I'm in Belgium!!

Yay! I'm finally here in Belgium! Where to start?

On Wednesday I left to go to the orientation in New York and said goodbye to my parents and sister. It was weird just leaving them there while I went through security because once I got to my gate, I was all alone and quite frankly, didn't know what to do with myself.  I didn't have to wait for long to board the plane, and the flight to New York was only a bit over an hour, so it was all fine and dandy. Upon my arrival in New York, I got my bag from the baggage claim but had to find where the AFS people were waiting for us. After asking a few people and wandering around aimlessly, I found them! We waited for the other AFSers at the airport for about 2 hours or so, and then we took a shuttle to our hotel. Let me tell you, if you ever take a taxi in New York, BE PREPARED. Our driver got lost a few times, and we were all so carsick after spending an hour in the shuttle with his reckless driving (it is New York after all). Anyhow, the orientation was nothing special, although I did get to get a lot of cool people there.

Alas, our flight left on Thursday night, and the people going to Hungary and Belgium were on the same flight. I was really worried because we took Swiss Air, and I had heard that they have really strict baggage allowances, but I got on with my trumpet and my HUGE backpack with no problem. Alas, there was not much legroom and I did not get a wink of sleep on the plane, but that's kinda expected. We then took a short flight from Zurich to Brussels, and waited some more and lugged our luggage around and all that jazz, and then took an hour bus ride to the orientation sight.

The orientation was Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and we basically just went over a lot of important information and participated in various activities each day. I also met some cool people there, but I will not elaborate any more because this blog post is already very long.

I met my host family (finally!) and we took about a two hour car ride to our home. On Monday my host parents took me to my school, to get my identity card, and a bunch of other places. On Tuesday I went to the Belgian equivalent of a zoo, but my host parents failed to tell me that it is two hours away from our house. Alas, I got car sick on the way there, and didn't feel very good the whole day. Later on, we were waiting to go to this bird exhibit show, and I got all dizzy, and I communicated enough in french for my host parents to understand that I didn't feel well. Basically, I blacked out but was still conscious while my host mom brought me to a bench. Apparently all the Belgians were looking at me like I was completely crazy. YAY AMERICA. Tuesday was not my day.

That little spectacle really made me miss home, especially my parents. When I don't feel well, I like to lay in my bed and be coddled and comfortable and to SPEAK ENGLISH. AFS tells the students that there is usually a "honeymoon phase" at the beginning where you think that everything is awesome, perfect, cool, etc. but to be honest, I haven't experienced this. My host family is very nice, but it is a really big change. At home, I have a sister close to my age (16 years old) and here I have a 3 (almost 4 year old brother). I guess I kinda forget what being a little kid is like...He wakes up around 7 in the morning, in in my house, I can hear everything.  It's quite the adjustment, but I'm sure I'll get used to it.

The last few days I've had this AFS thing everyday where we go to museums in the morning, and then after we learn french. I'm in the higher level group, but to be honest, the classes aren't very helpful because I am a bit more advanced than most people in my class. Still, the teacher speaks only in french so it is still helpful in that respect.

I can't really think of a blog title using a song title for this post because it is such a mix of everything that's happened, but I'll post a song from a band I've been listening to a lot since I arrived.

It is called "Sometimes (I wish)" by City and Coulour. Pretty chill and I've been listening to the band to fall asleep.

A la prochaine,
Catherine

"ONE DAY MORE"

ONE MORE DAY. Or, one day more as they would say in Les Mis. I don't even know where the time has gone! Years have turned to months, months to days, days to hours, and here I am. Here is an excerpt from my journal written on August 4:
"I'm actually leaving.  Belgium is no longer a pigment of my imagination.  Belgium is reality. Belgium is not only my new home, but my new life.  My family, friends, school, language, and culture will all change.  But, change is good.  Change is what keeps us on our toes.  Not only that, but change shapes us into better people."

