cake that is made from fragipane and filo dough. Somewhere inside the cake is a little tiny figurine. Whoever gets the piece with the figurine in it is King or Queen for the day and wears a crown. Well, our little figurine seemed to be everywhere. After the ten minutes it took to cut the cake, nobody had the little figurine. So we didn't have royalty. By my host mom did pull the guy out of another slice. It was in the form of a baker.

Turns out that I didn't get to go with them that night, because the next day (yesterday), they would be out of the house all day and I would have been left alone. So they took my suitcases, and I stayed at the Crismer's for one last night. The next day, I woke up and made sure I had EVERYTHING. I ate breakfast and lunch with my host mom and my host brother, but it turns out that Philippe had come down with the flu, so I didn't see him again before I left. Around 3pm, I we packed up the car with the remainder of my boxes and bags and I went to the gym to workout for two hours. The gym was very calm yesterday. I don't like the being the only one in there, but for a while, I was. I was also pretty tired, and today my back really hurts. But the good thing is that I can tell that I'm gaining muscle, especially in my arms. However, I'm in pain. But it's not too bad and I'll make it!

After the gym, Karine picked me up and we went to my second host family's house. We brought in all my stuff, I said my thank yous and goodbyes to Karine, and my hellos to the new fam. I took all of my things upstairs, and on the way, my host dad and brother showed me everything. I have pretty much my own floor! The whole third floor is mine. There's my room, a toilet room, a bathroom, and a sitting area. And outside the sitting area is a little balcony! Then there's also another couple bedrooms, but they are empty. And my bed is a double! I have never had anything bigger than a twin bed, so this is a nice treat! I then began unpacking my stuff, until I realized how unfunctional the armoire is. It's like one of the do-it-yourself deals from the Home Depot where you pick out your different elements and it's all made from particle board. Then you put it all together yourself? You know? Well it's like that. Except it doesn't make any sense! The little spot for hanging clothing is not long enough for even a short dress, so all my dresses are bunched up underneath themselves. Even my Rotary blazer was too long. And then underneath that there is no shelving, so there's a good three feet of open space. Talk about wasted space. Then the center section is a bunch of really shallow shelves, but they're glass and it's all open so that's more for displaying things. But then then the last section has the same shallow shelving! Maybe six inches deep. And even that's stretching it. So after a long time of trying to figure out how to make use of all this empty space (which is really the voice of my father, plus the influence of wayyyy too much HGTV), I finally got creative and rigged up some stuff with all my cardboard boxes and created a sort of shelving system. I also made use of one of my suitcases. I stood it up in that big empty section and left it open. I put my boots inside, a couple of pairs of shoes on top, and shoved my flats in the mess inside pocket, like shoe storage. Then I found there was no place for my bras, underwear, or socks, so I put all of that in two more cardboard boxes and make sort of drawers in the little cabinet underneath that television that is in my room. I doubt I will ever use that television. The walls are completely bare, and everything is either white, or a weird rustic theme (the whole house is kind of like that... Think Grandma's basement in the 60s), so I decorated with my scarves and ribbons, even my robe, and eventually I will find a way to make use of my colorful jewelry. But I have this really cool shade over my window which blocks out ALL light. Nothing gets through that thing. The ceiling of the room is kinda slanted too, like the roof, cause it's the top floor. So even though no light can get through, the rain is loud on the window.

A little while later, I went down and got acquainted with the whole family before dinner. My new host dad's name is Jacques, host mom's in Colette, and then there are 4 children: Benjamin, Amandine, Olivier, and Marie. However, they told me that Marie is hardly ever around. They are all older. The youngest is Benjamin, and he is 23. Olivier is married to another woman named Marie, and they have a little 18 month old son named Léo. I met them all yesterday, except for the sister Marie. Amandine also has a boyfriend, but his name is something I've never heard of before and I can't pronounce it, let alone spell it. So we will refer to him as AB - Amandine's boyfriend. The verdict: I LOVE THEM! My host parents are so nice and sweet and welcoming. Olivier and Marie are so wonderful and their child is beautiful and adorable and the family cannot get enough of him. Marie is really cool and a little wild and she does theater. Amandine and her boyfriend are also very very nice and Amandine actually works with Madame Gallo for her shows. Benjamin is sweet and he did an exchange a couple of years ago in Chile. So we were able to talk about our different experiences. The best part? The conversation was all real. The questions they asked, they asked because they were truly interested. I was able to talk and have a conversation because it wasn't forced. At one point, they asked me if I knew how to make pancakes. I said yes, and immediately they all yelled and told me I HAD to make them. It made me jump and I was a little scared but then I realized that it was happy yelling and I laughed with them.

