Parisian Senate and Brussels

We were supposed to go to UNESCO since we are “studying” international organizations and all, but they were not in session and we could not get someone to show us around, but apparently getting into the French Senate is a breeze. Really, the only security was one metal detector. I guess there were not actually any senators there, but we got to see everything and they even let us sit in their seats. The whole place used to be a palace, so it is very ornate and very beautiful. Especially the gardens outside, which seemed to be open to the public. The girl who gave us the tour had been to some school in the states and knew what most of our questions would be before we asked. We talked a lot about the French attitude about the EU and problems that most of the countries in the EU were facing. I did not know it was so hard for young people to get a job in Europe. In France, 25% of their young people (graduates) are not employed, so they go back to school on the government’s tab and just make things worse. Education is necessary, but not everyone should go to grad school and obviously it is impossible for everyone to have a job where that is required, let alone any job at all there.

After the Senate, we got on the bus and made our way to Brussels. It was not very far, especially for travelling to another country. We dropped by our hotel, which was very far from the center of town and near what I would describe as the fairgrounds even though the only fair to be held there was the World’s Fair in the 50s. That’s when they made the Atomium, a model of an iron crystal unit cell. I just took a final for the materials class that covers this sort of thing and I made sure to tell everyone all the boring details I knew about such crystals and their uses. Anyway, we headed to dinner in a town square and had some chicken and fries and beer. I generally do not like beer and this was not really an exception. I have tried enough different kinds to know what I dislike less, but when I ordered, the old man waiting our table told me I should not have the dark beer unless I was not planning on walking later. I made pretty clear that I was offended but then gave up and went with the one everyone else ordered. Then I saw him grab four glasses from behind the bar and figured out that he just didn’t want to bother pouring a new glass since these were ready. That made me feel a little better about him calling me a lightweight, but it also made it clear that the service in Belgium would be no better than France.

After dinner, most people headed back, but a few others and I decided to explore. Pretty much, Brussels really is just about beer, chocolate, and waffles. Everywhere we walked, that’s what we saw, not that I’m complaining about chocolate and waffles. As we were walking, we came up on this square with four huge buildings, which we later found out was the city hall. We went to random chocolatiers and waffle stands until we found ones that seemed very authentic. Both were very good and I am glad that we stayed. The way back was quite far. The subway was actually very nice, but the station was more than a mile away from our hotel on a street called Einsteinsweggerstratt. It was an adventure, but I would have probably paid the extra to have a hotel closer to a station or at least one with food. The kitchen would refuse us any food, but luckily for a large portion of the group, they did not refuse them alcohol.