MY RETURN TO SPAIN

 22/11

This week hasn´t been an easy one for me, since it`s my last one here and I will miss the Belgian way of doing things 

Thursday was my last volleyball practice. I was really sad. I baked some cookies for all of my teammates, so we ended the training session early. 

Thursday was also my last day of school. During the last class my teachers arranged a small farewell party for me. We ate together and the Erasmus teacher gave me some presents. All my class signed some postcards for me too.

When I finished school I had to say goodbye to all my friends. It was really hard for me. I miss them a lot already. We bought some bracelets together, so that in some way we would never be apart. 

Yesterday I took the plane to come back to Spain. I woke up at 5 am to have breakfast because we had to leave the house at 6:15. Two hours, and several traffic jams, later we arrived at Brussels' airport. My flight was delayed so I waited with my host mum in a café for about an hour. I was really upset when I had to say goodbye. 

My flight took off at 11:50. It was a smooth flight, except for the landing when there was some turbulence. 

When we touched down I ran to see my parents. It was really nice to see them after all this time. 

When I got home I decided to unpack my bags first and then pay a quick visit to my best friend. 

I am really happy to be back here in Spain. However I know that it's going to be really difficult to move on from this incredible experience I've had. 

FOOD IN SPAIN AND BELGIUM

18/09

One of the biggest differences I've noticed between Spain and Belgium is the meals. 

Here in Belgium we only eat a hot meal at dinner time, around seven o'clock. I have lunch at school, so I usually make myself a sandwich to bring. We have lunch at 11:35. In my opinion it's really early. 

In Spain we usually have hot meals twice a day, lunch and dinner. In Spanish schools we don't usually have lunch at school. We have lunch at home at around three o'clock.

I also prefer Spanish cuisine. Belgium is well known for its fabulous desserts, such as waffles or chocolate. Another popular Belgian dish is chips, or as they like to call them: "frites". 

A VISIT TO LE HAN CAVES

 09/11

My younger host sister is participating in an erasmus programme aswell. She is going to travel to Italy. So this week her Italian exchange student is coming to stay with us here in Belgium. 

Since the Italian girl is only staying for a week, her schedule is full of activities. Today was family day, so we all decided to visit the "Le Han" caves with her. 

We booked our tickets for 4 pm but we arrived early so my host dad looked up some nice walks to do in the mountains. We ended up doing a 9km uphill trek. 

After the walk we went into the caves. We followed a tunnel down into a big open space within the cave. It was really cold there, but the visit was worth it. The caves were beautiful and there was even a small light display.

We stayed there for about an hour before heading back to the car.

HOLIDAYS

 03/11

I didn't do anything special on the last days of the holidays. I woke up, studied, and I played with Peppa (my host family's dog). I did have a volleyball match yesterday. We lost but we played very well. Afterwards we were all really frustrated. 

Our match finished late, so when I got home I went straight to bed. 

This morning was the first day back at school. I had to get up at 6 am. It was hard for me because I had been waking up late for the last 2 weeks.

My host sister and I left the house at 7:10 and we caught the bus ten minutes later.

I was sorry that the holidays were over, but I was also looking forward to seeing my friends.

DURING THE HOLIDAYS

 30/10

My usual morning routine here during the holidays is a bit boring. I usually get up late, have breakfast and then I study or I watch a film. However yesterday was different. 

Yesterday my host sister's grandfather asked us if we wanted to visit Autoworld, The Belgian National Automobile museum. I'm not really keen on old cars, but I was so bored I jumped at the chance.

That day I woke up earlier than usual because we had to take the 10:15 train to Brussels. 

When we got there we went straight to the museum and started our tour. I have to admit that the museum surprised me in a good way. Everything was clean and organised, and I've learnt some interesting facts about cars. Like, for example, that the first electric car ever made was built in the 1830s. My host sisters' grandfather was also knowledgeable and he taught us a lot about the exhibits.

The tour lasted 3 hours and I enjoyed every bit of it.

After that we went straight to the station because we thought we were going to miss the train. 

When we arrived home we had dinner and soon after we got in the car because we wanted to watch a volleyball match.

It was an exciting match. From the bleachers you could feel the energy the players transmitted on the court. There was a great atmosphere. The crowd was chanting and cheering. In the end, the local team lost 3-0. We were a bit disappointed. But I'm looking forward to seeing another match like this one soon.