30 August 2009

Vrije Universeteit Brussel or When Dutch Functionalism Goes Awry

This is where I used to go to school. Excessive but visually pleasing.
This is where I go now. Bleek.
This is where I would have lived if I had lived on campus.
Stairs down to the dungeon where I have my international law class.

Melodrama aside, this IS where I take classes. It has pretty extensive green spaces which are a welcome respite to the concrete and spray paint. Actually, Bruxelles has a surprising amount of parks and forests that mostly attract locals and their dogs. And now me. All for now, though.

23 August 2009

Our humble commode

A lovely nighttime view from our front window.
The loft in our bedroom with a double bed. So, fly over here and sleep in our room. Married couples welcome for a fee.
Our beds, pushed together for cuddling. And lack of alternative space.
The kitchen and center of our apartment, physically and otherwise.

Here are some photos for your enjoyment of le château de David et Carter. I would disclose our address but there is a man who walks around our neighborhood with a chainsaw. I'm not looking to be his friend. (Note of comfort: the chainsaw has always been sheathed and off. I think he may be a lumberjack).

22 August 2009

Five days in an English prison

So this is slightly out of order, but here is a large group of exercisers dancing in synch in the Parc du Cinquanteraire in Brussels. We took in the moves and American music while we ate dinner.

Carter, Shannon, and I at the Globe where we watched Romeo and Juliet as groundlings (stood during the whole thing. very worth it).
Minstrels and dancers before Romeo and Juliet began.
Yes, yes, all too typical. Big Ben
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Sadly, neither Carter nor I took a picture of the Clink Hostel, a converted prison that, in my opinion, never shook its heritage, but that IS where we lived for our 5 days in London. Millie and Katie, think of the windowed room at the Istanbul hostel but in the bunk next to us. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves, though. Apart from the jailer living, we had a great time. Thank yous to Shannon for making us take the touristy photos in London so that I now have something to show. And yes, all parents and concerned relatives, I am alive.