On another note, I still have to stick a few items in my suitcase, but I am essentially done packing. Tip: Start packing early! I'm so glad that I did. I can't imagine trying to scramble a day or two trying to fit everything in the suitcase! It was definitely NOT easy.  I probably started with double the amount of clothing that I'm bringing. My parents are still sending me a package with my heavier sweaters for the winter because they were merely too heavy to try to fit in my suitcase. I originally wanted to fit everything in my suitcase and be well under the 44 pound limit, but that ain't even possible. When the suitcase alone weighs 10 pounds, and the shoes you are bringing at least 10 more pounds, that doesn't leave for much extra space. Alas, I got through packing and I am ready.

Besides packing, I have been cleaning up my room like crazy.  It was never really that dirty, but I organized essentially EVERYTHING in my room. I didn't want to have to deal with the junk I've just been throwing in a drawer for years after I get home (because I'll only be home about a month next summer before I leave for college) so I just sucked it up and dealt. I'm pretty much done with my room too, but between that and packing, I'm pooped.

I'll try to write if I have extra time at my orientation in New York, but I'm not making any promises.

See ya next time
A bientôt,

Catherine

"You're gonna miss me when I'm gone"

Today, is my official goodbye "party" before I go to Belgium.  I initially didn't want to make a big deal and have a party but my mom really wanted to make Belgian waffles, haha. So alas, I agreed (although Belgian waffles can't hurt, right?), and decided it would be a casual "get together" to say goodbye to all of my friends, not just to me.  Somehow a small group of friends grew into 15 people, but I wanted to make sure that I could say goodbye to the people who mean the most to me.

Almost all of my friends leave for college this week, and then next Wednesday is the big day! I leave the airport Wednesday morning and fly to New York. My dad adamantly wanted to drive to New York, but I convinced him that it would be much cheaper for me to fly solo. I found a ticket that was only $115, and then he came over to the dark side, mwahahaha! The flight to New York is only an hour or so, compared to driving which would be an eight hour fun filled car ride.

Most of the American exchange students who are going to Europe are flying out from New York (I think), and we are told to arrive at the airport between 12 and 4pm.  After that there is an overnight orientation at a nearby hotel, and then the next night everyone's international flights will leave. After arriving in Brussels, there will be a two day orientation with all the AFSers from all over the world who will be leaving in french-speaking Belgium. After that our host parents come to pick us up, and that starts the beginning of this awesome journey that lies ahead.

I try to be very realistic with my expectations for Belgium.  I like to think of myself as a realist rather than a pessimist, but basically, I have mentally prepared for the first few months of my exchange to be very challenging. I managed to get through AP French, but I am definitely no where close to being a fluent french speaker. The language itself is enough of a challenge, but mix in a new culture, new people, and a new life, and I can definitely say I'm in for a ride! I am so ready for a change in my life, and I'm so excited for the newness of it all as well. Keeping an open mind about everything is going to be a priority of mine over this next year

I am including so many specific details for those of you future exchangers out there :) I know what it is like to scour every blog on the internet to try to find out as much as possible about what exchange is like. I hope that people who are reading my blog can at least learn a little about Belgium and what being an exchange student is like.

Just because this song has been on the radio so much lately--and because I find it to be relevant to my situation--I'd like to post the song "Cups" by Anna Kendrick. And even though I'm usually not into "mainstream" music, I like her voice a lot.

Au revoir,

Catherine

"On Top of the World": Imagine Dragons Concert

Wow...the fact that it is already August is really taking me by surprise. My flight to Belgium leaves exactly 3 weeks from today! The interesting thing is that all my friends are actually leaving for college before I leave for Belgium.  But I'm sure than my last few days will be filled with me frantically packing and saying my goodbyes to my other friends.

I perform my last four shows of the musical I'm in this weekend, and then BAM! I'm getting my wisdom teeth out on August 5th.  Mine are pretty much as bad as it gets..impacted and in the bone...I won't go into too much detail, but it ain't gonna be pretty. Alas, after I recover from that fun filled procedure, I'll have to start packing......

I have no clue where to start...I did put a few of the winter clothes I want to bring in a pile, but that's the extent to what I've done.  The suitcase has to be under 44 pounds, which is not that much considering that 10 pounds of that is the suitcase. We shall see...Slow and steady wins the race, right?

