15!

two weeks in belgium, crazy! time is going fast and slow at the same time. today was my first day of school. new kids had to be there early, so my host brother took me and showed me where to put my bike and stuff. then we walked in and they gave us juice to make me feel more comfortable or something. then this french teacher lady attempted to guide me around but i think she just made me more confused. then i met my class and they are nice but it will be weird going from subject to subject with the same people. i think i will miss the random groups of friends you make when you get to meet different people in every class, oh well. then finally after sitting in an old classroom bored and confused for like three hours, school was done for the day. i then met two other foreign exchange students and we took the train to brussels. actually i got a sandwich at a little place by the train station first, but thats not important. its about an hour and 20 minute journey by train, which is easily comparable to someone from brookings wanting to go to sioux falls after school. especially since school was done at noon...as it is every wednesday. when i first asked my host family if i could go to brussels for the afternoon, they said yes but warned me not to get off the train at the brussels-north station because it is really ghetto. so i payed close attention on our way through that station and indeed, yes, it was REALLY ghetto. so ghetto in fact, that there were about 4 city blocks worth of prostitutes in windows. apparently that station is in the red light district of brussels. oh boy! then we got off at the central station in the middle of town and met some other rotary kids. we went to some sort of irish pub and i tried peach beer. it was not very good. it was like apple juice with bubbles and a fruity-soapy sort of taste. live and learn i guess. then i bought some post cards, a present for my dad, and some french fries because i am in belgium after all, right? then we took the train home, i ate dinner, and here i am. tomorrow is my first day of language class. i go there in the morning from 9:10-12, then i eat lunch on my own or something...then i go to real school at 1. real school will be weird because right after lunch on thursdays i have choir. choir and i don't get along, haha. i am lucky to only be going half days because then i can avoid harder subjects such as french. i still have to take math, english, some sciences, dutch, GERMAN(?!), geography, and a wide range of music classes. i will keep you posted on how that goes. for now, goodnight.

at the brussels train station about to come back to turnhout!!

manuella from brazil and courtney from south africa!