Who forgot the flu shot?!?!

I did!!!!!

Oops....learned that one at a very depressing price. My first time in Paris and I watch most of the week from the window of my family's apartment! Which by the way is spitting distance from Notre Dame, the Louvre and just out of the neighborhood of the Eiffel Tower. I can actually see the towers of Notre Dame from the window. How sad is that? I did have a few short walk-abouts; one fevered hunt for food on Wednesday (which must have looked most amusing to anyone lucky enough to witness) and a stroll today for a few hours where I walked past some of the places I wanted to see. No real energy for sight-seeing though. Though I did get a bit of reading in while I was awake, which was nice. I'm feeling better now, I'm not looking any better, but I'm on the mend. Just in time, too because I'm heading back to Bruxelles tomorrow with a persistent sniffel and plans to return to Paris in the near future.

Paris

I'm headed for Paris today. I've got a ticket on the 8:43 train from Bruxelles Midi to Paris Nord. From there I'm going to take the RER 'B line' to the Luxembourg stop which is just next to Jardin du Luxembourg. The apartment is a couple blocks north west of there. If you happen to look at a map of Paris. It's just south of the Seine.

I'll be there for 4 days, I'm returning on an early train on Saturday.

I'm really excited about going, but nervous because I'm still shy about using the little bit of French I know. Thankfully I can understand about half of what people say to me in French if they talk slowly or repeat the sentence a couple times! haha So I'm not completely up the creek without a paddle, I've got, say, a large serving spoon to work with! Ah well, gotta learn sometime, right?

The weather forecast is good, high 40s and sunny most of the week with a bit of fog on Tuesday morning and Friday. I should be pretty comfortable and it looks like most of what I'm aiming for is in walking distance. Which is really cool. I was expecting Valerie to pull out a map and point to some district way on the outskirts of the city that would take 20 minutes of walking a bus and a subway to get to the center of the city. Instead I'm right in the thick of it!

Antwerpen

Went out on Friday night with Myriam. We'd both had a rough week, the honeymoon is over and we just realized how tough the year is going to be with our respective kids. I met her downtown and we headed for a pub we'd stopped in earlier in the week called Celtica. It was a cute little Irish pub downtown we both liked. We had a beer after lunch on Monday and noticed that they have really good happy hour prices (incidentally happy hour lasted from 1 pm until midnight...!) So when we went back on Friday we got a kick out of the fact that we failed to notice that it is a pub downstairs and a discotech upstairs. We went in and had a pint and waited to see if any other couchsurfers would show up. She'd posted a general notice last minute that we were going out and an invite for any and all to join up. A half dozen did show which was fun. We stuck around there for a few rounds and decided to head for greener pastures. One of the folks in the group suggested he'd gotten an invitation to a gallery opening party. There was a new photo exhibit opening on Saturday so they were kicking it off with a party. We went there for an hour or two, had a drink and danced a bit. It was fun, but we were ready to go sit down again and the only place to sit in the gallery was the stairs so we took it back to Celtica. A few people dropped off to go home on our way back to the pub and the rest of us marched on. Eventually Myriam and I were the only two left of our bunch. When we finally decided to leave I looked at my watch and it was 4:30! yikes! I'm so used to last call reigning in my evenings that I wasn't really paying attention.
Myriam and I had plans to meet Kelly and Gudrun in Antwerp the next day (or rather in a few hours) so I suggested rather than each of us take a taxi home and meet up in a couple hours that we split a taxi back to Etterbeek and she could just spend the night in the guestroom. That worked out fine so we left from here first thing in the morning (meaning around 10 am....we were supposed to be in Antwerp at 1030...oops). Anyway, a bus, metro and a train ride later we met Kelly and Gudrun at the gorgeous train station in Antwerp. I had to make a first priority trip to the pharmacy to get some aspiring for the hangover which had set in about the time we stepped onto the train. It was a lucky thing I didn't wake up with that headache or I never would have gone to Antwerp in the first place.
We went for lunch at an Indian place before Gudrun had to go to work. Food was good but Myriam was really sick so she never touched her food. I don't know if it was a hangover or the flu or food poisoning, but she was not having a fun time. After lunch Gudrun went to work and the rest of us went shopping/sightseeing. We went to the great market where the postcard buildings are (you know the obligatory postcard shot of the most impressive architecture in town) and then we walked to the river. From there we walked back towards shopping areas where we poked around a very cute jewelry store (no diamonds though, this one was mostly semi-precious stone and silver) and half a dozen book stores. We went to the gallery and had a hand scrub demonstration at this boutique soap shop. It was really nice sugar scrub with essential oils etc in it, if it weren't completely unnecessary and out of my price range I would have bought a jar, but alas...
Eventually Myraim's stomach recovered and we got some diner at the swank cafeteria at the gallery before heading out of town again. Myriam split in Bruxelles and I continued on to Leuven with Kelly. We had been planning on meeting her friend John (I think that's how he spelled it, it's pronounced like Yawn) and going out in Leuven, but we'd both had enough walking that day and I'd certainly had enough bars for the weekend, so we just called it a night and all three of us watched some TV at home (all four of us once Gudrun came home from work).
A little bit of a tedious story and quite anti climactic, but it was a really fun weekend.

