Shelby's Year in Belgium: April, May, & June

Ive been in Belgium for over 300 days. Its crazy to think that 300 days ago I left everything I knew, my family, my friends, my life to come explore a new country, make new friends and create a new life. My time in Belgium was exactly how I wanted it to be. I remember my french teacher telling me how the first few months will be the worst but for me its the last few months. The conflict of leaving this little wonderful life I made in just 10 short months to go back to my life I lived for 17 years. Some days I want to go to the airport and hop on a plane right then and other days I wanna call and cancel my flight and never go home. Its that internal struggle that's truly the sucky part about exchange. that and the goodbyes and the exchange weight haha! I really cant explain how I feel about it. Its very bittersweet. A month ago I was so excited to go home and start a new routine, but now that its coming I sit here thinking how did it all go by so fast? Fortunately I have a few more weeks (eek I cant even say a month anymore!!) to enjoy Belgium. There are plenty of things I have yet to see so as soon as I finish my exams I plan to cram them in.
I have done a lot since my last post so here's a couple things ive done!
I participated on our Rotary trip to Italy, changed host families, visited the Atomium, went out with exchange students, went to the Rotary Gala, went to a karaoke night with my Belgian friend, did 3 huge end of the year projects, and completed a week of reception (explained later). I also got to experience DouDou, visit the Abbaye de Villers, gave a Rotary Presentation, visited some Belgian cities, went to Zoo in Antwerp, explored a castle, went to a food truck festival, and danced the night away at a Belgian prom! I also visited Keukenhof in Holland to see the tulips and said some goodbyes to some of my exchange friends.

One of my last outings with my 2^nd host family was going into the Atomium. It was something I had on my Belgian Bucket List and they were happy to help me check it off. We went straight up to the third floor where we could see ALL of Brussels. It was so cool! We took the fastest elevator in Europe too. Then we took the stairs and escaloators to see the expo and museum. It’s a very neat monument. I almost like it more than the Eiffel tower, almost ;). We also visited Mini-Europe which is literally all these European momnuments but in tiny form! It was pretty cool, I literally was around the world in 80 seconds (okay maybe like an hour). I was so glad to check these things off my bucket list with great company.

Next thing I did was ITALY. Oh my gosh this trip was definitely a highlight of my year. We were almost 100 exchange students in 2 bus for a trip to Italy for 11 days. We visited all over Italy: Rome, Vatican City, Florence, Pisa, Venice, Pompeii, Capri and the Almafi Coast in the South. The weather was warm, the sites were beautiful and the group was like a family. We saw so much but some of my favorite places would be the Trevi Fountain in Rome, Burano, Murano, Venice, Sistine Chapelle in Vatican City, Pompeii, and the Almafi Coast. Burano and Murano are little islands that are apart of Venice. Burano is full of colorful buildings and famous for lace while Murano is famous for their glass work. We got to see a man blow some glass pieces. It was very cool! Pompeii was really warm but I really liked it because I could really feel the history there. We also had a nice guide who gave us some great tips. The Trevi Fountain was amazing and bigger and bluer than I imagined. I got to toss a coin in and make a wish! The Sistine Chapelle is the chapelle of the Pope that Michelangelo painted. Its breathtaking and I could stand there just looking at the ceiling forever. Venice and Almafi are probably my top two favorites. We spent our whole last day in Venice and I spent most of it exploring and wandering with a couple of my friends. Its such a wonderful city to get lost in. We also rode in a gondola so that was very cool! The Almafi coast was just an incredible experience. We were driven in a huge coach bus on little tiny streets, it was mesmerizing to watch the driver maneuver his way through. We stopped at multiple cities on the coast and they were all so cute. I definitely wanna go back some day!

School is almost over for me now! I have two more days of exams and then I will be done! I spent the last week making bread and cookies and brownies which was super fun for my last few times in the kitchen. I did 3 major end of the year projects, all in french! One was about making my own menu, another on the city where my school is and the last one was on the wine from California. Looking back I am pretty proud of my work. I will be presenting them Tuesday for my teachers. I also did a week of reception. I stayed in the restaurant for a week answering phone calls and hosting guests when they came into the restaurant. It was really fun and a great way to practice my french. As my last couple days come around i just wanna say a couple things to my classmates (idk if they read this or not but if you do) Merci Beaucoup pour tous cette annee. Je suis tres contente d'avoir les gens comme vous dans ma classe cette anne. Vous allez me manquer trop.

We had a short vacation in early May. I took those days to travel around Belgium with some friends. We went to Liege to see the Dali Expo, Ghent to see the castle Gravensteen, and Antwerp to see a fashion museum (which ended up being closed due to technical problems). It was a really nice break in Belgium and it was super cool to explore all these cities. The Brussels food truck festival was also during that time and it was so cool. There were food trucks from all over in a little park in Brussels. I had a bubble waffle, a hot dog and some yummy homemade lemonade!

I got to go to my friend Jasmin's prom. Prom in Belgium is kinda of the same as US prom. There is music and dancing and a photographer. The dress code isn't super forced but people still wear fancy dresses (a couple girls showed up in a jumpsuit!!) and there is alcohol and snacks served. It was a very nice night for sure.

I also went to Keukenhof to see some tulips. It was a 4 hour train ride but it was worth it. They were beautiful! I also went to an abandoned Abbaye which was also pretty cool. We got off at the wrong stop so we walked over an hour to find the abbey. I also saw the Zoo in Antwerp with my friend Laura. It was such a cute little zoo, my favorite was the monkeys because there was a little baby one. It was so cute!

DouDou was one of my favorite parts of the year. Its a week long celebration in the city of Mons. I went with my 2nd host parents who orginate from Mons. Theres a huge combat with St George (the protector of the people) and the dragon that we got to watch. Its good luck if you get a piece of the tail and a kid gave us the tail which he grabbed. We were able to see a lot about the culture because we were with people who come from Mons. Another part that is important is a parade with the shrine of the creator of the city. They descend the shrine the night before and then march with it while its placed on a golden carriage. The carriage then has to be pushed up the hill by the church, if it doesn't make it up the hill, its a sign of bad luck! Fortunately it made it up this year! DouDou was an unforgettable moment and a big thanks to the Maindiauxs for inviting me. Merci Beaucoup :)

As for rotary events, we have done a couple things. We had a gala which i went to and worked, I served drinks then was able to watch the a capella show. It was some 80s music but still pretty cool. I also gave my presentation on my year here in Belgium. My club said they were very impressed and were glad i had a good year. With the other exchange students in my club we threw a culture dinner party together. It was nice to try food from their countries. #GenvalCrew for life.

I also changed families in April. I moved in with a rotarian, Pierre who has 3 daughters. I am pretty close with Manon, Lea and Fanny and was glad i could be apart of their family.

From now until i leave i plan on visiting a couple more places in Belgium, taking some exams, a trip to Prague, going to Disneyland Paris and visiting a German city. Hopefully i have time for it all!

Shelby