Happy New Year!

So, now that I have a good method of putting up photos - take a look!

However, I am slowly losing my ability to write and speak clearly in English - so please excuse any mistakes! : )

The holiday season was a lot of fun here, although there were certainly times that were a little tough.

After St. Nicholas (which I explained in the last post), the holiday season really, truly starts. The Marché de Noel in Liège is (and was) incredibly festive, and since it started snowing near the beginning of December it became fairy-tale perfect. Belgium got record-breaking snow's this year - almost a foot. And, as a Mainer it was really hilarious watching the poor city-dwelling Belgians trying to figure out what to do with all the snow! Half of them don't even own shovels, the snow was on the news every night, and the buses were shut down with each new snowfall. The huge staircases by my house became incredibly dangerous and going to school each morning was an adventure. However, the night of Christmas Eve I went sledding on the stairs!

We also finished our exams the 20th of December - then we didn't have school just until we had a half day the 24th to exchange secret santa (in french that's called "cacahuetes" which means peanuts, I'm not sure why!) presents and got our report cards. My report card certainly isn't perfect, but I'm confident I'll pass by the end of the year.

Christmas with my host family was bittersweet - only because I wasn't home.

Christmas Eve, family came to our house and we had a Raclette (melted cheese on all sorts of things - super yummy!). And then, Christmas day we all went to the Grandmother's house to spend Christmas with the other half of the family. It was certainly hard, but everyone was incredibly nice and understanding.

Since Christmas, I've gone cross-country skiing twice, once with friends from AFS and once with my family. I also made Eggnog and Chocolate Chip cookies! They loved the cookies (and I'm planning on making another batch soon), but they were kinda iffy about the Eggnog - I think the raw eggs kind of scared them!

And for New Years, I went to Bruxelles with some friends from AFS and Rotary. It was a lot of fun! Unfortunately we could only hear the fireworks, because there was too much fog.

But, that is pretty much where I am right now. After a little more than 4 months here, I'm already starting to feel like the time is going way too quickly! Also, last night we had sauerkraut and sausages (traditional for the new year) and we put a little piece of money under the plate, so we'll have good luck throughout the new year.

So Happy 2011 to all of you!

-Lila

Slideshow!

So, being not incredibly technically talented, I'll put up the slide show in one post, and then I'll write in another post.

So, here goes, I hope it works!

And let the Holiday's Begin!

Well, we have officially entered the holiday season. I made a thanksgiving dinner for my host family - which went well, even with my complete lack of turkey-cooking experience and the changes in ingredients.

And, in Liège, there is a "Marché de Noel" - lot's of little shacks with gifts, food and drinks, and holiday music playing through the speakers. It's very festive and awfully cute! There are decorations throughout the city, it has been snowing on and off for almost a week now - there isn't a lot of build-up, but there's enough snow to make everything shimmer a little bit and put you in the holiday spirit!

There's also enough snow and ice to make the stair incredibly scary - especially when you're late for school! I haven't actually fallen yet, but I've come very close...

It's St. Nicholas right now - which is a little bit like Christmas in America, but not quite. Only the children receive gifts, and it is a huge event for University students. They all wear their white lab coats (which are never washed, and accordingly are cleverly decorated and smell horrible), and ask for money on the streets and at the entrances of the schools - and if you don't give them money, they throw flour, eggs and/or beer on you! Luckily, I didn't get hit - but there were a lot of white faces at school.

And, in slightly less festive news - exams start thursday!

Happy Turkey Day and Happy St. Nicholas!

Photos!

So I haven't tried this yet, but this is supposed to be a public link to my photos on facebook!

Hopefully it works!

My Photos

Everything is going very well, and I send my love from Belgium!

Americans

So, when before I arrived here I thought I would constantly have to deal with a general dislike of Americans. Thankfully, that is not at all the case. So far, I have found nearly everyone to be incredibly kind, helpful and interested! However, there are some people who have some interesting ideas of what life is like in America.

• I do not eat at McDonald's every day or even often, and I don't watch tv all the time. In fact I watch more tv here with my host family than at home!
• Life is not like Gossip Girl.
• I do not spend my life playing beer pong and going to football games (although, I have realized that my high school is really a very stereotypical small-town high school with homecoming, prom etc.).
• I do not live in New York City.
• I do not live in Los Angeles.
• I have never been to California ("7 hours on a plane! But it's just one country!")
• Not everyone has new cars.
• Yes, Obama is really cool.

And most of the time, I find that people are honestly curious. And everyone thinks that an American accent is cute. Every once in a while I feel like I should say "sorry" for America, but honestly, I think that's mostly me.

And in other news:

It is starting to get chilly here, and it really feels like fall. And of course, it's still gorgeous!

School is going well. My classes are hard, but I believe for the most part, I'm passing. Which, for the first time in my life completely satisfies me. And I know that my french will only improve!

My teachers are all very nice and very understanding.

I made pancakes for my host family this morning. They turned out a little different from what I'm used to, but they loved them. Who knew that baking soda and baking powder would be so hard to find? So I used yeast instead. And rice oil instead of butter or vegetable oil. And we ate them with the maple syrup cream my family sent as a gift to my host family. It was really great!

And I just tried to upload some photos, but it didn't work very well, so I'll try again later!

1 Month!

So, yesterday marked 1 month in Belgium for me!

It has certainly been hard at times, but I can say that I am having a great time! Liège is a beautiful city, and I believe (hope) my french has already improved! At least my confidence in speaking french.

Some things I have learned are:

• You kiss everyone (as a greeting, of course)!
• The chocolate is fantastic
• Everyone is curious about America - and surprised when they learn that I don't watch tv or eat at McDonald's often.
• Scouting here is not at all the same as in the US.
• Almost everyone is very friendly
• The littlest things can set off homesickness
• How to use the buses
• That gestures are completely different (tapping my head to say "I've got it, I understand" probably translates to "I'm crazy")
• Ballet is the same in every language - contemporary dance is not.
• And, even if I am completely bonkers to leave everything I know and love for a year - it is completely worth it!

School is certainly hard (even English). And the subjects I thought would be the same are not in fact the same at all. For example in math - here the imaginary number doesn't exist at all!

And it's hard (and a little strange) to try and make friends in another language - luckily for me everyone seems to be super nice.

I consider myself incredibly lucky in my placement in a host family - they're perfect! And especially lucky when compared to other exchange students who already have issues with their host family.

Everything is going well, and I love Belgium!

Almost there!

I am leaving in less than a week for New York City and in exactly one week I will be landing in Brussels, Belgium on the 20th - my 16th birthday! I have all my forms in order and have only a few things to finish up with before I am completely ready. And I keep finding people that I may not see again for an entire year, and it's hard to say goodbye to them. My friends threw a surprise party for me on Tuesday which was absolutely sweet!

I cannot wait to see the other people going to Belgium and meet my host family! I believe I am past feeling nervous - at this point I know there is no going back. I am mostly very excited, and slightly sad. I will miss everyone here in Maine so much. And the ocean as well, but it will all be well worth it.

Also, please do not expect a blog post either right before I leave (this can count as that) or as soon as I arrive. I will be tired, busy and wanting to experience Belgium and AFS - not wanting to stare at a computer screen!

My adventure is about to begin for real and I am so, so excited!