For dinner, we had raquelettes, which I believe I talked about once before, because I ate that once at the de Wulf house... Before that, though we had foie gras with different jellies and some yummy spiced bread. Foie gras is starting to grow on me. But then we had the raquelettes. What it is, is there is a grill type device on the table. There is a space between the top platform, and the bottom, and in between there are these little square pans. Each person gets one or two square pans, and in that you put your cheese. We had three different kinds. One of them had herbs and spices. On the top platform, you put your meats. We had a couple different kinds. One which resembled ham, bacon and a smoked meat. I really don't like fatty meats like that, but I ate them anyways, and they weren't too bad when smothered in hot gooey cheese. We also had pickles and little pearl onions to eat with it all. When it was all said and done, we had eaten so much cheese, you could smell it all through the house. It was glorious.

And then we had dessert. We also did a King's cake, and Olivier got the little figurine. This one was an angel. I thought the cake was better than the first one. So Olivier wore the crown for the rest of the night as we talked and such. My host mom even pulled out a magazine and read horoscopes for the new year, just for kicks and giggles. We then drank some coffee and talked until about 11 30pm. Then Olivier and Marie got Léo and went back to their house, which is only a couple of houses down, and I stayed up a bit longer and talked with my host parents. Eventually, I went up to my room and continued to try to unpack and get things organized. I took a shower in my bathroom with the nozzle that doesn't make much sense, and then watched a couple episodes of Frasier before falling asleep.

This morning, I woke up around ten thirty and was eating my Frosted Flakes around 11am. I then went back upstairs, tried to finish unpacking and organizing, but came to a point where I just don't know where to put some things, like my jewelry. In my other house, I hung my necklaces off the knob on my window. But there is no knob like that in this room. Or anything for that matter to hang them off of, so I'll have to get creative again and think of something. Then I worked on a project I have to do for my English class, and then I went down for dinner. I ate with just my host parents. We talked and had some really delicious cheese to start off with, and I had a glass of red wine. Which wasn't bad, although it's still a little strong for me. Which is weird... Anyway, we had a white fish, stuffed baked potato, chicon, and a salad for dinner. It was delicious! I don't know what spices she put on that fish but it was really good. The chicon is growing on me, though I still find it bitter. For dessert, I had a sort of vanilla pudding and a little piece of chocolate. After dinner, I watched the news with my host parents for about a half hour. There is a lot of flooding here... Since all the snow melted and with all the rain, the river in Namur is getting higher and people have feet of water in their houses. It's so sad... The streets are completely under water. I can't imagine... Luckily, that never really happens where I'm living...

Now I'm up in my room, doing this blog and getting ready to go to sleep. I reactivated my Facebook today too, and I'm worried that I will become readdicted. So I must keep an eye on myself. I'll try my best! Tomorrow, I will try to post some pictures. Goodnight world! Bonne nuit tout le monde !

Yesterday And Today

So I had every intention of blogging yesterday, but it didn't happen for the sole reason that I forgot. I'm a terrible person, yes I know.

So yesterday was a pretty average day. I didn't really do anything special. I woke up and ate breakfast, hung out for a while, wrote some of my book ate lunch, and went to the gym. At the gym, there was a group of four guys who did their entire workout in Santa hats. They would head bang to the music and the end of the hat would be all over the place. It was really funny. After that, I went home and watched "All About Steve", which was a terrible movie and I'm very upset to know that such a wonderful and talented actress as Sandra Bullock has her name attached to that piece of dog poo. Although, Bradley Cooper made it worth suffering through the hour and a half of bad cinema.

There's my review for you.

Today, I woke up, ate breakfast, went to the gym for two hours, came home, ate lunch, took a nap, and then got ready and went to Talia's house with her family (real family) and two of her host families and Mikayla for a dinner. Mikayla and I got there before Talia and her family, and it was odd. But it was only about ten minutes later when they got there and we hit it off right away. I need to keep this short because Mikayla is here and I feel rude. But basically we had dinner and talked to her family. They are super super nice and her sister is a little sweetheart. Manon came a little ways through the dinner and we had fun talking with her and Geraldine and watching Talia's sister and host sister try to communicate with the language barrier. Anyways, now I'm laughing my butt off with Mikayla. She says hi. We're laughing really hard. Goodnight world.