I went to the Imagine Dragons concert on Tuesday and IT WAS AMAZING!!!! I absolutely love Imagine Dragons, and seeing them live was spectacular! I'll post pictures and a few videos below.Since I went to the Imagine Dragons concert on Tuesday, I think it'd be rather appropriate to title this post with one of their songs.

A bientôt (Until next time),

Catherine

Fly Me to the Moon

Yesterday,  I received information about AFS about my Gateway Orientation in New York.  It is on August 21st, beginning at 4pm, so I have to be in New York by then.  My parents originally wanted to drive from Cleveland to New York to save money and so that they could spend lots of "quality time" in the car with me before I left. Personally, I would prefer an hour long flight without the parents, and tried convincing them that it'd be cheaper. After all, they'd probably go shopping in New York and have to stay a a hotel. But most of the flights I found were around $430 just for a one-way ticket, which wasn't really that justifiable.  Alas, I ended up looking on travelocity, and by leaving from the Akron airport (which is only like 45 minutes away), I got a direct flight to New York for only $115!  My parents couldn't argue with that awesome price, so we booked the ticket today. :)

I never offically received information regarding the flight to Belgium, but I believe that the flight is on the 22nd, and then the arrival orientation in Belgium should be on the 23rd and 24th.  So this means that I 54 days until I leave for Belgium! YAY! I have been waiting for the day to come for soooo long.  I had been to go abroad with AFS since I was a sophomore in high school, but with the logistics of it all, I realized that the best option would be to do a gap year.  In less than two months, I'll be in Belgium!!!

A bientot
Catherine

One of my favorite jazz songs...give it a listen!

Talk: Lessons learned at the Pre-Departure Orientation

So, on Sunday I had my AFS pre-departure orientation from 10am-4pm.  I was expecting the day to drag on, but it really wasn't too bad. I tend to research A TON about exchange orientations and just about everything involving exchange students, so there was not exactly anything new that I learned.  But it was cool because two AFS students studying in the US were there to answer all of the questions that we had.

Here are some of the advice that the students gave us:

1. Communication is probably the most important thing! If there is ever a problem with your host family, just try talking to them.  A lot of issues arise due to a lack of communication.

2. Don't be afraid to make mistakes! Because most people on exchange are learning a new language and trying to communicate in it, it is inevitable that you are going to make mistakes.  People may not understand what you are trying to say, but don't give up! If you don't try, you're never going to get better.

3. Get involved! The exchange student from Tunisia told us that she only watched TV two ties throughout her exchange.  She became involved in as many clubs as she could, and that helped her to make a lot of new friends.  Plus, by staying busy, you are less likely to be really homesick.

These are the things that I think will be the most helpful for my exchange.  I hope that this advice can help you guys out too! :)

To tie in with the theme of communication, here is the song "Talk" by Coldplay (one of my favorite bands). Enjoy!

"Come Together" to send me to Belgium!

Hello, my name is Catherine Hall and I will be spending the 2013-2014 school year as an AFS exchange student in Ougreé, Belgium.  I will graduate from high school this June, and then will be spending a gap year in a Belgian high school. I cannot wait to immerse myself in a completely different culture, speak a new language, and make new friends.  Although Belgium is a small country, it is very culturally diverse (they speak Flemish in the north and French in the south) and is an important crossroads for Europe.

I have been studying French for five years, but there is still so much for me to learn!  I have always wanted to be not only competent, but fluent in another language, and going to Belgium with AFS provides me a perfect opportunity to do so.  I am strongly considering minoring in French in college, so having the knowledge ahead of time would help achieve that goal.

As I am wrapping up my senior year, I am very busy with all of my AP classes and activities.  I am very active in my school's music program.  I am a member of the wind ensemble, jazzband, chorale, and show choir.  I also love tap dancing and performing in musicals!  Among all of the chaos it is impossible for me to find time to get a job during the school year.

Here is a clip of The Beatles singing "Come Together."  Each post in my blog will be somehow related to a song that expresses my feelings as I am going through my exchange.