It's Starting to Feel Normal...Except for Paris and the Swiss Alps

The internships--we've settled into them. The morning commutes--they've become routine. The rhythms of daily life--well, they've found their way into our Brussels apartment.

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We are now a full month into our Furman study away program, which means we're also a quarter of the way done (hard to believe!). The longer we have been here, the less Brussels has felt like a foreign city and the more it has felt like our home. Fewer maps are required to get around than one month ago, and stopping in a cafe for a drink or steaming mug of hot chocolate after work is no longer just for the locals. Many of us are enjoying internships that have us performing meaningful tasks, learning about political, educational, economic, medical and business issues, and being given real responsibilities and deadlines. In fact, some have been fortunate enough to get to travel for work--one of us is currently in Lithuania for his office, another two are taking a trip to Doncaster, UK with their MEP (Member of European Parliament), and a number of students will be heading to Strasbourg, France with their MEPs for the monthly gathering of the European Parliament in the city. 

In addition to internships, we are continuing with our classes at Vesalius College. Some have found their classes to be interesting and stimulating, while others have been frustrated with their experiences. We have also continued with Dr. Vecchio's course on WWII, women and resistance movements, which has provided us with inspiring examples of individuals and communities who acted to save Jews, usurp the Nazis, or combat racism even when the penalty, if caught, was death. For example, we recently read excerpts from Nechama Tec's When Light Pierced the Darkness and learned about Polish resistors, the majority of whom said they rescued Jewish families for no other reason than that they could not bear to see other humans in a state of such suffering. It was a lesson for all of us about the goodness of the human heart that can be found in times of great darkness and adversity, and it challenged us to think about the way we view those in our communities (whether immediate, regional or global) who are suffering.

Being a full month into the program also means that we've realized everything isn't perfect. Not every internship is working the way people hoped for, and those individuals with tough situations are working to keep their heads up and find positives in their respective workplaces. Also, living in close quarters with 20 people can be overwhelming (as any college roommates can attest to), especially in a new city where we're responsible for cooking all of our own food, washing our dishes, planning a morning schedule for who gets to shower when, and keeping dirty clothes from roaming the apartment. In such a small space, it can be hard to find solitude. Thus, while it's safe to say that we've done a great job getting along with one another so far, we'll have to continue communicating well so as to prevent thoughts of strangling each other by the semester's end! (kidding)

To end on a more positive note, we are taking full advantage of Brussels' central location. One class trip has been taken to Ypres, Belgium, and another is being taken this weekend to Amsterdam. Outside of class travel, we've been going to a number of other places--Paris, Milan, Lake Como (Italy), Luxemburg City, Trier (the oldest city in Germany), Switzerland...and more trips are upcoming. This past weekend, I had the privilege of visiting Interlaken, Switzerland, and Grindelwald, Switzerland with four of my classmates. We climbed to the top of mountains. We rested our feet in crystal clear streams running down the mountains. We lounged by lakes nestled in mountainsides two miles above sea level. We spent some quality time with cows. We stumbled upon the finish of a marathon that concluded with a 16 km climb straight up a mountain. When I say these are some of the most beautiful places in the world, don't take my word for it; look at the pictures. Words can't do these places justice (not that the pictures really can either, but it gives you a better sense of things). 

Tyne Cot Cemetery near Ypres

At the Versailles Palace Gardens

Paris from the Eiffel Tower

Interlaken, Switzerland from the top of the Harder Kulm Trail

Top of Männlichen in Grindelwald, Switzerland

Life is good

One of our four cloven-hoofed friends taking in the view at Lake Bachalpsee

Making friends

Nothing but blue skies

The Swiss Alps from Männlichen

Well, that's life in Brussels. Keep following our blog-- we're eager to see what awaits us in the coming months and will be eager to share it with you!

Until Next Time,

Nathan

Switzerland, According to My Senses

The sights, the smells, the sounds. My senses were captured the moment we sat down on the train, winding us through the Swiss lands.

It was past midnight when we first set foot in Interlaken, Switzerland. The town was silent; the wind whistled past the old buildings. The streets lay cobbled beneath our feet. Our laughter echoed in the streets as we realized where we were and what was looming above our heads. The mountains. They encapsulated us in a valley, a bowl.