I Think I May Die...

Ok a word to the wise: When you're full, STOP EATING.

I'm so full of food I can't stand it. I don't even know how my little tummy is holding it all. It's been like five hours and I still feel as if I'm going to burst. Let me back up and explain. Today, we went to my host dad's sister's house for the Christmas dinner that we were supposed to have yesterday. I met my host dad's brother and sister and their families, and his parents were there too. I really like his family! His sister is very nice, and she told me about the American store that is nearby, and his brother was nice too and we had some good conversation. P.S. My host dad is definitely the crazy in the family. But he did wear normal pants today.

The dinner was four courses. We started off with a salmon and something that resembled deviled eggs with a different taste. But the salmon had a weird gelatin on the bottom of it, and that really bothered me. I tried to ignore it and it was good overall. Next came the soup. I think it was a pumpkin soup, but I couldn't tell you for sure. After that was the main course. We had stuffed duck with oranges, green beans wrapped in bacon, potatoes, a celery purée, and these little fruits that I've never seen in the States with a name that I don't know how to spell. It was a good meal, but everything had this weird taste behind it that I didn't much care for. The thing about European cooking is that there is always fatty meats involved, which I really don't like. Green beans are great! But why must they be wrapped in bacon???? The duck was good, but it had a layer of fat across the top, and I think I was the only one who took that part off. I just can't handle the texture of fat in my mouth. I just can't chew on it. But after that was the dessert, and that was my poison. I intended on trying maybe two of the six cakes and tarts that were out on the table. But no, everyone was piling my plate until I had a piece of every single one. There were two ice cream logs, one with vanilla and raspberry and one with mocha. There was another log with mocha and chocolate, but it was more of a cake. There was a fruit tart, a rice cream tart, and an almond tart. And I had a piece of each. I really did think I was going to die. But after a half hour, I somehow managed to finish it all. They were all very good. I especially like the almond and the raspberry. The fruit tart was good, but it had a layer of that weird gelatin on it, and I didn't like that. I'm surprised I didn't burst. And I'm still feeling very full. My host brothers and dad ate dinner when we got home, but my host mom and I couldn't. I still feel like my stomach could burst any second. Hopefully I'll be able to sleep it off.

They did get me presents though! I received more Galler chocolates and a jar of Skippy crunchy peanut butter. YUM. Thank you American store in Antwerp.

Ok this wasn't the best post ever, but I'm tired and full and I want to go to sleep. I need to work out for like 5 hours tomorrow. Goodnight!

NOËL

Joyeux Noël tout le monde !

It's Christmas. December 25th. The day that Jesus was born.

Well let's start with yesterday. So yesterday was Christmas Eve. Obviously. The day started off pretty much like any other. I was supposed to go to school in the morning to pick up my report card, and I woke up late so I ran around getting ready really quickly so that we could get to school before 10 30am. But the snow was really bad so my host mom said no let's wait a bit and see if they come by to plow the roads. So I sat down to eat and then went upstairs to finish the present for my host parents. My host mom then came upstairs. She had gotten a text from school saying that they were going to postpone the report cards until January 10th. So no worries. I finished up my host family's gift and went down to lunch. It was a nice lunch. We had salad with little fancy meat thingys and big heaping portions of delicious wonderful melted cheese resting on top. It was so delicious. I love cheese so much. Then Benoit came home. He actually had class on Christmas Eve. So he ate lunch too with us and then I went to work wrapping all my gifts for my family and putting together the Christmas package to send home. It took me a while, but I did finish. And then I cleaned my room and got ready to go to my host mom's parents' house for Christmas dinner.

Around 5 30pm, we all got in the car and put on a Christmas cd as we drove to pick up Damien from school. Cue the beginning of Emma's homesickness. Although I sang along to the songs anyway since they were mostly in English. But after the first half hour I just stared out the window and listened to the music and thought about home. We got Damien from school and then eventually made it to my host grandparents' house. We walked in to a warm welcome from them and my host mom's brother and his wife and kids. They have four children, three boys and a girl. The oldest is seven, the next is five, and then there are two three year old twins, one boy and one girl. They are all so adorable too. We said our hellos and Joyeux Noëls and took off our coats and such. And I learned that mistletoe here is a New Years tradition, not a Christmas one. You kiss someone under mistletoe at midnight on New Years. Interesting.

