Leuven

Sunday was a really good and relaxing day so there isn't much to report from this day but we all slept in late. When everyone got up and moving we headed into the center of Brussels. I had fries (fries originated in Belgium not France, they are delicious) and several other people had Belgian waffles. After that we walked around were several of us got chocolate at Mary's which is suppose to be one of the best chocolate shops in Brussels. It was incredible. We also went to H&M because the first few days were pretty cold so several people needed some extra sweaters and pants. Warmer clothes in July? I know it's crazy. After being in the main center most of the day we headed back to the house. Beth and I went to do laundry which was very much needed.

We washed our chacos on very hot for an hour!

So happy to have clean clothes

When we got back we went for a run around neighborhood which is nice and there are some beautiful houses to see in our neighborhood. Our group all hung out for a little while before heading to bed.

Monday was a big day because it was our first day of classes. In the morning we had our Belgian culture class with Marie-Therese who is from Belgium. She is amazing. She really makes me want to learn and not be an ignorant American. After a lunch break we had our afternoon class with Dr. Haley who is a professor from Clemson for our nutrition class. Class was great and it was nice to get all our schedules and figure out exactly what we will be doing when. After class Beth and I had to get chocolate since we have decided that we are going to try a different Belgian chocolatier every day we are in Belgium. I am so excited and everywhere we have had so far has been wonderful. Ahh I love Belgian chocolate. On Monday we had Leonidas which was really good. My favorite was a dark chocolate I had with caramel in it. Yummmm. After the snack Beth and I went to the atonium since most of our group had already been on another day. The Atomium was built for the Expo of 1958 (Same idea as the Eiffel Tower).

Beautiful day at the Atomium (notice the backpacks. i guess this can also count as a first day of class picture)

After the Atomium we headed back to the CUBC for our opening reception which was fun. We got to hang out more with the communications program which was great to see them more. Afterwards our nutrition program went to a certain pub because several people had heard of some beer called Sudden Death that we had to try. It was really sour but fairly good and we were all glad we had tried it.

Beth, me, and Jessie

Tuesday was a really great day because we took a trip to Leuven. It is the education center so it's pretty much Belgium's version of a college town.

Beryl, Lauren, me, and Beth on the train 

In the morning we met Marie-Therese and she showed us around the city on a tour. We saw the town hall, cloth hall, the beguinage, and many of the university buildings.

Reading room in the University's library. Beautiful. I loved it. If Auburn had a reading room that looked like this I would probably be a lot more motivated to study.

Town Hall

We had lunch at a wonderful place that brews their own beer so I tried it and it was really good. In the afternoon we went to UZ Leuven University Hospital where we were able to meet with dietitians. They gave us a presentation and showed us all around the hospital as well as in patient rooms and all throughout the kitchen. It was really interesting to learn about dietitians in Belgian and what they do. Their kitchen was so nice and the hospital has its own bakery to bake bread for meals.

After the hospital visit we headed back to Brussels. Most of the group headed back to the house but Beth and I stayed in the city. We went to our chocolate shop of the day to Elisabeth which was delicious. We also tried homemade nougat which was incredible. 

After a snack we people watched for a while before heading to the start of the Ommegang which is a medieval pageant in Brussels that we happened to be in town for. We watched the procession from a nearby cafe and a little bit of the pageant.

My favorite outfits of the procession

Today has been a really good day and I am loving Brussels...especially the chocolate.