03 April 2004
study-trip redux
i'm back home in my small sleepy little college town of 120,000 people. my small little town that has changed from late winter to early spring while i was gone, with the whisp of pale green on trees and daffodils flooding the green spots in town. my small little town that has an easter market (same booths as the christmas market, sans the gl�hwein, but heck, that means poffertjes). my small little town and my own apartment. home at last, sigh of relief.
the trip was... interesting, the first half, through munich, my sweetie was with me, and that was fantastic. we didn't much like munich, it just wasn't my sort of town. partially, we also had crap weather, but ultimately i have to admit i just didn't like it. pork everywhere, and grumpy people. so ho-hum to that. i brought my sweetie to the train, which was awful (he's back in the US now), and then we bussed to the titisee in the schwarzwald (black forrest). we had a day and a half there, with SNOW (oh it was cold). two friends and i took a 10 km hike, which was fantastic. crisp snow, the crunch under our feet, and the dark green pines set off with the whiteness - gorgeous, dahlings, absolutely gorgeous!
then on to freiburg, where i have a great friend (the one, the only loewenzahn). that was nice, because it meant spending time with her and her boyfriend, it meant getting away from the whole group (19 people plus about 4 spouses).... and it was a comfort to be with a friend after my sweetie had gone back to the us.
then on to karlsruhe, visit to the german supreme court. then to bruxelles/br�ssel/brussels. here is where i can simply say: hot damn, brussles is an amazing city! i really, really, really liked it. like a lot. but not initially. we arrive late at night to this hotel located in what was clearly a bad, run-down neighborhood. we check in. the place smells. there are pubic hair in my bathtub and in the toilet. i feel ill, but no one else complains. yet. we go and have mussels (moules) cooked in whitewine sauce downtown (yes, we had to take a cab there, because the hotel guy told us that, well, jee, it isn't safe to walk around here at night, especially if you have a visible purse on you. oh. OK. perfect. dirty AND not safe. what a winning combo). the moules and the hoegaarden white beer were great. we take a cab back. we get there, and there is blood on my sheets in the bed. absolutely gross. i sleep in my pjs but on the bed, covering the pillow with a towel and not moving. and not sleeping. all night. it was by far the most disgusting thing. other people had similar gross-ities, and by 9 am i was throwing a temper-tantrum. we had a visit at the EU, and during this time i called the foundation and asked them to do something. and, indeed, three hours later a hotel had been found for us. right downtown. a chain. clean. with hot water. with clean sheets. in a safe neighborhood. after that, i loved brussels. the grande place at night. the various neighborhoods (we had moroccan food one night and african carrot soup with peanuts the next night). the people (friendly, bilingual, and eye-contact-making). the architecture, the energy, even the grim. today the flight back to frankfurt, and a train to my small, sleepy little college town. i did grocery-type errands, and am not at a loss for what to do. the past two weeks, every minute of my day has been planned, has been with other people. and now that it is quiet, i feel a bit lost.
later gaters!
dandlioneyes at 5:55 pm