Everything was warm and sweet and pretty. That house is so full of warmth and love, I can't take it. It reminds me so much of my grandparents' house in the States. And my host grandparents remind me of my own grandparents. It's nuts. We all sat down in the living room and talked and such. And then out came the appetizers. All kinds of little things stacked up on mini crackers. The specialty of grandma. There were some with crab, anchovies, salmon, egg, ham, all kinds of things. I tried anchovies for the first time in my life. I didn't like it much. But I also tried caviar for the first time, and that was wonderful. I have expensive taste I guess. I also drank quite a bit of champagne and couldn't turn my head too fast without a little bit of dizziness. But nothing at all to worry about. They just kept filling my glass before I could say no thank you.

Then it was gift exchanging time. I didn't expect to receive anything, but I did get a few things, and it was very sweet and I felt bad that I had left my present for my family at the house, under the impression that we would exchange on Christmas day. From Damien, I received a nice big bottle of Kriek, which is that cherry flavored beer that I do in fact like. My host parents got me a turquoise Ice Watch, which is very Belgian. I think I'm going to swap it out for the green though. I'll explain why in a bit. My host grandparents got me a nice little dainty silver necklace with a rhinestone peace sign pendant. And my host mom's brother's family, who I had just met that day, gave me chocolates. A nice pallet of little sample sizes of all the Galler flavors. And a little box of "chacolat" which is a box with a few chocolates in it and a comic strip starring a cat (cat is "chat" in French). I was touched by my gifts and liked them very much. Everyone got some nice stuff too, including a GPS for my host dad.

By this time everyone was ready for dinner. So we sat down to our first course, which was a sort of log of pureed lobster and vegetables with a white sauce. The sauce also had little pieces of vegetables in it. We had rolls with it also. It was absolutely delicious and the sauce was so creamy. I was already full by the end of the first course. I helped clear the table and get the next round of plates ready. Each person got their own little tiny cornish hen. They were seriously the smallest eating birds I've ever seen. Each person got one, along with some vegetable that is called "chicon" and a couple of these deep fried potato type balls. It was all covered in a wonderful thick gravy. That was truly delicious. Of course, the kids all got something else to eat, and by this time they were all sitting in front of the television watching some Tinkerbell movie. I could not finish all my food. I thought my stomach was going to burst. But we still had dessert! We took some time in between the courses though. I was drinking wine with the meal too! Which is very different for me. I had a glass of white and of red. And I have to say, I did enjoy it. The first time of my life that I enjoyed drinking wine. Anyways, we took some time now to just chill out. I played with the kids a little and talked to my host brothers. But then it was time for my death: dessert. There were two cakes. They were the yule log type cakes. One was ice cream, and the other was an actual cake that was mocha flavored. They insisted that I take a little of each, so I tried them both. I can't believe my stomach didn't burst. But then they brought out the macaroons, and I was obligated to try one of those too. And then the chocolates, but I passed on those. Then we took some family photos. By this time, it was about 11 30pm and it was time to go. We packed up our gifts and drove home, stopping about halfway to change drivers because my host dad was sleepy. We got home, I showered, watched about half of "The Incredibles" and fell asleep with my homesickness.

This morning I woke up with 20 minutes before the Christmas mass. I hurried up and got ready and then me and host parents went to the church behind the house and Benoit met up with us. It was probably the saddest Christmas mass I've ever been to. There was hardly anyone there and the music was very depressive. But it was a Christmas mass nonetheless, and although I didn't understand much, I kept up as much as I could. When it was over, we went back to the house and had a breakfast of bread and Nutella and jelly. Which my host brother thought was especially strange. I then went upstairs to take a nap, but instead ended up writing a bit more of my novel, applying to another university, sending a few emails and writing a letter to Ryan. Then it was lunchtime. We had pheasant, though I had chicken instead (I'm not sure why), grilled mango, cooked cinnamon apples, and roasted potatoes. We were supposed to go today to my host dad's sister's house for Christmas dinner, but because of the snow, we are going tomorrow instead. Then I Skyped with my family for 2 hours and read the story of Christmas with them, watched them open their gifts, and talked with them about things going on in life. I then amused myself with Skype and StumbleUpon, since my host parents went out and my host brothers were each in their rooms doing their own things. Very odd Christmas. I was feeling pretty homesick. But then it was dinner time, which was just fish soup with shrimp and cooked oysters, which I didn't eat. But the conversation was very good and I gave my family the cookbook of American recipes that I had made them for Christmas. We flipped through it together, and it turns out I didn't make that many mistakes in it! I had translated all the recipes from English to French and converted them from US to metric. It took a while, but it was worth it because they really liked it and appreciated it.I spent a good chunk of time downstairs afterwards talking with my host mom and a little with my host dad, and then I Skyped with the whole family, aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents, for about a half hour. And then I showered and now I'm blogging and my eyes are closing. It's time for Emma to go to sleep.

