It's Vacation Time!

Today started with a delicious, cheap breakfast at a local bar! The rest of the group went to a pool place the other night and found out that they do a free breakfast so we decided to check it out before our test this morning. With the purchase of juice we all got an omlet with our choice of 4 different toppings. So 2.15 for orange juice and an omlet the size of the plate. Needless to say we were all stuffed and it was the fastest meal we've had since arriving. Our test was at 10 am and we were early enough to review a few notes before diving in. I managed to get an A on it, thanks to the people that listened to me talk for two hours last night. I'm glad the test is done though so we can focus on spending time with our friends and enjoying our free time doing crazy, European-exclusive things. After our test we all ventured off in our own directions. I joined two others to visit the tourist shops again and we ended up traveling around one part of town in search for a small shop we had seen on a tour. Turns out it was closed all along so we just wasted a lot of time getting to know the back alleys. But we had fun and it's much better than walking around Fargo. After lunch we got to tour the Diamond District and learn about the process of perfecting a diamond, majority of which happens right in Antwerp, which is what makes it the diamond capital of the world. Sorry Mom, the cheapest earrings I could find were over 200 Euro and I didn't think you'd want those... Let me know if you do I guess! The afternoon brought shopping with two other girls, such a fun time! Spent an unfortunate amount of money though. We're really expanding the "only in Europe once" theory. Dr. Wright bought all of us dinner tonight to celebrate the end of our class. It was an all-you-can-eat ribs place that was quite tasty. I wasn't feeling well most of the meal but I managed to finish my food and enjoy it. We took a quick break at home to get changed, etc. before heading to the student bars to celebrate Mike's birthday. Class is in session now at University of Antwerp so the place was very busy, no room at the tables for the American kids! We ended up keeping it low key, each having a few drinks before heading home early. I think we've all realized what a busy schedule we have coming up so there's no point in pushing it at this stage of the game. Tomorrowe we are taking the train to Brussels to visit the European Union Parliament and then tour Brussels with Dr. Wright or on our own. I hope it doesn't get as warm as they're predicting but I'm sure it will, just to spite us. Thursday we will be leaving early in the morning to stay in Paris until Saturday, should be a great time! I don't believe I'll have my computer with me though to make it easier to travel but we will see! Have a great Tuesday!

Love,
Jenacious