Alright, you win!

I was planning on just telling you all that you just had to come visit to see what the place is like, bit I guess I'll post a few photos.




















Ok, so this is a narrow shot, but you can at least see where I sleep. I wasn't quite sure how my room was furnished before I got here, so I was just really hoping that I wouldn't be spending the year on a twin sized cot. My room is something like 3x4 meters thought I haven't measured. I've got a dresser and a wardrobe, a nightside stand and a window. That's about all I need. The sun rises on the other side or the house, so I can leave my shutters open and get some indirect morning light without being blinded. As you can see in this shot. I have my own bathroom just next to my room, which is nice, and the guest room is across the hall. Around the corner is also another spare room.














This is my favorite, It's the view from the guestroom (ah-hem... the view my guests get to wake up with). It's even more gorgeous at night, there's a light from below on the left side of the bell tower and it just glows against the night sky. This church is even prettier up close. Maybe I'll post some photos of the city soon. FYI, I'm in the Etterbeek (not Itterbeek) region of Brussels if anyone has looked at a map.














This is about half of the backyard. It's a bit small, but really pretty. You see the geraniums (I think, I'm no good at botany) here in the window box and there is a small olive tree just 'round the corner, a handful of evergreens that their cat Miche loves to skulk about under. There's some ivy running up and along the brick wall there. It's a favorite of one pigeon in particular who like to nestle down in a bit of ivy on chilier days. He's a funny looking little bird and drives Miche nuts! (she's way to fat to actually catch anything but she still dreams)














This is the kitchen and small dining area/breakfast nook/sun room? Europeans, go figure! So efficient with space I can't even name a room. haha There's a proper dining room near the front of the house that's normally used as a coloring table. The window just next to the stove looks out onto that same bit of garden above. Most of the rest of the backyard you can see through the sun room.


Finish up the abbreviated tour in the living room. It's a living room...watch out for the hot wheels littering the place. I nearly stepped on one the other day in the basement while i was doing laundry! Can we say 'who remembers Home Alone?'


Ok, I'm done. You don't gotta go home, but you can't stay here. G'night folks!

Getting into the swing of things

Well this past weekend was really fun. Kelly and Gudrun were in Bruxelles on Saturday morning, so I met up with them after lunch just before Gudrun left for work. Kelly and I hung out during the afternoon, walked around center city for a bit, did a little shopping in my neighborhood, got some coffee and then she came home with me to babysit. She stuck around until the grandparents came back from their anniversary dinner. Then we both left and took the train to Leuven and went to pick up Gudrun (since her work shift lasted later than the last train ran).
I crashed on the couch (really comfy, fyi) and we celebrated Frank's birthday on Sunday with lots of chocolate cake. No ones complaining haha! All four of us hung out for a relaxing Sunday and I took a late train back to Brussels.
Today is the start of my third week in French lessons. I'm getting pretty adept at understanding other people talking. I'm still shy about forming my own sentences, but I'm getting there! After class Myriam and I took a tram to center city for some lunch. We found a place for sandwiches and frites and then went to an Irish pub for a beer after (more like Irish-kitch, but it was fun). Then I came home for about a 20 minute nap and went back out to pick up the boys. Thomas was playing on the playground as usual and Matthieu was at a friend's house a few blocks away attending a Halloween party. Looked like they had fun, though Matthieu wouldn't say anything about it on the way home. He seemed unusually sullen, I think both of the boys are coming down with a cold. That's gonna be a mess...
I'm starting to adjust to living here. The kids and I are getting used to each other, I think Matthieu even missed me this weekend. I'm settling in, but I still feel like a stranger in a strange land, especially at shops and restaurants.

Meet the Grandparents

Valerie left for the weekend for a short holiday with FX, so his parents came to town to stay with the kids (a full weekend of babysitting is far above and beyond my duties, if anyone was wondering). They are French, I mean really french, so grandma didn't speak a word of english and grandpa knew a little. I was able to pick out some of what they were saying in french, and grandpa could translate some into english, but a lot of the time I spent with them was just smiling and playing with Matthieu and Thomas. They were both really nice people. I enjoyed meeting them and hopefully I'll be more adept at french next time they're in town.
They went out to diner on Saturday night to celebrate their anniversary so I took the boys then, but for the most part I just kept out of the way and let them spend some time with their grandparents.

Finally ...people!

Today I went to a meeting of couch surfers. I've never used the site, but Myriam (from my French class) is quite involved so she invited me along. I talked to a handful of really nice folks and ended up walking around the city with them for a few hours after we left the meeting. Very much fun, and it was really nice to have some people to talk to outside of the house. I was beginning to feel lonely, and those of you who know me know that I hardly ever feel lonely (thanks in part to the many voices in my head, one of whom is surprisingly British...) We went to see Manneqin Pis and had a beer while watching tourists then we found the peeing dog followed by St. Catherine's Cathedral at which point I had to leave to get home.