Tomorrow, we continue Christmas. Bonne nuit !

Chicken Paprikash

So about that party last night... I didn't go. Because I started to feel sick. And I really freaked out. If you know me, or if you've at least been keeping up with the blog, you know that I am deathly afraid of puking. And my host mom and brother came down with a sort of stomach flu the other day. And then yesterday, I was fine all morning. I went to the gym and worked out for 2 hours (and did really freaking great too), came home and cleaned my room and continued writing my Christmas cards and putting together the few packages I'm going to send, and worked out rides and stuff to get to the party. It was all ready to go. And then I decided to take a shower. And all of the sudden my stomach just started hurting. I wrote it off at first, but then it started to really bother me. So then I said, oh it's just an anxiety attack since I'm so freaked out by the rest of the people around me being sick. Plus my host mom had conveniently told me that it was on the news how there have been a lot of cases of stomach flu in Belgium this winter. So needless to say, I was nervous about it. So I said I would just wait a couple hours and see how I was. I laid down in my bed and began watching "The Princess Bride" and told my host mom I wasn't feeling well and didn't know if I was gonna go to the party. Eventually I started to feel a little better, but still decided not to go because I knew I would kick myself the next day if I got sick from going out when I wasn't in good shape. So I stayed home. Over the course of the night, I drank only water, didn't eat anything, and watched "The Princess Bride", "Ella Enchanted", and "Men in Tights". Kind of on a medieval/Cary Elwes kick. But I enjoyed myself. The I watched "Bride Wars", and then fell asleep to an episode of "Big Bang Theory".

I woke up this morning feeling tip top. I ate breakfast, continued with my Christmas stuff, and then after lunch, did some more Christmas shopping with my host mom. Don't worry, I didn't buy anything. Then for dinner I decided to try my hand at one of my dad's classic recipes: chicken paprikash. I had him send me the recipe last night and my host mom got some sour cream for me and I was doing great with it! The chicken was cooking perfectly and I had the sauce simmering and everything.

And then I tried to make the dumplings.

I totally failed. I'm just going to come right out and say it. I can't make dumplings to save my life. I don't know what was wrong with them. But they would not cook through. I put them in the boiling water by the spoonful just like Daddy said. And I was texting him simultaneously and he told me to just keep boiling them, but they wouldn't cook. They turned out totally yucky looking and they didn't taste right either. So I threw away the first attempt, changed the batter a little with more flour, but take two was no good either. So in the end, we ended up just making some pasta and my host mom and I sat down to eat. I have to say though, I totally aced the sauce and chicken. The sauce was a little bit richer than I'm used to, and I'm not sure if there was too much sour cream or I'm just all adjusted to the less flavorful Belgian food. Regardless, it tasted good and my host mom LOVED it. My host dad then came home and tasted it too and he said it was also very good. So I win :) And it was not bad over pasta, though it would have been better if I had done the dumplings right... But the chicken was extremely tender and I am very proud of that part.

By this time it was already past 9pm. And now it's past midnight. Which means technically it's Christmas Eve. And it couldn't feel farther from it. But apparently later today I'm going to have the best Christmas meal of my life at my host grandma's house. We'll see! For now, it's sleepy time. Goodnight all!

I Ate Twice My Weight Today...

It's Saturday. I really feel like all I did today was eat. It's almost 1 30am too and I'm so freaking exhausted I can barely keep my eyes open as I write this blog. So it may be a little less detailed than normal.