I'll skip the details of our night at Balmers. #Balmers, the hostile of mountaineers, cheapskate college kids, and of those who didn't even make it to college. We survived, and actually fairly easily at that.

Interlaken had a mountain in store for us. Harder Kulm, 1322 m up and 1322 m back down.

We hiked while listening to "The Climb" by the one and only, Miley Cyrus. While we hiked and sang, we saw wildflowers dotting the fields with purples of every hue and the blues and the yellows. The rocks jumped out of the ground and gave our feet something to dance around. The tree roots did the same.

We tasted the fruits of the Earth-blackberries. It brought back my memories of my cabin in Ellijay, GA where we would pick blackberries and eat them before they even made it into the pies and cobblers. It brought back memories of Papa's garden, where the blackberries were size XL. I ate the berries while the rest of the crew stared at me, scared of my impending death. I know my fruits, no worries, they were safe to eat. I dodged the ones with ants and mold and ate only those, sweet and fresh.

After resting in the fields on the way up the mountain, we made it. We shouted for joy when we looked out over the ledge. The Earth was below us, and the blue-turquoise waters glistened out in the distance.

So that was that. Hike one: complete- well after we made our descent.

We then took a train to Grindelwald, Switzerland. The town was homey and cute. It was another valley, but this time, the houses were few, and the elevations were even higher. Actually, they were a whole lot higher.

The houses were old, and they each had window boxes filled with brightly colored flowers. The houses were labeled by name, carved into the wood. Our house was 107 years old and looked over the valley and up the mountain. It was quaint, and there was an old German-speaking woman who lived downstairs. We tried to talk, but it was mostly smiles and hand motions, some made up German, and a wave goodbye.

Ok, now here come the hikes of my life. Cable car up, where the views got progressively more incredible. There were cows all over the place. (For Christy Hess we played the "My Cow" game all weekend-I should be winning that game by now, by the way.) Their bells rung out, and they mooed their little (large) hearts out. There was a kind of silence that overcame us, then the bells would chime, and the breeze would cast a cool across us as the sun warmed our backs, our hands, our hearts.
We screamed and leapt around when we got to the top. Hiking around was incredible, each view more and more beautiful with every turn. I ate Swiss chocolate and a crunchy peanut butter sandwich while looking over the mountains. The clouds crept across the mountains as we sat, and the sun peeked in and out.

There was also a marathon going on that day. It was 25 km in Interlaken, then 16 km up THE WHOLE ENTIRE MOUNTAIN. I'm telling you, those people were crazy, but my respect for them is high. Very very high. We watched many people cross the finish line as we hiked. There were marching bands and street vendors and a whole lot of runners. I love that kind of thing, so this was great!

I'm going to now briefly describe the descent back to Grindelwald. Steep. I have new muscles in my shins and glutes now. My favorite part was the stream of water we found though. It was glacier water, and it was clear, absolutely crystal clear. The water was irresistible. We had to dip our feet in. We cleaned our feet and enjoyed the icy cold it provided. 

After resisting gravity on the way down the mountain, we rested when we finally found a pizza place at the bottom of the mountain. It tasted divine. As we sat on the porch balcony of the restaurant, the views were also divine. What a great day. September 13.

Dying on the way up the mountain-not a bad place to rest

Interlaken-views in the clouds

Glacier waters before the shoes came off

Wooden Cabins and Flower Boxes

-Katherine Boda

We are Here

I have flaunted the words "study abroad" since I gave my first tour, since I first told people I was coming to Furman. I told other peoples' stories. Now, we are here. The expectations that previous classes have set for us are no more. We get to set our own expectations and surpass them. We get to make our own stories. Brussels Fall 2014-let's go.

Furman has taught us to 'engage.' This is the most engaging. Those Parliamentary committee meetings I simulated in class are coming to life. I walk into work and as different languages fly off of each tongue, I try to piece together meetings to understand that the EU is making decisions and arguing real conflicts right in front of me.

I ordered a meal in French. I had to ask where to find a food item in the grocery store. We practiced all of those things in French class. Who would have guessed I would ever use those phrases?

More importantly though, I am here to explore and have fun and understand a new culture. I am here to learn. Hopefully we will adequately document some of our impressions, our experiences, and our stories in order for you to share with us in this adventure!

Day Trips to Bruge

Here's to more ice cream

-Katherine Boda