So yeah, it's been a couple weeks since my last post, I apologize. I'll give my dad credit for his blog, it takes some being intentional to keep these things up to date. Anyhow, I've been busy the last couple weeks, but I'll try to keep it short.
Two weekends ago I went with four other Tar Heels to Oxford. We left Victoria Station in London around 8:30, albeit I left slightly later on account of having a bad ticket. Long story short, I got there 30 minutes behind everyone. To be honest, I didn't think the university was all that interesting. I skipped the long tour in preference for the 1 pound tour of the Divinity School. Harry Potter fans would recognize it as the scene for the Hogwarts infirmary.
Best part of the day was by far the afternoon. Two of my friends and I walked over to the River Cherwell to investigate "punting." Punting is essentially an English version of riding a Venetian gondola. The design of the boats and method of propulsion are the same; long length to beam ratio with a large pole to move and steer. It took a couple minutes getting used to, but once I did, it was a lot of fun. We got to float up and down the river for well over an hour. After dinner and a walk down the (upstream) River Thames, I returned to London around 8 PM.
Last weekend I made my first international trip while abroad. Destination: Brussels, Belgium. This was also my first experience on-board the Eurostar, the high-speed train which runs underneath the English Channel over to the Continent. My train left from St. Pancras International Station early in the morning on Friday. The station was already prepared for the Olympics, with massive Olympic Rings hanging above the tracks. We made stops at Ebbsfleet, England and Lille, France before reaching Brussels-Midi Station. I spent most of my time Friday and Saturday walking around, seeing the sites of Brussels. I saw the Berlaymont European Union building, the Grand Place (considered one of the three most beautiful squares in Europe), and NATO Headquarters just to name a few. Unfortunately it rained all weekend, but that didn't stop me (although it's left me with a cold this week). Neither did the combination of having everything written and spoken in French and Dutch present too much of a problem.
Belgium is known for its food. My initial experience on Friday was disappointing. But I gave it another effort for dinner on Saturday and I'm sure glad that I did. For dinner, I had Carbonnades Flamades, which was basically Flemish beef stew and it was excellent. Then for dinner, the Belgian waffle entered my life. Belgium has two main kinds of waffle, Brussels (light and crispy) and Liege (soft and sweet). I got a Brussels waffle with hot chocolate syrup, powdered sugar, and chocolate ice cream and it was absolutely incredible.
The highlight of Belgium for a Peace, War, and Defense major, however, was a visit to the Waterloo Battlefield on Sunday. I woke before the crack of dawn to get a train out of Brussels-Midi station bound for the small town of Braine l'Alleud, just 10 miles outside capital. From there, I walked around 3 miles (through the rain) to reach the battlefield. This is the history geek in me, but to stand on the same soil where possibly the most important European battle was fought was breathtaking. To walk in the footprints of Napoleon, Wellington, and Blucher is a moment I'll never forget. At the battlefield, I hiked up 290 stairs to the top of the monument and went on a guided tour of the battlefield on a tram. For lunch, I ate at the Wellington Cafe, situated roughly where the center of Wellington's line would have been. It truly was hard to leave, but I had to get back to Brussels. After dinner, my return train left Brussels bound for London.
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