BEDIJ #28

This is actually the only photo I took yesterday - sorry Josh.

If pathetic fallacy was a thing; then this morning would have been it. Grey and cold and raining.  Absolutely miserable.  But I’m not going to talk about how I feel about leaving, because I promised Lizzy this wouldn’t be a sad post. Also because I think I might have had too little sleep and/or food to properly process any emotions right now. 

Sat in the café at Gare du Midi, there were a group of British people next to me with a television camera. This is the best networking opportunity I’ve had in the past 10 months (and I kind of just want to know what they’re doing), but considering I just spent the tram journey letting people clamber over my bags because I literally didn’t care if they accidentally hit me in the face, now probably isn’t my best time. 

So let’s think about why it’s good that I’m leaving. Ignoring the fact that I have to leave because I no longer have a room to rent or a job, I have to leave because I should and I need to.  This year has been amazing, everyone has been amazing, and I’m incredibly sad to be leaving it behind. Nevertheless, I’m never going to do anything else if I don’t leave, I won’t have a degree for starters so unless I want to spend my life as a perpetually unpaid intern, I’ll probably want to get that. 

I’m certainly never going to write better if I don’t experience change; eventually I’d just run out of things to say. The most exciting stories I’ll have will be of my journeys to and from Brussels to home, and quite frankly, if I keep doing journeys like this, I will be lucky if I don’t lose the ability to use my arms altogether. 

Also last night was amazing, and so much fun, and I'm going to miss everyone in Brussels a lot. 

That's the closest we're getting to a sad post, I promise. 

xx

 

BEDIJ #29

We're just going to have to imagine photo of the day today because I'm doing this on a phone I haven't fully worked out how to use yet...

My bag is heavy. I know how to pack lightly, and I know how to pack this bag, but no matter how hard I tried, it seemed nothing could prevent it from putting an amount of weight on my upper body that I’m just not built to carry. 

I’m so glad only my family are coming to meet me at the other end of this journey because I literally look disgusting. That’s not there to fish for compliments; I can just feel a look on my face that says I’m tired and miserable and even thinking about having a conversation is too draining for me. No one looks good like that. 

What times like this have taught me is that I’ve really got my own back. At first when I saw I had to walk a whole five carriages down the platform, I was disappointed in myself and my seating choice. But Past Claire had a plan, and as a result of her vigilance, I’m sat in the carriage next to the food carriage, I have a seat to myself and I’m next to the luggage rack. 

Present Claire however, finds it impossible to get on at the right end of the carriage any time she takes a train journey, so as a result her luggage is in the other set of luggage racks. 

It doesn’t matter though. I don’t need to be close to my luggage. I do need a cup of tea and yoghurt.

Present Claire also appears to have packed her bag slightly lopsided, so I’m hitting everything within a 4 inch radius of my left-hand side. Nice work Present Claire, nice work.

I then went on to have the most beautiful evening, hope you had a wonderful 21st Pippa! 

xx

BEDIJ #27

Final Place Lux Thursday ahhh. 

 

Okay, so I know I've been talking all week about how ready I am to leave and I've got so many plans to go home to. But now it's Friday and this time tomorrow I'll be nearly home and I just don't think I'm ready for that. I feel like I'm going to get home and just sit down and not know what to do with myself.

Yesterday I had my final Place Jourdan frites and my final Place Lux Thursday and I'm not entirely sure I'm ready to have done these things for the last time. And then I had to start saying goodbye to people and tonight is just going to be horrendous; I am not emotionally ready for all this shit.

So in conclusion, yesterday made me have a little break down, today will be worse. 

 

Tomorrow will actually be the worst because packing has not been the easy process I had expected and I am too small to carry all the things in my possession right now.

xx

BEDIJ #26

Look how beautiful Brussels is...nah just kidding, that is what it looks like though.

