Last week our Rotary club informed us that they were picking us up at school, and taking us to Southern Belgium, near Germany. We got on the bus, headed south, with no idea what we were doing other than going to the south of Belgium. I've learned that asking questions, when often are very helpful, sometimes aren't even worth it. I just go with the flow of things and enjoy ride they throw us on. So after a three hour bus ride we end up at "La Barrage." What is that, you ask? I honestly still don't really know, our tour guide's first language was dutch and she had a very strong accent. My rotarian explained it to us as "the oldest in the world, where they clean wood". It was pretty cool though. It was like a huge dam with a statue of a lion on top. I also learned that the pH of the water there is 7. Pretty interesting.
We then had a walking tour of the town, which was also amazing. It was a foggy evening at dusk and the buildings were ancient with lots of character. The town is filled with rich cultural history. We stopped at the castle/grave yard at the very peek of the rock which was fabulous. I learned that the reason castles were built right on the edge of rocks was because it was more difficult to attack.
Then came time for dinner. By the way, I despise Rotary dinners because the food, while it may be gourmet belgian specialties, is NOT by any means MY cup of tea.
The menu went as follows:
Bread, good, I like bread. I'll eat all your bread so I'm too full for the next course.
Then came something that looked almost like a creme broulet. So I thought I was in the safe, and asked what it was and discovered it was liver soaked in cream and uncooked eggs. GREAT. (lesson #1: NEVER ask what you're eating in Belgium). So I looked at it, played with it a little. Tried to ignore the Youth Exchange Coordinator tell me "It's good. Eat it. It's good." As more of a fact rather than opinion. Then nibbled on it and decided that they'd rather me not eat it than be unable to keep it down and make a mess of their 5 star restaurant.
The last course wasn't as bad, chicken with, of course, potatos (which they eat at every meal), and a cooked pear. Dessert just got better, and I was sure to finish my chocolate mousse cake.
When we finally left at 12:30am, I was exhausted. I didn't get home until 3 in the morning, after my ride getting lost in the foggy country roads on the way back to my house. School was brutal the next day. As if Friday's aren't awful enough with four hours of french and two hours of history and finishing at four pm.
