Dedicated to Nancy Hagen and Andrew Tecson, for the gift of their enduring love and support of an individual who is fortunate beyond his wildest dreams to receive it.
"Certainly traveling is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of the living."
-Miriam Beard
It is a quarter past midnight on a Monday night. Less than one hour ago, I sat in a bar in Montgomery with nearly twenty of my peers, enjoying a delicious local brew that would win numerous awards in the United States. Tonight, in Brussels, the political capital of Europe, it rains, and I can only hope that the third member of our house, Josh aka Eagle One, will make it home safely. When last I saw him, he was bordering between happily tipsy and adequately inebriated, and leaving him to another round was not my primary intention.
I have spent the past four days becoming oriented to the city of Brussels and to the expectations of my semester long program. We are twenty-four students in all, twenty-three of us from our home institution, the American University in Washington DC, and one more student from Tufts University. For the next sixteen weeks, I will be living with Madame d'Ursel, a pleasant, middle aged divorcee. There are two other students from the program living in the same house, one of whom, Perry, happens to be my former roommate of Freshman year. The other, Josh, happens to live a mere fifteen minutes away from my home near Chicago, and we have several mutual friends. Having explored the Grand Place and the campus of the Catholic University of Lueven, and having become familiar with the facilities, received the necessary materials, and reviewed the syllabi for our courses, the majority of our group decided to dedicate the evening to becoming more acquainted with each other. After a few hours of doing so, I left with Perry, leaving Eagle One in the capable hands of another comrade.
The prospects of being abroad in such a vibrant and well situated location are thrilling. Already we are drafting ambitious plans to cover as much of Europe as possible. Overall, I am content with the other members of this program, and remain thoroughly optimistic that this semester will prove to be one of opportunity, adventure, and insight that will dramatically enrich my university experiences. Henceforth is my desire; that our adventures prove exceptional; that these memories endure.
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