 So here's a quick run down of what I won't miss about Brussels

• The pavements. I just don't have very good brain-foot coordination so they're either dangerous because they're ridiculously uneven, or because they're so smooth that even the slightest bit of rain turns them into slippery death traps. 
• The roads. I just don't want to have to do passive aggressive 'thank-you-but-it's-my-right-of-way-so-not-really' hand gestures every time I cross the road any more. 
• The general lay out of the city. So I just don't understand, like I swear the roundabout there these buildings are leads to EVERYWHERE. I know it's a roundabout and that's what it's meant to do, but I feel like the city is not laid out in a logical manner and I still don't really understand where everything is; I've just memorised routes to get to the places I need to go to. Don't tell me to look at a map, just, you just don't understand. 
• My laptop. This isn't actually Brussels related, but being here is the reason I can't replace my current laptop. This isn't just some 'ahh it's so slow' complaint. This is an exposed wiring/the hinges of the screen has broken on one side/my screen tilts/the plastic covering the important bits of the screen is coming off - type situation.
• Sundays/shop opening times. Brussels, the person who designed your retail policy needs firing. This is literally a city of people who work 9-5 (usually more like 8-6)...why close all your shops at 6, and why have nothing open on a Sunday, and why are your supermarkets open so sporadically, and where are your cash machines!

Okay, I'm done. 

xx

BEDIJ #25

Video of the Day is slowly becoming a thing isn't it?
I've only got 3 days left here, and that's just crazy, where has my time gone? 
But I am also pretty excited to go home, these are the things I plan to do, in no particular order:

• Eat fish and chips
• Watch all of Green Wing/The Thick of It/Band of Brothers
• Read all the books on my list
• Watch all the documentaries on my list
• Stop getting up at 7.30am everyday
• Eat a full English breakfast
• Eat a roast dinner
• Eat some Cadbury's Dairy Milk
• Just go to the countryside and roll around in it for a while
• Go to the theatre 
• Watch PMQs (I'm not kidding, I miss BBC iPlayer)

But before that I need to pack and clean like my life depends on it.
xx

BEDIJ #24

That's right, Video of the Day is back again, and it's another science-y one because I forgot to take any photos last night and these are really interesting. 
But learning stuff like this always makes me feel better about the things I worry about happening.
If dreams are my brain attempting to predict the future; and the best it can do is put all of my ex-work colleagues in my primary school dinner hall playing chess, then clearly my brain isn't to be trusted.

In other news I think I dislike Liz Jones more strongly than I've ever disliked any person before, so I'm going to go and have a cup of tea now and try not to let her using the words 'surely invites rape' ruin my perception of the entire human race.
Don't read her article, read this instead: Vagenda: Liz Jones/Rihanna
Although in a unexpected turn of events, most of the comments on her article are actually asking why the Daily Mail still employs Liz Jones, and citing the idiocy of holding anyone up as a 'role model' for children.
So maybe we're not doomed after all.

xx

BEDIJ #22 & #23

Maybe we should have decided earlier on to make the weekends just one post together...but it's too late for that now.

This weekend was pretty food orientated: 

• We went to the Neuhaus outlet
• The famous Place Jourdan Lasagne
• A seemingly constant supply of chips and dip whilst watching Band of Brothers
• An amazing hot chocolate and then a bit of a waffle

We saw the Dinner in the Sky set up when it wasn't in the sky and I've now accepted that unless I find £250 just floating around, that's the closest I'm ever going to get. 

We also finally went in the glass lift which we've only ever walked past late at night, and explored Palais de justice, and stumbled across a bit of the free music festival and had a general walk around other nice bits of Brussels that we probably haven't seen enough of in our 10 months here.

I've had a really nice last weekend and I'm very excited for the next 5 days.

xx

BEDIJ #21

Sometimes someone is kind enough to graffiti on the house next door when I've completely forgotten to take any photos. 

My evening consisted of drinks with Josh and Marika, and then Romeo + Juliet with Lizzy, Emma and Charlotte, in which Leonardo DiCaprio wears this shirt even though everyone wishes he wouldn't.

 Also in which the world is technologically developed enough for everyone to have cars and guns but we're still reliant on Romeo being in to collect the post to find out his wife isn't actually dead.
Father Lawrence calls the postal service to find out he hasn't received the letter though, so we do have phones, but giving one to the character who arguably has most use for it would ruin the entire plot, so it's something we just have to live with.
So he dies, but not before watching his loved one wake up from her 'death', all whilst wearing a disgustingly loud shirt.
Bad luck Leo.

xx

BEDIJ #20

Only 10 days to go, thank you very much if you've stuck with it so far.

Today I felt like the weather was trying to trick me. 

But apart from that today was pretty normal and I started my morning with this absolute delight of an interview.

 I then got changed about 1000 times because it was so hot that I was melting but also it was raining and windy and I just don't know how I'm expected to ever go outside with all this ambiguity.

