(Since I'll probably end up messing up posting a few more times after this, I'm just going to put what date it actually is for at the top of each post).
Vrijdag, Augustus 12, 2011
Woke up around 11, which was nice after staying up so late last night. Only Marcela and I were still at home, so I had breakfast quick and got in a good half hour of practicing trumpet. <3 The music is so much fun!
Robyne and her friend came home, so we talked a bit, and then I checked messed around online for a bit before lunch. Patrick came home, so we had french toast with brown sugar on top (yum!). The Dutch word for it is pretty silly, so I can't even remember it to put in on here. When we were putting dishes in the dish washer, Robyne tried quizzing Marcela and I on the Dutch translation for like knife and fork and such. We failed terribly.
Robyne and Patrick then left to go pick up more stuff for her party on Sunday, so Marcela finally had a chance to use their tanning bed. She's so excited! She wants to become black apparently. I may take a page out of Keith's book and try it out if I ever get really sore. I went upstairs to work on translating one of the kid's books we got from the library on Monday. It really did not go well, considering google translate is not a reliable translator.
So, I practiced trumpet a bit more, and then had a cup of tea and read outside. Twas nice. Then we had dinner, and guess what, I finished my plate (you were right Jamie!). But maybe it's more because they finally realized to give me smaller servings than they take for themselves. :P
Then, it was time to get ready for Robyne's friend's party. Since Marcela was going to dress up a bit, I decided I may as well (especially since I wasn't going to fit in with the whole, drink till you drop culture I heard surrounds the group that was going to the party). Wore all purple, and my purple contacts. Awwww yeaahhh.
Patrick drove us (Robyne, Marcela and I) to someone's house by the party, where they were pre-drinking. So, it was my first "taste" of Belgian beer (of course, I've seen it everywhere and have already had to decline drinks a few times). We had Jupiler, which is apparently the most common Belgian beer. It was okay - it tasted like beer, so I guess if you're a fan of that it was good. I only finished about half by the time we left (everyone else was on like their second or third), so I had someone finish my so we could go.
The party was... a party, I suppose. I'm not really a party-er, as everyone that knows me knows. So the loud hardstyle and techno music and not being able to hear anyone (not that it mattered, no one really spoke English) was just a headache to me. I had a cherry beer (really good, I can see why you liked it Jamie), and then opted for Sprite the rest of the night. People kept offering drinks (I think that's all the English they knew), so I had to taste Duvel (a strong Belgian beer, tasted okay), and some other dark beer I couldn't hear the name of over the music.
A few of Robyne's friends tried speaking to us in English, which was really nice. I would have tried Dutch, but I could barely understand Marcela speaking English over the noise they called music, so I felt like it would have been a bad idea. Once they got drunk, they got over their shyness and talked in English, and a few were really good. Some people were so tipsy, I felt like I had to be ready to catch them at any minute. It was really weird to see kids as young as 16 drinking and getting completely smashed, and there were parents and even GRANDPARENTS at the party (18th birthday party) watching it happen. I dunno, it was just really weird to me. I guess since they all bike home or have a parent come pick them up they can drink that much, but it just doesn't seem appealing to me.
Anyway, after they did presents (really weird, tons of gag gifts), I had Robyne call Patrick, and he took Marcela and I home. There's another party (or two) tomorrow night, and then Robyne's on Sunday. Yay? I just don't see the appeal in drinking that much, that often. The kids at the party were just drinking and drinking and were so tipsy, and were spilling everywhere (and that's normal - kids expect to be walking in like a half centimeter of beer by the end of the night so they have shoes just for parties). Then again, I guess you need to drink that much to enjoy the party, which is loud music and fog machines and strobe lights.
That reminds me, I was talking to Truut before I left for the party, and she seemed surprised that I would just have bonfires or watch movies or talk with friends instead of going out partying. I find it weird that kids DON'T just do that. I guess that makes me a homebody or something, but I really like just sitting in a room with a bunch of friends eating pizza and drinking Mountain Dew (I miss it already) and just talking or watching movies or playing video games. Talking (either about dumb things or really deep things) or joking with friends is my idea of fun. Hopefully once school starts I'll meet some people who think the same.
Oh, I'm thinking I may start throwing some Dutch words in here and there, mainly just so I can practice. I guess this means anyone reading this will probably learn a bit as well!
I'm starting to feel a bit more at home here, especially after last night. Before today, we always had things planned ALL DAY, so it felt like a sightseeing vacation you had to do for a year, which is not my style. Vacations are usually too fast paced because you're trying to see everything. But today, since we got to sleep in and had the day to ourselves, it felt more comfortable. I feel like I can do this whole exchange thing now.
Sorry if this is really random/has terrible grammar or repeats itself, I wrote a few thoughts down throughout the day, so they don't really fit into the whole scheme of what I'm saying. And I didn't go back to read and edit before posting, which probably means I repeated something a bunch of times (I do that quite often, especially when I'm tired; it's like I don't realize that I've said it already, or I feel like because I can explain it in a slightly different way, I need to say it again).
Anyway, it's almost 2am, so I think it's time to go to bed, even though Robyne and Siemen aren't home yet (Siemen was bar tending at the party). Slaapwel!
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