I was actually about 10 minutes late, I was supposed to babysit from 7 on. Tonight went soooo much better than last Saturday! The boys turned off the TV when I asked, actually Thomas did, and ate their dinner (carrots included!), took a bath and got out with minimal complaints. We read two short books and they went directly to sleep. I suspect a coup in the near future.....

It wasn't me.....

Ok, this may seem a little cruel but I was glad to hear Thomas crying tonight. Valerie had the boys in the tub and when it was time to get out of the bath and into PJs, Thomas pitched a fit twice as loud and three times as enduring as the one I got from him on Saturday night. It's too bad that he's such a frustrated little boy, but I'm comforted in the fact that it wasn't all my doing.

Sleep!

Last night was the first full night of sleep I've had since arriving last Wednesday. I got very little sleep over the weekend so I was already tired and then I took 2 melatonin pills. I'm feeling better today, no so exhausted, so I hope I'm over the worst of my jet lag.

Je suis très américain!

I just returned from my first french lesson. My pronunciation was horrible, but the teacher was pretty patient with me. The hardest part is that much of French is similar to Spanish, so I kept accidentally saying the words as if they were Spanish, you know making the wrong consonant silent or vowels accented incorrectly. Oh well... c'est la vie, no? I will be there three days a week, so I will learn sooner or later.
I met another au pair in class, name is Myriam, she is from Chicago and arrived in Brussels recently as well. Sounds like she has about the same schedule as me so I may try to meet her somewhere in the city tomorrow for some aimless exploring.
Oh! I almost forgot...today was the bus strike! It's not so exciting, but it meant I had to walk to class which made me about 25 minutes late because I got lost. There is one intersection on my way that is all mangled, there are something like 5 or 6 roads converging and some of them didn't appear to have traffic light (or maybe I just didn't see them) and because the buses were out of commission traffic was heavier than usual. I think I followed each and every one of those roads from that intersection trying to find a street sign somewhere.

Weekend in Leuven

I decided to go to Leuven on Friday after Kelly's surgery. She looked a little pathetic, but seemed to be doing OK. She had all 3 plates removed from her jaw (left, right and front) which involved 12 screws, so it's no surprise that her jaw is quite aggravated. The trip was a good learning experience though. I took bus #36 to Schuman circle, subway 1A to Brussel Centraal, the train to Leuven station and bus #2 to Heverlee. Made it there in just about 2 hours (give or take...I had to spend some time puzzling over signs and asking for help). The trip back this afternoon was faster. Now I'm acquainted with all the modes of travel around here.

This was also the first time I have met Gudrun. She is really very sweet. Kelly said she was nervous to meet me, which is fine because I was nervous to meet her too. I'm no good at talking to new people, so maybe I didn't make the best first impression, but I hope I wasn't too awkward. I'm catching an early train back to Leuven today. There is a Sunday Market Kelly recommended, so Gudrun and I are going to go check that out.

Well, Saturday I had the boys in the evening while Valerie and Francois went out. It was tough on Tommy, he screamed bloody murder when I turned off the cartoons for dinner (which he soon gave up with the amusement of the cold draft of air he found in the mail slot of the front door....who knows?) and he screamed even more when it came time to drain the bathtub. Oh yeah, I forgot the best part! They came back earlier this evening with 2 new recorders! Mum I thought of you. ;-) It was a tough night, but we got through it.
We read two books and they went to sleep surprisingly quick. They must have been exhausted, which would no doubt account for some of the crying.

Tired

I'm still having trouble adjusting to the time change. I find that I get very tired around 10 pm, but then I'm wide awake again by midnight. I'm assuming it will pass eventually, but in the meantime it is really frustrating.

Getting accquainted

Today was my second day in Brussels. I was sleepy the first day from traveling, so I went to bed early. I intended to wake up before Valerie and the boys left for school/work, but ended up sleeping through my alarm clock. Didn't even hear it beep. I slept for about 12 hours and could have slept more but tried to keep moving in spite of the jet lag. I caved in at 1 though and laid down for a short nap.
I went walking around the neighborhood without much of a goal in mind except to acquaint myself with the area. I found a strip of stores near here with just about everything you could need, plus about every third store front was a mobile phone store. Why they need so many is beyond me. I was surprised at my intense feelings of insecurity though. It was unnerving to not understand 90% of the things around me. Somethings were written in English and others had pictures, but for the most part I was lost. Especially with the street names. They're marked in French and Dutch, but neither means anything to me, so I just have to memorize the nonsense for now.
My classes start on Monday. Ill be at the language school 3 days a week for a few hours. I'm really anxious to begin. I was playing with a toy that belongs to the boys, it has a dozen different functions on it including learning the alphabet and numbers so I entertained myself and Tommy for a while playing with that and dancing with him to the songs it played.