Then I accidentally threw water all over myself before I left the house; I don't even know how, probably just a sub-concious fit of rage.
My evening consisted of being harassed into making these people part of 'Photo of the Day'.
I'm really going to miss Brussels.

 xx

BEDIJ #19

19 days in and it has only just occurred to me that it's much easier to write these on the actual date of the post rather than the day after.
This week has probably been the slowest week of my life, it's been hot and tiring and I've suddenly decided to be stressed about a million different things which are out of my control.
But yesterday we finally reached Wednesday, which meant drinks after work for Dan's actual birthday and this attempt at capturing the only nice view I ever see in Brussels on my camera.
It's so much nicer in real life but my camera is like 6 years old so this is the best we can do.

I hope everyone's weeks are going better and if you've got/are getting uni results then well done/good luck!
I'm sure this time next year I'll be in an equally horrendous ball of stress and excitement.

xx

BEDIJ #18

If there's one thing I wish, it's that, along with the timings of a meeting, you could be provided with absolute concrete information surrounding the provision of food.

If you start a meeting at 1.30pm that's just plain ambiguous and I don't even want to talk about the inconsistent provision of breakfast at meetings that start at 9am. Provide it all the time or don't provide it at all, I've just been deceived so many times.  

Okay so I didn't really do anything yesterday either but I did watch Made in Chelsea in which:

• Ollie continued to make the most relevant facial expressions ever. 
• Lucy says the sentence 'now who's the slutty one' to Louise, implying Louise at some point called her a slut and is as a result, Louis is now dead to me. She could probably spend the entire next series dressed as  a clown and I wouldn't even give her enough of my attention to hear her explain why.
• Jamie was presumably hoping that his girlfriend would go both deaf and blind at some point between  the filming of a conversation, where he admits he wishes he was with someone else, and the airing of that conversation on Monday night.

xx

BEDIJ #17

This is the first time I've been prevented from watching something and not felt personally victimised. 
I think I might have writer's block. Actually, no I don't, I just think I haven't done anything of note for the past two days and as a result I'm finding it difficult to come up with anything to write about.
In fact when I really think about it yesterday was just a really diluted version of Sunday where I went to work and then did everything I did on Sunday in less detail.
I did finish my book though.
And I discovered that I can't read/write and eat at the same time, apparently complete focus of my eyes is needed for both of those things to take place and as a result they have to be done separately, which is a design flaw to say the least.

On a completely unrelated note apparently Google is killing off Google Friend Connect so if you're following me please use the even more terribly named Bloglovin' link to your right :)

Tomorrow might be better!
xx

BEDIJ #16

'Photo of the Day' is exceptionally difficult to do when you don't leave the house all day.

I have noticed that if I'm left to my own devices I'm actually really productive, this obviously depends on your definition of productive, but I'll give you a little run down of what I did.

• Read 60% of David Mitchell's autobiography. It's great and so easy to read that I could have happily finished it last night had I not needed to sleep.
• Was so impressed by how funny and well-written the book was that I had a minor existential crisis and decided I was never going to write anything ever again because it was pointless.
• Watched 10 videos like the one above and learnt about what might be causing the obesity epidemic, overpopulation, why people are right or left handed, what Schrödinger's Cat actually is, and what might happen at the end of the universe.
• Had a little sleep - I'll give you that this isn't that productive, but I had a great time, and it helped my recover from my tiny crisis.
• Another successful Skype date, this time with Jenny. I'd like to take this opportunity to passive aggressively thank Skype for working very effectively in this final month before I go home, and being completely useless for the previous nine.
• Wrote Friday and Saturday's BEDIJ because I was I had a tiny fail over the weekend.
• Write the title for the my Student Noodles post (hopefully sometime this week, maybe).
• Write about 5 different titles for July's first post when I realised I was going to have to write it in advance because I'll be away and most probably without internet access on the 1st. 

I guess that's not bad for a Sunday is it? Hopefully my weeks of Sundays when I get home will be equally as productive, but probably not.
xx

BEDIJ #14 & #15

Swiss? Danish? All I've really achieved here is looking like a female version of the boy in The Omen.

It was always going to happen at some point...

So now I have to apologise for this not only being very late in the day on Sunday (and as you'll see tomorrow there is literally no reason for this to have been the case) but also because I just completely skipped Saturday. 

I did in all fairness have a very busy Friday and Saturday as we spent the weekend celebrating Dan's birthday with a house party on Friday night in which we dressed as European stereotypes and tried to avoid taking any photos which could be potentially career-damaging later on. 

