Belgium

Yet another trip has gone by. This one was great although it couldn't have been more opposite from my Paris trip. I went with my host family and they and three other families rented a little hotel for the weekend. It was a beautiful place. Everyone had there own room, which were very cozy, with their own bathroom (trust me, over here, being used to hostels, that was a big luxury!). There was also a living area with a bunch of extremely comfortable couches, a dining area, a huge kitchen and a bar. Basically what we did all weekend was sit around, drink tea and talk. Very "Gezellig" as the Dutch would say. I was actually pretty proud of myself, I had a whole entire conversation with someone about my Paris trip in Dutch! I think it was the first adult conversation that I've had. Sure I can talk to the kids in Dutch no problem but when it comes to adults it's a bit more embarrassing because the Dutch speak English so well that they're just not used to hearing Dutch with an accent and they tend to laugh. Not so good for your self confidence. But the adults this weekend were very encouraging and helpful so I was comfortable trying to speak Dutch with them.
Outside was much colder than here but it was still very green. We were in Brussels so it was very hilly and there were lots of trees. I always forget how much I love mountains until I see them again. The hill in Brussels I wouldn't necessarily qualify as mountains but it's a far cry from the pancake flatness of The Netherlands. On Sunday we also visited a nice little place that I think would be great in the summer time. There's a river that you can kyak down and places to hike and things like that. It'd actually be a great place for a youth group trip if it wouldn't cost so much to get there. Oh well. Then on Monday we spent the day in Maastricht which is a nice old Dutch town. We ate lunch and did a bit of shopping and then headed back home so that I could be in time for my Dutch lesson.
It was a very relaxing, enjoyable weekend. Something that's good to have every once and a while. Now back to reality.