Week 4... A MONTH ALREDY!!

Well I can't believe that it has been a month already!!!
This week was fairly quiet actually, I think it has been the least full so far! But I still had agreat time! Throughout the week at school everyone was buzzing, it was the last week before vacation. The French teacher gave me a book to read which she said would be easy for me... I couldn't even understand the title! haha! So much for her telling me how simple it was! Come Wednesday and my half day off, I spent the afternoon with a new friend, Agathe, we firstly went and had a traditional Belgian lunch.. Frites.. thats hot fries to you and I... and WOW they are sooooooo good! I can now understand what everone was going on about... I am pretty sure that in that afternoon alone I gained 10kgs because after that we tried the "gaufres de Liege" (Belgian sugar waffles) SOOOO good!! even better than anything in Aus.. and probably 3x as fattening too!! after all that food in our tummys we spent the rest of the afternoon shopping!

After that the next big thing was Friday, after school we had a get together of our class, apparently they do it every friday with most people but EVERYONE comes on the Friday the vacation starts. Well, first we went to a Café and ate Crêpes with chocolate fondue and sat around talking for a bit, but after that we went to a place called "l'Option" its a mix between a bar and a nightclub and was packed to the rafters! everyone in our year was there and we danced until I had to go home!

Saturday, finally a sleep-in!! Then in the evening we picked up Karlien for the rest of the weekend :D On Sunday, Karlien and I went to Courtrai/Kortrijk for a day of shopping. We spent most of the day just wandering around the place and in the afternoon we went to the Museum for the Battle of Courtrai. It was very interesting and I managed to get an English translator so I actually understood what I was seeing :D After that we went to a bar and I tried a Belgian beer with cherry in it... it was actually a lot nicer than I thought it would be!
Anyway, I'd best be off, next week promises to be full of things to tell. I am going to a festival tomorrow and I need sleep so until next week.
SALUT! xxx

Week 3... The biggest yet

Well, another week gone and again so much has happened! I still don't understand a lot in my classes at school but my friends tell me that my french is improvig daily! YAY!!! I have been told this week that the school is going on a trip for 3 days to Brighton England so I am quite excited about that, however, it isn't till May. but oh well! something to look foward to! this week again it snowed!! its so cool to watch the snow fall and even better when there is enough for a snowball fight! Well while enjoying the company of my new friends it didn't take long for the weekend to roll around once again! and WOW! what a weekend I had!

Saturday I was up before dawn to get ready to catch the train to Aqualibi (Its a waterpark... indoors of course!) This was the first time since my arrival that all of the Belgian exchange students, old and new, got together as one group! (there are over 200 just in Belgium alone!) I met some amazing people and caught up with some who caught the plane over here with me! It was such a great day! but exhausting all the same, I left the house at 7am and didn't return until 9pm... HUGE DAY!! I was so tired and I knew that Sunday would be even bigger!!

So Sunday morning after a little sleep in I woke up and got ready for my day in Bruxelles! I had my own personal tour guide (the son of one of the ladies my host mum works with) and we saw sooooo much! from "La Grand Place" to "Mannequin Pis" and even the kings castle! It was such an extaordinary day!! After that I finally came home and settled myself in for sleep, I wasn't home till after 10pm!! After such a huge and brilliant weekend this weekend, I have no idea how anything I do for the next week can compare, except for that next weekend I get to see my Karlien!!

Oh well thats it from me for another week, hoping you are all well and missing you all dearly!!!

xxx

Second Week, WOW!!!

Well, at the close of another very exciting week in the life of a Belgian I have learned a lot. Mostly I have learned that the people here are very friendly, not because they have to be but because they are genuinely intrested in what you have to say. Secondly, although there are no uniforms here there are still dress codes, for example, boys cant wear shorts unless it is above 27*c and girls cant wear singlets or short skirts. Also, it is strictly foridden to have your mobile phone or ipod out while you are in the school grounds, this includes lunchtimes! My friends nearly had heart failure when they learned that at lunchtime at school in Aus it is quite normal to listen to an ipod or phone a friend! So, at the second day of my schooling life here the principal called me to his office, apparently the class I was put in wasn't able to keep me because the teachers had been complaining about the disruption I caused, so I was put in another class. At the time I was quite upset about it but now I am very glad! By wednesday I had a lovely group of friends both boys and girls and had been invited to attend the school "soiree" saturday night. So after another week in classes were I understand nothing of what the teachers say to me, finally, the weekend! and with it came a very interesting experience!

So, in Belgium, the legal drinking age is technicaly 18 as in Australia, but you can purchase alcohol (sold in supermarkets) at the age of 16. So Saturday night I met at Orlane's house (one of my new friends) where I would spend the night after the party at school. First we went to pick up Agathe (another friend) and then we headed off to meet the rest of the group at the bar down the street from the school. I nearly fell off my chair when Antoine (another friend) who is 16, walked upto the bar and ordered 3 vodka red bull and 2 beers and was given them, no questions asked!!! Well as if that wasnt enough to give me heart failure, a few of the group (also 16) lit a cigarette in the bar! no-one came to throw them out and everyoe else just kept talking, I later found out that the only place here that it is illegal to smoke is in top end restaurants! So after an hour or so, we all headed towards the school for the party. When we arrived our tickets were torn and we were given a wristband for entry. After this we joined a long que that I assumed was where we put our bags for the night (apparently not) when we got to the front of the que I saw that in fact people were purchasing little orange an purple tickets so I asked Orlane what they were for and she said "for beer of course." Well as f that thought didn't scare me enough (beer, at a school party) I was even more shocked when she took me to the "bar area" and it was teachers behind the bar serving the students beer!!!! I was so freaked out! but they just smiled, took the ticket and handed us the beer! All in all, after the shock subsided, it was a great night with my new friends!! In the photo is only some of my many new friends but they are really the best (though nothing compares to my Aussie friends of course but they come pretty close) Well I think I should probably get going on the masses of homework that I don't understand! Until next week, C YA!!

First Week of an incredible Year

Well, I have only been here for a week and already I am so shocked by how different the culture is. Firstly, the main meal time is at lunch and so we don’t have a big dinner, just maybe some different cheeses and bread with a glass of Red Wine. The family that I am living with like to have a glass of wine, beer or champagne with every meal. I am trying a lot of new food, most of which is very good.
When I first arrived I spent the first few days with my second host family. This was because they speak much better English than my host family now. So it was much easier to adapt that way. Now I am living with a lady called Christine and her 3 chldren, Cyprien,13, Emillien,10, and Gregoire,7. They are gorgeous and I love them all like my little brothers!
I also this week had my first day of school. It was great! The children are really lovely and the principal is awesome! I have just 11 subjects, here it’s not a lot, but back in OZ where we have only 6... WOW it is HUGE!! I take subjects here that I have never taken in OZ and it is quite different trying to understand them all in French! All of the teachers seem to be on speed mode when they talk... it is so fast I sometimes can’t tell for a few minutes whether or not we have changed topics. I take the subjects of
-French
-English
-Maths
-History
-Chemistry
-Biology
-Physics
-Sport
- Social Science
-Economics
-Religion
As you can imagine, they are all very boring for me right now because I understand practically nothing of what they are saying and in the one class that I do know what they are saying, it is soooo simple that I am sure to get an "A"!!! (bet you can guess what class that is!)
Also, for my first day of school, another first and a great gift to start a great day! It was snowing when I woke up!!!
It really has been an experience,what an incredible week i have had!!! I can hardly wait for the adventures that will come for me for next week!!!