I am holding a Danish flag but I don't feel like the Danes really have any obvious appearance stereotypes and I was asked if I was meant to be Swiss all night so I'm going to go with that even though I hadn't actually chosen a nationality by the time I arrived.

I spent Saturday being the most tired person that had ever lived and had Thai food for lunch and Italian food for dinner in Leuven. A great day for food but even that didn't stop me being so tired that I went home when we got back to Brussels at midnight. 

I feel like in high school I used to barely sleep at the weekends and work both days and I felt reasonably okay but I appear to have aged about 30 years in the last 3 because now one night out floors me for the next 2 days. 

I'm really aware that is isn't that entertaining, and what it is in fact, is basically a very long excuse note about why I've been so bad at this over this weekend.

But we're at the half way point so I think I'm allowed to have a minor rough patch, right? 

Right.

xx

BEDIJ #13

I thought this was going to be my evening....

...but actually it was more like this.
Okay so that last photo makes it look like I've had a change of career...when we were sat there eating ice cream it was a lot lighter and much less . 
I really like that late night ice cream has become a thing in my life; that is definitely something I will miss about Brussels. As of tomorrow morning I only have two weeks left here, so now every time I do something or go somewhere I wonder if it's going to be the last time, and it's a very weird sensation.
What is also a weird sensation is the heat rash that's taken over my body and thrown me into humidity-induced hell. 
So even though the weather meant we avoided our usual drinks in Place Luxembourg I a pretty effective evening, I managed to learn things (video below), and possibly make some future life choices (coming soon) and maybe choose a new laptop because the situation here is getting pretty dire (my screen tilts to one side).

xx

BEDIJ #12

Hi I'm Claire and I shouldn't be allowed to have nice things because I ruin them.
Just another line that isn't nearly as deep as it sounds.
I just ruined one of the only nice pair of tights I owned today. But luckily we have glue in the office so I think I might be okay until I can be bothered to wash my clothes, at which point everything will fall apart.

Yesterday was a bit of a fail all round really because I was massively unproductive and then we went out for drinks in this really nice area with a really cool market and I just didn't take a photo of it. So this is just the view out of my window at about 9.30pm last night.
But I had fun, and stole a hell of a lot of free samples from the market (fruit is expensive here okay). I also had a really good Skype with Francine in which we could see each other the entire time and never had to say the words 'can you hear me' and I'm not sure that's ever happened in the entire time I've been alive.

On a completely unrelated note I wish people would stop telling women that if you wear a short skirt or a low cut top then people are going to think certain things about you so you should wear less revealing clothes to make sure everyone knows you have 'self-respect'. Maybe instead we should say that you can wear whatever the hell you want and if someone judges your entire personality based on how much skin you're showing then that person should probably have a bit of a think about whether society is something they can really be part of.
Okay I'm done.
xx

BEDIJ #11

This is a print screen so I'm gonna say that it still counts.

I didn't really do anything yesterday apart from go to a meeting and then go home and watch Breaking Bad so this is really all Photo of the Day could have been. It was either this or a picture of some tables and chairs; so really you've got to ask yourself what you would prefer.

Today I used the word 'timely' when I was taking notes, just because I felt it was the right word to use.
I think I've read too much EU legislation and I think I need to go home. 

I'm also all over social media at the moment:
Twitter
Tumblr
Pinterest

I don't really have anything else to say but the new Miles Kane album is really good.

xx

BEDIJ #10

'Photo of the Day' is so much easier when I have someone to take pictures of me.
We're in double figures...hurray!
This has actually been much easier than I had anticipated, apart from forgetting to share these numerous times I've actually kept in time. Although there are 20 more days to go so let's not get ahead of ourselves.
Also I really appreciate the support and encouragement everyone's given me and if you're reading this then thank you, it means a lot.
That made it sound like this was a lot more of a serious undertaking than it actually is, but it's always nice when people say nice things about things you do.

Yesterday I went to work and then I went for frites and an orange juice, and I know that would have been cooler and significantly more Belgian if I'd said beer but what are you gonna do. 
Then I went back out again and had an ice cream at round about 10.30pm which is definitely the best time to have an ice cream.*

xx

*All times are the best time to have an ice cream.

BEDIJ #9

Thank god for tea tree oil and moisturiser. That's all I have to say on that. 

Sometimes I forget to take interesting photos two days in a row, I am so sorry.

After I winced my way through a shower yesterday morning I promptly fell asleep for three hours because even knowing it's sunny apparently makes me sleepy. 

