Au revoir, Belgique!

The view from my bedroom window at the Eeckhouts

Today was my last day in Belgium. As I have yet another obscenely early flight tomorrow morning, I am at an airport near the hotel. Note to self: it is never, ever, EVER a good idea to take a flight before noon. Even if it’s cheaper initially, it costs you extra in transportation as, strangely, most buses and trains don’t run at 4:00 am and there’s a good chance you will end up having to pay exorbitant fees for a taxi or pay for a hotel room at the airport. Huh. Even if you think it will give you extra time in the next place as “I’ll be there by 8 am and will have the whole day ahead of me!”, you will actually have less and/or be a useless blob because you’ll be so freaking wiped out after only having two hours of sleep because you had to set your alarm for 3:00 am. So, no, it is never, not for any reason, ever a good idea to take a 6:30 am flight. Take my word for it. 

At the chocolate store... impossible to choose just one!

But before getting to this hotel (which, inexplicably, has bunk beds in my room) I spent one last day with the Eeckhouts. I spent some time in the am getting my stuff together (considering I had bought nothing here, how did my stuff expand THAT much?!) and then in the afternoon Emmanuelle and I headed to her university to attend an English class. It was a freakishly sunny day here so we were also fortunate enough to be able to have lunch in an on-campus park and bask in the gorgeous weather.



The world's cutest kitten. Shhh, don't tell Javi!

The afternoon brought more Taxi Mom duties and errands. Since I’m not a shopper nor one to buy souvenirs when traveling, and hadn’t bought anything during my entire three weeks here, I decided that I would allow myself to make an exception. And, as long as you’re going to make an exception, you might as well make a really good one and buy the coolest souvenir you can take home from a country. In the case of Belgium, that is clearly one of two things: beer or chocolate. I couldn't decide so I bought both! As an awesome bonus, I bought six great, high quality Belgian beers for what I would pay for ONE at a local pub in Lancaster. Double score! So come Friday, you will most likely find me sitting around my house getting over my jetlag surrounded by empty beer bottles and chocolate wrappers. Ah, the travails of traveling.

The Eeckhout clan: Emmanuelle, Pierre,
Martin and Emile... and Mutey!

We had a very nice family dinner all together and then it was time to say our goodbyes. This family has been so kind and welcoming to me, making their home mine and allowing me to become a part of their daily lives. Having known them for two years in Lancaster, it was wonderful to be able to see them “on their own turf” and to witness and experience firsthand so many of the things about their life in Belgium that we had spent so much time discussing back in the States. I have a real affection for this family and a genuine affinity for these boys so saying goodbye gave me some pause. But they’re planning a trip back to Lancaster over the summer so I have no doubt our paths will cross again... either in PA or back in Ottiegnes Louvain la Neuve!