It is indeed a rainy season and the weather starts getting colder, just before the actual arrival of winter. I had a pretty interesting weekend (in the rain) in Brussels nonetheless. I was introduced to 'covoiturage.com' by Mariane, my good friend and now a host sister when I had an urge to divorce Paris. The plan didn't work out since I wasn't prepared for the ultimate unplanned, but it did happen 2 weeks later. I just decided on the spot when I could no longer stand working on my 5th essay in the same week. Paris was driving me a bit nuts...
I was in a car with 4 other strangers and 3 hours later the rain embraced me coldly in Brussels. Despite the 40 hr non-stop rain, which was sort of a downer, Brussels was still small. It's the size that perhaps really made me feel comfortable while holding an umbrella. I left a few CouchSurfing requests the day before the trip and received quite a prompt reply by a local. Sam became those among the first CS hosts I "surfed" with, after Egypt. Sam is not Egyptian, but I found his hospitality as much appreciated as those Egyptians. He did startle me a bit at first, though, with his tall build and timid personality, but he was indeed a good host...fully verified by me as his first surfer. :)
Unplanned was my plan. I ended up at a random housewarming party until late in the first night and ended up crashing at one of the 'covoituragers' (who I ended sharing the ride back to Paris in his blue Mini). The people there were relatively friendly and open-minded (not so much like Parisians), if I'm honest. I also ended up joining a free Saturday walking tour (in the rain) with random travelers at USE-IT (http://www.use-it.be), made informed thru CS. We walked hours from streets to alleys and ended with a stylish-looking mug of brews. I topped the day walking some more on my own under a black umbrella. Sunday was spent trotting some more around the city and visiting a few museums - Magritte Museum being one in particular. I was just blown by his mental artwork. They say "don't ask about waffles when in Brussels", I wound up having a few of them. Yum! Of course, I didn't miss another Belgian 'thing'. I was told Neuhaus is the the best chocolate in the country. Before heading to the blue Mini, I grabbed some back for my French host. I'm sure they've had enough of smelly cheeses.
Back to Paris and home almost 2 a.m., I was bound to have a new essay submitted in two days. It was brilliant!
A group photo taken at USE-IT office : 13 November 2010
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