I woke up at about 10 45 this morning, but that was after not getting to sleep until 3 30am. But I got up and got ready and went to dance for 11 20 as is customary on Saturday mornings. And it was a terrible class. I did not do well at all. I'm pretty sure it's cause my whole body is sore and tired from working out all week, not to mention that I have not been getting enough sleep (as I write on my blog at 1 30am). So things just did not go well at dance today. Afterwards, my host mom picked me up and we went back to the house quickly before going out to Liège to sell oysters with Rotary. On the way home, Karine was driving slow, as usual, but she somehow got off the road for a second and when she got back on, the car slid and did a nice 360 turn, landing in some branches, just missing a telephone pole. It was fine and we were fine and there might have been a few scratches on the car, but that was it. The Belgians really need to discover snow tires.

Anyway, we got back to the house and I ate lunch as my host mom and Benoit went out to get the other car's tires filled, since the one was almost completely flat. I had three little sandwiches on baguette: one with a soft cheese and apple jelly, one with the soft cheese and the sirop de Liège, and one with ham and American cheese and mustard. The baguette today was especially delicious. And I was pretty darn full after.

My host mom and I then went out to Liège to meet up with my Rotary club. My host dad was already there. We were supposed to be there at 3, but with the snow and the fact that there was nowhere to park, we ended up being about a half hour late. We got there and said hi to everyone and then the Rotary people tried to get me to eat an oyster, but I couldn't. I really do want to try new things here, but I couldn't bring myself to eat that uncooked, raw, slimy crustacean. Which, apparently is a shame because everyone was saying how delicious they are. But then there weren't that many people coming to the stand, so my host mom told me I could go for an hour and do my Christmas shopping. So I did, and I came across my host brother and his girlfriend in the process, but I was able to find some good gifts and I'm happy with them. But I'm not quite finished and I think I'm going again on Monday. Oye shopping.

I then returned to the stand and was able to stay in the shop that was behind it where they were preparing the food in the warmth. Which was a plus. There wasn't really anything for me to do though, and I just ended up talking with my counselor and such. Christian wasn't there. But eventually we got to talking, and I have been invited to go with him for 2 weeks on vacation in the south of France!!! We would leave the day after Christmas. Now this isn't positively for sure, but it's a good chance that I would get to go and I'm so excited!

Anyways, we stayed there til about 6 30 and I had been snacking on these little chip things the entire time. But we returned to the house again, just for a minute to pick up my host dad, and then we were off to Namur for dinner with some family friends. By this point, it was already 8pm ish. We got there and I met the couple and their daughter and her boyfriend. They were very very nice and really funny and the house was warm and cozy and a little eccentric, which I appreciated. And they had a dog. A huge one. Like a bear. Really furry too. But it stayed outside the whole time.

We first sat down in the living room where they brought out some appetizers like little bits of sausages and such. But then it started getting fancy and the wife brought out some more little pre dinner foods that had garnishes in little porcelain dishes with itty bitty spoons and other fancy stuff. There was pate with some caramelized onions, but a very tiny portion with the smallest spoon you've ever seen in your life. Then she brought out this other one which was a skewer of a special kind of Belgian meat and a piece of a warm apple. Delicious.

Then it was time for the oysters. My host parents had bought a box of them from the stand and brought them with us. So the man of the house sat with us and spent the next fifteen or twenty minutes opening the oysters. I didn't realize that that is all the preparation that goes into eating oysters. You just open them. Ew. But they were all on a plate and the shells are pretty. Once they were all opened, we moved into the dining room to eat this first course of the giant meal. I did take one oyster, but the minute I opened it and saw it, I just lost my appetite. I really do pride myself on always trying things, but the fact that it wasn't cooked... If you know me, you know I have a fear of puking, which leads to my other irrational fears, such as roller coasters. This also includes my fear of raw meat/seafood. So I just couldn't eat it. I wanted to try it, but I couldn't. My body was rejecting it before it was even in my mouth. But the family understood and we all just laughed about it.

The next course was the main one. We had some sort of meat, which I think was lamb, green beans, and cheesy potatoes. Although the meat was kinda fatty, and I had to trim it a lot, it was really good and had a wonderful flavor. The potatoes were amazing. The best cheesy potatoes I've ever had. Technically, they were potatoes au gratin, but I like saying cheesy potatoes because it's more fun. And they were cheesy, and they reminded me of home. And of course, I love green beans, so that was good too. But by this point, I had so much food in my stomach, I thought I was going to burst and I couldn't figure out how I was going to finish what was on my plate. And then everyone started taking seconds and I felt bad saying no thank you, but I was beginning to feel sick and I couldn't eat anymore. But I did manage to clean my plate, except for the meat trimmings. They cleared away those dishes and I really did begin to feel ill. Which was not good. But it passed very quickly. That's when my eyes began to droop. We must have already been there for two hours.

