However, life here in Belgium has been busy busy busy. On Thursday I visited the Netherlands for the first time and saw Maastricht. I loved it! It was a very relaxing day. A small group of us went after hearing that one of the dorm RAs was heading there to drop off his car with his family. Road trip! Therefore, it was not a tour put on by the program, so we could just stroll around and soak in the environment rather than cramming in sightseeing (which I also like, but needed a break).
The first thing we did was not even make it to Maastricht, which is only a one hour car drive. What we all needed was some good lunch, so we went to this wonderful crepe restaurant located right on the border between Belgium and Netherlands. Yum!!
When we finally arrived at our destination it was already about 2pm, and Bas (the man who drove us) had to take a 4pm train in order to get back to Leuven for a meeting. Therefore, Bas gave us a rushed tour of the city and recommendations of where we should come back to. One of my favorites was his discussion of the multiple churches in the town. Due to the decreased role of religion in people's life many cities and Europe and unused churches. Now it seems wrong to tear them down, but the question arises what to do with them? I think Maasticht totally has the right idea! Turn them into bookstores!!! I really loved it.
Maastricht also has remnants of its days as a medieval city (it is thought to be the oldest down in the Netherlands). Here is an example of it. This is the Gates of Hell. It was built in 1229!! Isn't that absurd?! It gets its name from its role during the break out of the bubonic plague in Europe. When people were cursed with the disease they were abandoned on the outside of the city, behind this gate. The healthy people remained safely inside the walls of the city. Therefore, if you went through the gates you were in hell.
The Gate of Hell naturally connects to a wall that fortifies the city. Just a note, in Europe these walls tend to circle around the city to create a ring. There was a roll of fake cannons outside of the city, and naturally we had to take a bunch of pictures. Here are some of my favorites!
One of the great things about this town was its wonderful food!! Bas insisted that we get ice cream, beer, and frites (Belgian french fries). Well we succeeded with two of those missions! As you can tell, the day was full of delicious treats that meant unhealthy decisions. Oh well. Do it while your young! Teehee. The ice cream, or really gelato, was wonderful! I felt like I was in Italy again. I had meant to share one, but once I get a sampling I knew I needed one all for myself. :) And it was well worth it. I got pomegranate.
At this point we were ready to just relax before we planned on taking a 7pm train back to Leuven. So we stopped at a cafe near the main market to have a beer/wine. A few friends has suggested that I sample a white beer (even though I admit, so far, I have predominately enjoyed darker beers). But it was pretty good. And we decided to document it all. But I could not help from laughing. So here is how the picture came out.
Now it is time to head back home to Leuven, only an hour and a half train ride. We had to change trains at Leige, which has an amazing train station architecturally. The architect was inspired by a whale for the station. Therefore it is is full of clear lines that arch across the ceiling. It really was a sight!
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