Sixteen-- the most beautiful number.

This is a post about my afternoon stroll on a typical Friday in Brussels...

... except it was 16 degrees celsius!!!

For those of you who aren't skilled in mental temperature conversions (it's okay, not many of us are...), 16 degrees Celsius is about 61 degrees Fahrenheit. Compare that to my past four weeks here (consisting of 6-11 Celsius)... I was giddy to say the least.

How did I celebrate, you ask? Well, today's your lucky day, because I'm giddy enough to blog about it (complete with photo illustrations).

After Morgan and I dominated our peer discussion for Introduction to International Relations Theory, I skipped to the library to return books, hopped on the Metro, and power-walked home where I shed my coat, gloves and scarf, donned a denim jacket, and headed back into the sunlight.

"Sunlight?!?!?" you ask, bewildered. "But Lauren," you continue, "I thought the sun did not shine in that country."

Take a look at this.


Not only was it sunny in the park, it was warm in the park. Here I am in the park. I hope my facial expression captures my bewilderment and equally, my gratitude:


I attempted to take a photo which captured my squinting face (squinting? I haven't done that since I've been here) but a shadow of the camera got in the way. I decided that equally illustrated the sun-factor:


"Why Lauren," you ask, "isn't that Saint Katherine's Cathedral? I've seen that before." Yes, you probably have. But have you seen it in the sunlight?!


Now you have. And now, we can move on.

For the whole afternooI happily walked through town, trying so hard not to look like a tourist (I certainly don't feel like one anymore) but I couldn't stop whipping out my camera. Here is a shot of the glimmering gold columns on the hotel in Grand Place:


Grand Place was packed, but there was something more pleasant about the faces of the locals and tourists alike.


I particularly enjoyed this couple sitting in the narrow ray of sunlight streaming between the buildings. I would have joined them, but I didn't want to cramp their style.

I left the city center and walked up to the top of town (holy alliterations, Batman!), a place I toured on the first Saturday I was here. Just in case you're interested, this is where the cute spikey punks hang out after school.


Deciding I was far too mature for their self-indulgent shenanigans, I opted to explore the geeky art of self-timers in the tiniest hedge maze imaginable. Way cooler, right? Right?

On the walk home, I passed down my favourite street I emailed (most of) you about a few days ago (the street crowded with the Italian seafood restaurants).

This is a really poor photograph, and even poorer representation of the whimsical characteristics of this alley, and even poorerer culmination to this post, and even poorererer display of efficient grammar.

Hope your day in the states was just as enjoyable. Off to help with supper.



Warmly (no pun intended... or is there?),

Lauren