Then they brought out the next course. The cheese. I couldn't figure out how I was going to do this. But I took very small portions of just a few of them and the smallest piece of bread that was in the bowl and ate just enough to get the tastes of the cheese. One was a brie, the other was another similar soft white cheese, one was a gouda type with bits of violets in it, and the other was a goat cheese that was covered in different kinds of crushed flowers. We ate it with a pumpernickel type bread that had nuts and such in it. The cheeses were delicious. I wish I could have had more.

But the food didn't stop there. They cleared those plates and fifteen minutes later, it was time for the last course. The most deadly. Dessert. The daughter brought out a platter of cookies she had made, some chocolate macaroons, lemon macaroons, and other really thin crispy cookies. I took one of each, even though at this point my stomach really was full to bursting. I successfully finished my cookies without any major problems. You think that was it? Oh no. There were also two cakes. One chocolate one with raspberries on it that made me want to die and go to heaven so that I could eat that all day long. The other was a crumble with red berries inside. That one looked rich and decadent also. But I couldn't eat anymore. Ten minutes later I asked for the crumble. I took half of a piece that my host dad had taken the other half of. I was halfway through the crumble when I really started to feel like I couldn't take another bite. It was so delicious. It was a crust, then some sort of custard, then raspberries and strawberries and cherries, mixed with a red berry mousse and topped with the crumble. I let myself rest for a couple minutes and then somehow, with the help of the Lord, finished the cake. And then I stared at the half of a piece of the chocolate cake, but successfully stopped myself from taking it. By this point I couldn't believe how much food I had eaten, but it was all so good. SO GOOD.

Then we left and it was midnight and I fell asleep in the car. We got home, I took a shower, and now I'm blogging and I want to go to sleep. Goodnight all.

Host dad's pants for today: red.

I'm Running Out Of Creative Titles...

Last night, I did not post. And that is because I was absolutely exhausted and I had stayed up late the last couple nights on Skype and I definitely couldn't let myself get roped into the internet. So I made myself go to bed around 11pm. Still not early enough... Tonight, after my dance class I intend to get right into bed. That means sleeping by 10! Maybe...

Yesterday was a very very good day though :) Yesterday was shopping spree day! Yesterday was Wednesday. That means two real classes and out of school by noon. Talia and I caught the bus right after we got out and went back to her house where we ate lunch with her whole family. It's incredible how good oven pizza is here. After lunch and getting a lovely hand-drawn map from Talia's host sister, Madame De Wulf drove us to the train station in Huy to catch a train to Namur for some serious shopping. On the way to the station, we got a text from another exchange student from Mexico, Eduardo, and he ended up meeting us at the train station and coming with us! I'm glad he enjoys shopping, because I told him that if he slowed us down, I would kick him out. But he's good company!

We arrived in Namur around 2 40 and spent about 10 minutes trying to figure out how to get out of the train station. It's huge! But the architecture is great. By 3pm we were in the city, deciding which shop to go to first. It ended up being Zara, which is like an H&M but a little more high class without being too expensive. Very popular in Belgium. Over the course of the next three hours, we went to quite a few stores and I spent-- well, it's kind of shocking... Are you sure you want to know? Ok fine I'll tell you. I ended up spending about 230 euros yesterday... But I got a lot for my money! Ready? I'm about to give you all the breakdown of where these 230 euros went:

Zara--

*3 cardigans, 12.95 each. One brown (I've been looking for that forever!), one gray, and one royal blue.

*1 skirt, 6.99. Adorable! Turquoise with little flowers on it.

Pimkie--

*2 scarves, one 8.95, one 7.95. The first is gray with silver running through it and the second is plain black, but super soft. Lovely.

*1 long silver pendant necklace, 5.95. It's the type with a bunch of pretty shiny dangly things all bunched together at the end of a chain. Very pretty.

*1 short silver pendant necklace, 5.95. This is the same type of bunchy necklace, but with less things and a little bow halfway down the chain.

*1 pair of earrings, 3.95. Silver dangle earrings with a silver bow and an embossed pearl at the end.

H&M--

*1 scarf, 9.95. Yes, I know I went a little accessory crazy... But this one I could not pass up. Cream colored with pink and red roses on it. It also has green in it because of the leaves of the flowers.

