l'ecole...

Hey everybody!

i really hope that you guys read my comments as well, aha. ill sometimes respond to posts and the such by comment when i dont have time to actually post anything. so if your wondering why i didnt get back to you.. its because you didnt read the comments! so my advice to you is: READ THEM! aha. :)

Okay, well lets get to the real reason for this post. i also posted the same thing in my other blog so most likely, if your Sam or Kenzie, you can skip the next couple paragraphs (unless you havent read my lastest post there.. lol.)

Today was my first day at school, and boy oh boy, do i want to shoot myself now. not really, but i hope you can pick up on the sarcasm. lol. i didnt know what class level i was in or my electives! aha, can i get any dumber? but to my defense, my family never told me and i never thought to ask.. oh well, i suppose.. whats done is done, although once classes start i still have no idea what im doing. moving classroms? staying? who knows! i guess im just so used to South being so enthusiastic and, for a lack of a better word, "into" exchangers, that it was almost surprising when this school really isnt.. it was terrifying and embarrassing, but, im hoping that with time, it wont be so scary. i mean, i wasnt expecting a smooth ride, but you know..

for now though, i just feel so out of place. this school is the best around, so thats a good thing. at least i know im getting a good education. social lives arent that important.. right? lol. and for your info, i would hardly call today "the first day," because there were no classes! aha. it was just to come, get in your classes, double check your schedule (that i still have to fix by the way), and then go home! i was there all but maybe 3 hours, at most. it was so different, but i did meet a few very nice and sympathetic people who helped me along the way. but guess whats the best part?? tomorrow, im goin' on a field trip! :) ahah! we're going to Ghent, or Gand as they say in French, which is a town/region in the Flemish part of Belgium. Gotta love field trips the second day of school, right? i know i dooo! ;)

and also, my school is called College Pie 10. with an accent on the first e, but has no idea how to get special characters. aha. the classes im taking are: religion, PE, geography, history, PES - citoyennete (which i have no idea what it is, aha, but its required), french, english, math, science, and theater.

fun stuff, i know! lol, post pics after my field trip to Ghent tomorrow!

A Bientot for now!
K

Belgique! :)

Bonjour Everybody!

So, ive finally arrived and let me just start by saying that i cannot believe i am not 400 pounds already! aha. the ice cream, the pastries, the chocolate, and the frites (fries), oh! so good! the food here is amazing. why, oh why, do we not have these delicacies at home in the US? lol. :)

the first night i arrived, i met my family, who are awesome!, and after having home-made belgian frites for dinner; so good that i wanted to lick my plate, i had my first (and legal) drink. aha, Go Europe for having 16 being the legal drinking age ;)

My family has 3 horses! im very excited for that. i get to help with taking care of them and i get to ride them too! fun stuff! lol.

i also unpacked my suitcase today, went to the outdoor market in Charleroi, saw my school and the train station ill have to go to get there, and went out to eat with my family and some of their friends and their other AFS exchanger from Ecuador..

Sorry for such the short post this time. i know some of you are waiting for more, but its late here (with a 8 hour time difference) and ill be sure to post more in later days :)

A Bientot!
K

Last Day in Good 'ol Missouri

Bonjour Everybody!

Just wanted to post a small message saying that today is my last day in Missouri and that tomorrow i'll be on a plane leaving for New York! I'll arrive in Brussels on Friday morning and proceed from there..

Thanks to everyone who wished me safe/pleasant travels. i truly appreciate it. Love ya guys! see ya soon.

Love always,
K

Belgium Map!

As an add-on to my last post, for all you non-Belgium geography buffs, here is a conveinent map! The line in the center is the divide between the Flanders in the North and Wallonia in the South. The red dot is about the location where i'll be staying :)

Famille D'accueil!

Bonjour Everybody!

i recieved something very exciting to write about; and that is that i finally recieved my host family information :)

i am very excited and relieved, because i leave in exactly 2 weeks, to find out who they are and where i'll be living this next up-coming year. According to the small amount of info i recieved, i will live in the western Wallonia region, in a city called Villers-Poterie, in the providence of Hainaut. i have a older sister and a younger brother, in addition to the parents. It seems to be a small town in a rural area. i dont know much about the city yet, but when i found out, ill be sure to post it :)

It's all very good news; and im very happy to have finally given the chance to talk/meet them. Considering, my time in Missouri is running shorter and shorter, this was fantastic news to know i have a home in Belgium! aha.

Sorry Tom, your on your own in the Exchanger Orphanage! ;)

A Bientot!
Katie

Visa Application and Things of That Nature..

Hey Everybody!

Sorry i havent posted anything in awhile. Nothing too exciting has happened lately, but i do have some news to share. Like i said before, i arrive in Belgium on August 20th, after meeting for a few days at our rendevous location in New York, at around 7:40 am. (After leaving JFK the night before at 6pm.) ill hang around and have a short(er) orientation then leave to meet my host family. (who are still yet to come). I am pretty excited though because both Nicky and I get to ride the plane together. New York - Here we come! I know we ride together to Belgium also, but the initial steps, we get to make together :)

But, the news i wanted to share was that a couple weeks ago i recieved my visa application info, which is vital in my preperation for Belgium. I have to fill out tons of papers and notorize different documents and send it all nice and neat to the consulate in New York, but nothing un-manageable. My visa will allow me to enter the country, allow me to study and attend a school there for the year, and stay with my host family on my exchange - all with the permission of the government. Which is super important. aha.

The process of applying for a visa is long, tedious, and expensive, but all very very worth it in the end! If that's what it takes to get me to Belgium, then so be it! :)

Packing is another thing on my brain. From today, i offically leave in 3 weeks! its a crazy short time away! Lots of different occasions and things to pack for, its all very stressful work. aha. But it will get done. Hopefully.. aha

Its all very exciting. Nerve-racking and stressful. But, hopefully thats normal.. aha.

My goodbye party is also this weekend. Something my parents wanted to do before i leave. Nothing too big, but it should be fun :)

Au Revoir for now!
Katie

Departure Date!

Bonjour everybody,

Finally, i have some exciting news to share! i just recieved an e-mail saying that i need to be in New York (Belgium's Gateway City; where all the AFS exchangers from across the US meet) for a what-they-call "survival" orientation on August 18th-19th :)

I will offically arrive in Brussels on August 20th and then proceed to my final destination at my host family's home somewhere in the South of Belgium.

A fun fact, for you guys who didn't know this about Belgium: In the North, people there mostly speak Flemish (a language close to Dutch) and across the Language Divide; in the Southern half, most people speak French, which is where i will be spending my year :)

Lastly, still anxiously awaiting on news about my host family, but getting the exact flight departure information was still a very pleasant suprise :)

Amor toujours,
Katie