Then I went to the park and had amazing frozen yoghurt and carried on conquering my fear/hate relationship with team sports one kick of a football at a time.
And yes I am aware that photos of any of those things would have been far more interesting than the one we've got. That being said, I am always be suspicious of people who take pictures of their food before they eat it, it's like they've got their priorities all wrong.

I'm starting to regret 'Photo of the Day' a little bit, let's not make promises like that again.

xx

BEDIJ #8

Sometimes I completely forget to take any photos until I walk home at 5am.

Yesterday was the day I fully embraced the problems of having pale skin and wanting to make the most of the sun. It was also the day I learnt that people who tan evenly from the sun all over their body put a lot more effort into that result than I originally thought. 

Sit reading a book with your legs crossed for half an hour and you've basically committed to looking ridiculous for the next 3-4 days.

Luckily whilst my face didn't escape the burn it isn't as red as one of my shoulders and (different) parts of both of my thighs so I can at least conceal my skin's inability to deal with UV rays.

xx

BEDIJ #7

I think its important to take a couple of safety photos in case you accidentally forget to take a Photo of the Day. 

In my defence this is on a pavement I definitely walked down today, so I'm gonna say it's legit.

Yesterday I went to an all day seminar but I accidentally went to the wrong address at first, something which I was very much reprimanded for by the woman who worked there, who saw fit to clip me on the back of the head as I went to leave.

So it's not even 10am and I've already been hit by an old womanT

But I got to have lunch outside again and then watch everyone play basketball whilst having no desire whatsoever to play myself, I consider it a success that I didn't get hit in the face, and I'm more than happy with that. 

Then I went home to sleep so I could be ready for the amazing weather we should be having today.

So there will be a proper Photo of the Day tomorrow I promise.

Maybe.

xx

BEDIJ #6

Not a bad way to start the day.

Not that I work at the fountain, that would be weird.
Yesterday was apparently the day where I lost all coordination and just fell over every 30 seconds - off curbs, wonky paving slabs, you name it, it foiled me yesterday. I could blame the heat but after the snow incident in March I don't think that's going to pass. But I did get to walk around and have lunch outside in between meetings, although I was so exhausted that by the end of it I nearly fell on someone's head whilst walking across Place Luxembourg.
Also I made a massive mistake and got a sandwich made with the toughest bread in the world for lunch and I think I definitely burnt more calories chewing it than I ever could have taken in.
xx

BEDIJ #5

This is Place Flagey.
THE WEATHER IS SO NICE.
I just can't get over it, and I know they say conversations about the weather are boring but I'm determined to appreciate how hot it is and how much we can be outside because it's probably going to end in about...4 days according to BBC Weather.
Although we basically never arrive early enough to sit at a table - so I hope Brussels pavements are clean.
Oh who am I kidding. But it will be good for my immune system at least.
Sorry this wasn't very interesting, I've just had a tiring and meeting-filled week so far.

xx

BEDIJ #4

I have to walk past this every time I come back from running at Flagey and I just don't understand what it is.
I mean, I get that it's a giant chick - but I don't understand why it's a giant chick.
That, and the fact that in the dark it's actually terrifying.

But in other less frightening news I had my last monthly lunch meeting yesterday and my second to last bi-monthly breakfast meeting. I can't even really process both of those things because mostly it feels like I spend my life walking to those buildings but in the very near future I'll never have to do it again.
I also went on the most serene and peaceful run, the temperature at about 8pm was perfect and the sun wasn't in my eyes and it was just lovely until I nearly ran into a guy twice my size and my life flashed before my eyes.
I think that's pretty much all from yesterday, until tomorrow!
xx

BEDIJ #3

So here’s the first proper and on-time BEDIJ, and you get two ‘Photos of the Day’. Lucky you.

Last night we went to see Iron & Wine and to say I didn’t know what to expect would have be an understatement; although from what I’d heard I wasn’t anticipating to leave feeling so…happy. Both, the band and the atmosphere was incredible, the venue was perfect and I’m now totally sold on the benefits of sitting down during gigs and being allowed to just concentrate on the music and not where my feet are or doing everything I can to keep my hair (and everyone else’s) away from my face. I also fell in love with a sax player – in the way that a woman in her twenties does fall in love with a man in his forties who plays three instruments and possesses the ability to dance. 

Iron & Wine has definitely recruited a new fan. 

See you tomorrow!

xx