listing & la grande-place

Let's backtrack once more. At the chocolate tasting, I had the opportunity to ask a Bruxelles local what to do in his hometown. His advice: stand in the center of the Grand Place and turn in a complete circle. "Every building you see is from 15th century. They've somewhat miraculously endured the wars since. We think it's the most impressive square in all of Europe." I might have to agree...

But I won't. I don't pick favorites :) even for a square so stunning. In other news, it's been a busy week in Paris. To keep this short:

Eating as many vegetables as possible to balance out lunches with the guys.

Drinking bottomless cups of tea and the occasional hot chocolate.

Practicing gratitude. ‘Tis the season, n’est pas ?

Mastering: transition-induced anxiety.

Learning immigration policies and diversity issues in the UK (thesis prep).

Playing with the French concept of casual dating.

Finishing my internship at PageYourself… and really bummed about it.

Reading Sparkle: The Girl’s Guide to Living a Deliciously Dazzling, Wildly Effervescent, Kick-Ass Life.

Enjoying Paris with the best expat friends.

Walking through Montmartre on my way to PageYourself’s new office.

Needing quality time with my siblings.

Wearing cozy layers.

Cooking comfort food by craving. Most recently, this.

Wondering if I’ll experience reverse culture shock soon. (Hoping not).

Working on pre-research for my thesis.

Travelling back from Brussels (see above), and going home oh-so-soon.

Planning how to best spend two whole months in New York!

The list above was inspired by Tania, inspired by Sydney (and James), and inspired by Pip. Join the blogging community fun?

how to belong

Adaptability. You may have heard that's it's the #1 life skill you learn and practice while studying abroad and/or working in an international environment. It definitely is one of them. I'd argue the ability to create a sense of belonging is even greater though.

It's freaking hard to build relationships with strangers who grew up in a world separate from your own, to observe norms you're not familiar with and then take them on yourself... to thrive as the only American woman in an office of tech-minded French guys. And yet, whether or not I actually have an INFJ personality, doing so has been one of the most rewarding foreign experiences thus far.

I worked from home today, and tomorrow, I'll meet the PageYourself team at our new office in the 18th. Au revoir, Le Réfectoire ! We will no longer have medicore burgers and bomb-a** fries at our disposal. But, for the next two weeks at least, I'll continue enjoying a "male-skewed" lunchtime diet. The sentimentality is already kicking in full throttle. I'm going to miss my coworkers.

How did I get to this point? I "kept on swimming", even if I really wanted to give up sometimes. And honestly, that's the most valuable advice I could give. Adapting is a process of excitement, resentment, and acceptance. Sometimes mojitos help, but maintaining perspective on the impermanence is an even safer bet. Now I just have to remind myself that diving into solitary thesis research doesn't at all mean losing these personal and professional connections. Le sigh. Second transition of the year: go!

"There’s an old adage that says you leave pieces of yourself wherever you go, wherever you’ve called home. And I suppose that’s true. But, it’s kind of bullshit, too, like most old adages and their supposed relative truth. It’s not the pieces themselves that matter. It’s the size of those pieces you leave behind and the size of the hole they’re trying to fill that matter. Because you can have the biggest pieces of yourself that are connected to these places and the sense of belonging that you derive from them and still not manage to fill the hole. Your sense of belonging starts when you stop asking other people and places permission to belong. It’s not about where you “feel like” you should be. It’s about where you are, and you belong wherever you are." -Jon Hamlin

the beauty of brussels

"Parlez-vous français ? Or English? I'm sorry... we just passed each other in the galerie and I had to tell you... you're beautiful." He went on to ask where we were from, how long we'd be in Brussels, and what we had planned for the rest of the day. This kind of encounter doesn't actually happen in real life. Well, it doesn't unless you're an American visiting from Paris who'd just gotten a fab haircut at Style Pixie. Or so I hear. It was the most genuinely flattering "hit on" (I really dislike that term) experience I've ever had.

And, gosh, the city of Brussels is beautiful, too. I'd always heard it was boring and not necessarily worth the stop, but the Belgian capital hasn't gotten enough credit. It's so much more than waffles, chocolate, and comic books! Take a look for yourself:

Small, yes, but thus made for a weekend getaway. Although Lara and I did spend a fair share of our relaxing in Ixelles, we made it into the center to enjoy a few contemporary gems: Pistolet for a quick breakfast, Mont des Arts for cultural entertainment, the Brussels Palace gardens, Delirium café for a mid-afternoon beer, the Musical Instruments Museum (even just for the exterior architecture), Pierre Marcolini for modern artisanal chocolate, Le Roy d'Espagne for an aperitif, and Monk bar for late night live music. Next time, I'm headed to Pixel for wine and Wittamer for divine chocolate chaud, too. One last Brussels post to come...