Fabulous Fall

The weather here in Belgium has been absolutely fabulous lately! It's been sunny and warm, and the leaves are changing (though not to the extent that they do at home) - basically, my favorite kind of weather! I've been taking full advantage of it, especially by going walking and running in the forest near our house. (It is absolutely huge and quite beautiful!)

This past week at school was a good one! I worked out a schedule for my afternoons, so I feel much more useful during that time. The kids have been busy writing and drawing about their zoo trip last week. Also, this Wednesday we went to visit the Chateau, the administration building. It was origainally built as a house for Baron von Bischeffsheim, an advisor to King Leopold, the first king of Belgium. So they all traipsed around and looked at the way the building is used now and how it used to be used, and went up the curly servants' "secret" staircase to the top level, and talked to the people who work there. It was pretty fun, and actually really interesting for me, too! It's a great building, with wood floors and tall ceilings. This coming week, we have parent-teacher conferences on Thursday and Friday, so the kids get a 3-day week.

I have decided not to lease the horse. I learned my lesson about spouting off about something before I know it for sure.... I never should have considered leasing him before I tried him out! He is a great horse, but my level of riding is nowhere near as good as it needs to be for me to ride him effectively. I have ridden no dressage before, and it's different in a lot of ways from what I used to do. I would need more experience before I would be able to ride him well. I'm sure I'll keep riding, becuase it's fun, but i won't be leasing Action.

On Thursday night, my friend and housemate from Luther, Lindy, came into town to visit me. Saturday, we took a day trip to Bruges! It is only an hour train ride from Brussels, and it is a great city! It's called 'the Venice of the north' and it has a lot of picturesque canals and cobblestone streets. We were there for about four hours, and we just wandered around looking at the sights. We found a square off the main drag to relax and eat lunch. There's a tall belfry tower, a few squares, bridges and canals, churches.... we decided not to go into any museums or pay any money, and just soak up the atmosphere of the town. It was busy there, with lots of people walking and shopping. There are also a lot of lace stores selling handmade lace that looks as if it would take forever to make. It was a beautiful fall day, perfect to explore a new city. I will post some pictures soon....

I have decided that I will not be going home for Christmas. I know that I will miss being at home with my friends and family, but I also know that it is only for one year, and I am planning on using the time to experience new things. Cassidy and I have booked a (very cheap!) flight to Barcelona, Spain for the week before Christmas! I am very excited to go to Spain, and have heard that Barcelona is a fabulous city. It's very weird to think about not going home... but I feel as if I just got here, and ít's too soon to think about going home.

Well, I think that's about it! Pictures coming soon!