LOST! In "F!!!!ing Bruges!"

I apparently am really holding strong to the theory that sightseeing is best done when lost, cause I did it again, though at least it was in a different town this time!

Bruges, the beautiful, and some might even say best, medieval town of Belgium. I went there to meet up with my cousin Stephanie who was there with some university friends on a euro tour. So I arrived at the Station with only one slight complication, which was quickly resolved by the train company. So I get there and try to call my cousin. My cellphone wouldn't let me. So I decided to wait and see if she would call me. 45 minutes later I decided to take matters into my own hands. I went to a pay phone and tried to figure it out. The number didn't work. So I went to the ticket booth and asked for the area code. Tried to call again, but in vain. I then asked the ticket booth if they knew where my youth hostel was. They said yes and told me to take the 6o16 bus for it. Now I heard 6 o 16, so I thought he meant 6016, though later I realized he meant 6 OR 16. Nonetheless I went out looking for the 6016. As it doesn't exist, I didn't find it. So I went back in and asked for a map and how long it would take to get there. He said around 30 min. So I started out. Turns out streets are not very well marked near the train station, and I was quickly quite lost in a park. Thank the medieval creators of Bruges and their love for making towers, for without them I would never have gotten back on track. But I did and I finally arrived on the street of my hostel. What I didn't realize was that the name of the street "Laangestraat" means long street. It's the longest street in all of Bruges. So after stopping in three different stores asking where the hostel was, and receiving from all the same general answer "just a few minutes more" I finally found it. And my cousin within.

The most interesting thing about this story of stress and sore feet, is that while walking through Bruges, though I was on the verge of snapping I couldn't help but smile, it being fully decked out in Christmas decorations, it really was quite magical.

Report Cinq

The month of December was an interesting one. It started fairly slow with exams and all, and then bam started to race off with the start of the holidays.

So first I will explain exams here. So the students here mostly had around 7or 8 exams, but some had more, and some (like myself) had less. Each exam can take from 2-4hours. The 4 hour ones are separated in two with a break in between. As this year doesn’t count for us the Belgian rotary asks us to do at least 2 or 3 exams. As I am at a school well known for it’s discipline and difficulty level, I had to take three. I took social sciences, French and math. Social sciences went very well, I think, but unfortunately that teacher does not give me points, so I don’t know how I did. French, I PASSED! By only a few points, but that’s still better some of my classmates did, so I figure if I do better than some francophone’s in a French exam I can be proud. Now math gave me some real troubles, something rather frustrating for me as it was my best subject back in Canada, but that was part of the problem. The math here is a bit more advanced, so it was like I’d missed a month or 2, so the first couple months I was quite lost. Now I should’ve been able to catch back up, but seeing as I have no study habits in math seeing as I never studied for it back in Canada, it didn’t go as well as I’d hoped. Though I definitely improved, I definitely failed. I once again can not be sure as that teacher didn’t give me marks either. So essentially, I passed French, all my courses that don’t have an exam (religion, phys. Ed., Hist. of art) and besides that I don’t know.

The holidays started and so did a compilation of little fun get-togethers. First off, I had Christmas Eve with the mother’s side of the family (the big side). It was interesting as that is the same day the “big” side of my family gets together. So I skyped my family when everyone was there and the sides met. It was a very nice and for many an emotional evening. It was then that the feeling of alienation started for me. It lessened a bit for when we met up with the father’s side of the family, as there are less of them and I know them better, another lovely evening. This feeling peeked for when we met up a few days later for the big celebration of the grandparents’ 50^th wedding anniversary. Once again another wonderful evening full of laughs and smiles, except this time it was my turn to be emotional. Just looking around seeing the beautiful, sublime, happiness this family felt when all together, I found it very touching, but once again felt a slight alienation imposed by myself and by the fact that I could look around the room and say that for the most of them, this is the last time I would see them. Those feelings were quite nicely distracted by all the cars stuck in the snow that we had to push out. In one day I pushed more cars in Belgium, than in my whole life in Canada.

Christmas day itself was very interesting. I started the day off by making some banacks, bacon and eggs for a Mireault/Howells style family breakfast. I also presented the kids with the mini sticks I’d be hiding in my room this whole time. The breakfast and the sticks were a success. I then left for Bruges to spend the night and see Christmas in that beautiful town with my cousin, who happened to be doing a euro tour with her friends.

But soon all the Christmas feel was gone, and the ominous day of my changing families arrived. It arrived solemnly, but without tears. Which was a good thing for the moment I arrived at my new family’s house, I had to get ready to leave for the New Year’s party which they were the organizers of. As I decided to help them as much as I could with set and clean up, I arrived at 6:00 in the evening, and then left at 6:00 in the morning. A great New Year’s was had by all I think.

Then the 5^th of January I returned to Bruges this time with Rotary. We did a little tour, and had the traditional tart/cake. The special thing about this cake is that in each one there is a little figurine. If your slice contains this figurine then you’re the king or queen of the little celebration. I then met up with some friends I had made in Bruges the last time I was there.

As for sports, there haven’t been a lot as it has been off season for a while. However I did get to see an indoor soccer tournament, practice in snow up to my knees, and try out for a possible new team.

I hope everyone back in Canada had a fantastic Christmas and New Year’s!