*1 pair of black thigh-high tights, 6.95. It's a basic essential!

*1 pair of black leggings, 7.95. I owed Talia money, so these were hers.

*1 sweater, 19.95. Cream with navy stripes. Very warm and comfy. Exactly what I need in the chilly Belgian weather.

*1 pair of capri yoga pants, 14.95. I didn't bring any sweatpants with me! And I can't keep wearing shorts in gym class; it's just too cold. They are basic black with a foldover waistband.

Camaieu--

*3 pairs of skinny jeans, 19.95 each. I know, three pairs seems like a lot. But I NEVER find skinny jeans, so I took advantage of the fact that these actually looked good on me. Besides, it's necessary for wearing boots. One pair of dark wash, medium wash, and black wash.

*1 pair of earrings, 5.95. Gold dangle earrings. Circle pendants with a wood finish back and a pretty gold overlay. They were necessary!

éram--

*1 purse, 19.90. Gray with fantastic pockets, cute lining and a really cute embellishment in the corner. I really did need another. I brought one bag with me!

There it is. The breakdown of everything from yesterday. And then today, I spent another 65 on a pair of black boots... I know I know I'm a shopaholic! But I promise, this is it for a very very long time! Cross my heart.

After shopping, getting Eduardo on a train home, and having a heart attack when I calculated how much I had spent, my host family met up with Talia and I and took us to dinner at this very classy Lebanese restaurant. I was so excited because I absolutely adore Lebanese food, since I am Lebanese. And I will be completely honest, it was, hands down, the best Lebanese food that I have ever had at a restaurant. I have never had spinach pies that tasted so much like the ones that my grandma used to make. Fantastic hummus and tabouleh, along with many other traditional Lebanese dishes. There was good company, good conversation and good food. Not to mention a great atmosphere! And this was all after a great day of shopping! What more could a girl ask for? So I'm sure you now understand why I basically passed out when I got home.

And then today happened. I don't know why, but I was just in a really pissy (for lack of a better word) mood all day. There was no reason for it though... I had my first test of my exchange today. In math. It wasn't a complete disaster, but I definitely had a hard time with it. And my brain ached after. But then I went and bought those boots and I was extremely happy because it takes me forever to find boots I like. I'm so picky. Then I hung out at the bar with my friends, went home, did some ab workouts, took some artistic pictures of my jewelry (cause I'm a dork) and I have dance in a couple hours and I'm happy.

This weekend is a giant party in Namur called the Fête Wallonie. I think that's how it's spelled... Anyway, it's a huge blowout and there will be food and music and crazy people and it's all in the streets of Namur. I'm going with some friends and we're leaving right after school tomorrow and spending the night there. I am so excited! But this also means that I probably won't be writing tomorrow. However! If this party is as epic as everyone is making it out to be, I will have an epic post up on Saturday or Sunday, so check back for sure!

And now this post is getting long and I still have to add pictures... Blogger won't let me right now... Although perhaps by now, you have already seen the pictures that are not yet added... But that is irrelevant. Until this weekend!

13 days...

It is quite a gloomy day outside. However! I am not feeling gloomy today like I was yesterday! Everything is looking way up. And the best part about it is that it's for no real reason. After a nap and some blueberry pancakes last night, I was feeling much better. Of course it helped that the boyfriend came and got me and we went to go watch a movie with friends. Then we went back to my house and just watched "The Office" and he stayed til 3am (shh don't tell my parents!) Of course his is now taking a toll on me as I had to get up at 8am for work... And I am now exhausted! But that's ok because it was totally worth it.

Today, I go over to his house for dinner. With his parents. Oh. My. Gosh. I'm a little nervous! I've met his parents before, multiple times, and talked to them but never to the extent of real conversation that isn't your typical chit chat and small talk. So that should be interesting to say the least!!

I really need to finish packing. I need to sort out my shoes and underwear and pajamas and all that. The really hard part is going to be shoes. See, I'm kind of a shoe addict. I have over 70 pairs of shoes. And there is no way I can take nearly as many pairs of them as I want to. So picking and choosing between all of my beloved shoes is going to be one my biggest challenges for packing! And shoes are probably the heaviest of all the stuff I'm going to be taking with me so I need to be extra picky. Figures.

Maybe I shall post an updated packing list later tonight. Hmm we shall see.