Three weeks down

My third week in Brussels wasn't too exciting. I'm pretty deep into the routine of taking the train to work every day and trying to find somewhere to go for dinner. I ran 5k on the treadmill on Wednesday because I'm definitely losing my fitness without exercise in this cold weather. I met my Romanian friends for the EU happy hour on Thursday. All of the Romanians seem to travel together and know each other. An older guy came into the pub and I was introduced. "Ahhhh! You are American! I love America!"

He owned a restaurant (Food & Wine, Rue Belliard 181, Etterbeek 1040 - it's a small place so there is no website) and insisted that I come by. He introduced me to his two beautiful waitresses, who were from Peru of all places. I think he said that it was French style cuisine... so let me get this straight. A Romanian opens a French restaurant in Belgium and has two Peruvian waitresses. Got it. I practiced a little Spanish with the Peruvians (Shera and Seha) and then bowed out so I could get some sleep. I had plans to stay in Belgium for the weekend and either go to Antwerp (if a Dutch friend contacted me as promised) or Ghent/Bruges to explore by myself. I wanted to make sure to get some rest.

On Friday, my friend Dana gave me a heads up on a cycling race that was going down in Ghent. That solidified my itenerary. The Omloop Het Niewswblad is the kickoff to the international cycling season and the first of the "Classics". Famous names like Tom Boonen, George Hincapie, Thor Hushovd, Tyler Farrar and Kim Kirchen were just some of the names I recognized from the Tour de France. I knew there was a chance that I would see my ex (one of those people you never care to think about, see or hear from again, you know?). That gave me pause initially, but I thought the chances that she would be there multiplied by all of the people watching the race would keep the odds in my favor. Plus, I don't think Dana would've suggested it to me if there was a chance... at least I hope not, Dana! It was too good to pass up, so I'll ignore the drama.

I hadn't heard any details for Antwerp so I decided for Ghent and Bruges - I could've gone to Antwerp by myself (and will eventually on this trip), but the race was a once in a lifetime type deal. Ghent is a college town, so I figured it would be a good place to spend the night. There is a Marriott there, but they didn't have any rooms available (what good are the points!). I'm guessing that the bike race was raising hotel prices, so I started researching other options. I thought about staying up all night, but that would demand that I find people to hang out with that were staying up that late as well - this wasn't South America, I don't know if everyone stays out that late. There was a train back to Brussels at 5 am, but that would rule out getting to see Bruges, which wasn't that far away from Ghent (and a place that everyone says you need to see if you're in Belgium).

I finally decided upon Couch Surfing. The whole idea is that people offer their couches to travelers for free. The hosts sometimes take you around the city and give pointers on things to do. I had a friend that was involved with it, so I thought I would give it a shot. I was kind of apprehensive about sleeping at a stranger's house, but I figured it would be a good story. Late in the afternoon I started messaging potential hosts. I knew it might be a longshot since I was inquiring on short notice. At first I was trying to be picky based on people's profile and living situation description. As afternoon turned into evening, I still didn't have any responses so I widened my search (I'm impatient, I know - so American). Finally I got an email from a guy named Wouter, and I planned to meet him in the afternoon in Ghent. This should be interesting...