We Are Home!

WE ARE HOME!!!

But back to Thursday. On Thursday after the room inspections, I decided to go out to the shopping street with Katie. We stopped to buy post cards and some last minute Leuven souvenirs. Then we had ice cream and did a little bit of clothes shopping. I ended up buying a dress, a leopard sweater from H&M, and a soft black skirt. Fun, Fun. When I got home I took a warm shower (thank God the cold water episode ended) and then dressed up for my last evening in Leuven. Then I went with Ann and Liz to a small Italian restaurant for dinner where I had a Margharita pizza. Leuven's big annual festival and celebration will be held Friday night through Sunday. So we left town right before the huge parties with 9 stages of concerts. But while we were eating dinner under umbrellas and the rain, two members of one of the performing bands came to eat there. It was pretty cool. After dinner, Ann and Liz stopped to get ice cream. Then we went to Louvain Louvain and I had one of the famous raspberry mojitos. It was incredible and tasted just like candy. When I got back to the house the boys were playing poker (see below). Brad lost first and ran out of chips but then bought back in. He ended up winning the pot of 40 euros. During the game, our RA Vincent surprised us with homemade Belgian waffles (also see below). They were amazing. In Belgium, waffles are made with a thick batter that is shaped like a ball and then placed on the griddle. It's not runny like here in America. The boys enjoyed the chocolate dipped waffles with powdered sugar and whipped cream. Then I went with Derek and Liz to Louvain Louvain to get more mojitos. I used all of my change to buy a raspberry mojito and then a strawberry one. Austin and Val also met us there. When I got back to the house I told Katie bye since she was leaving for Ireland very early in the morning and then I tried to get some sleep.

I woke up around 7 AM on Friday. Jake, Jaime, Molly, Brad, Kirstin, and I had two taxis pick us up from the house and take us to the train station in Leuven. It cost us about 10 euros for each taxi (total, not each). We rode the 8:27 AM train to the Brussels National Airport. After lots of security, customs, etc., we boarded the plane and left Brussels at 11 AM which was 3:00 AM in Texas. We arrived in Chicago at 1:00 PM. We thought it was cool that it only took us 2 hours to get there....haha, ya right. It was an 8 and a half hour flight that was long and miserable, as always. We had a long layover in Chicago. We passed through a long line of customs in Chicago and then grabbed our luggage and had to turn it in again to be checked for our connecting flight to San Antonio. Then we rode the tram to the complete other end of the airport where our next flight left from. When we got there, we had to go through security again. I had to go through one of those special X-ray machines. It was crazy. Then we found our gate and went to sit down at Chilis in the airport. We each had sweet tea and munched on some chips and salsa. We waited for a few more hours and then left Chicago around 6:40 PM. We made it back to San Antonio shortly before 9:00 PM. When we went down to the baggage claim area our parents were waiting for us (except Kirstins). She got picked up outside. I hugged and kissed my parents immediately. It was great to see them. Dr. Kenney, my AP biology teacher during my senior year of high school, was also there waiting to pick up her husband and children. Very random but awesome to see her. Brad's grandma Kathy also met us at the airport. We told Jake and Kirstin bye, loaded up our luggage, and then drove to La Hacienda in San Antonio to eat Mexican food. It was near Brad's grandma's house and her husband Melvin was there waiting for us with a table. I had a cheese enchilada with rice and beans and a giant margarita. MMMMM. It was so great. When I made it home, I unpacked my souvenir suitcase and presented my parents with their gifts from me. Everything in my suitcase was fine except for the chocolate. Most of it had melted...........ugh! Oh well. I was only able to sleep for a few hours and have up and at it already this morning. I saw both of my grandparents and have already been busy catching up on lots of tasks. We are going to my cousin's Julie's daughter Brooklyn's birthday party today at 5:00 PM. I will probably be very tired again tonight from staying up a total of 24 hours yesterday! It may take me a couple of days to get back on track again. I have totalled up the money that I spent on my trip but will have to wait for my August debit card statement to come in the mail to end up with a final amount to report. But, it will be in the range of approximately $7,000. However, I received $3,500 for scholarships and student working. So this summer ended up costing me around $3,500. Not too bad for a wonderful summer in which I earned 13 hours of credit towards my degree (Summer I and II) and made a ton of amazing memories.

I am not sure if I plan to keep writing on this blog, but I do know that I will take a break from it for a while. I may start updating again once school starts back in two weeks. It has been pretty fun to journal and keep up with my days. It has also been great getting feedback from my family in that they can keep in touch with me through the blog. Looking back, I am really glad that Dr. Munster volunteered/required me to do the blog for promotional and recruitment materials. It was a great experience.

To conclude, I just want to say that I had a completely awesome, out-of-this-world amazing time in Europe. I am SOOOO glad that I went! I would definitely recommend this study abroad program to anyone. Love from Marion, Texas!
Sabrina Louise Luensmann

Brad and I on our last night in Leuven eating waffles.

The waffles made by our RA, Vincent!
An intense poker game!

Last Day!!!

Yesterday evening, we had another barbecue in the garden here at the student house. Vincent, Jaime, and Jake went and got all the meat and then everyone pitched in 5 euros. We had pork burgers, sangria wine, mushrooms, bratwursts, garlic bread, pico de gallo, chips, shrimp, beef and pork shish-ka-bobs, eggplant, stuffed bell peppers, and a vegetable salad. We had to make the pico ourselves. But, they don't sell fresh jalapenos here so we had to use pickled jalapenos. It tasted sort of wierd. It was a great time though. I ended up playing badmitten for about an hour. My arm is sore today! When it started to get dark, we cleaned up and then started a poker game. It was 5 euros to buy in and we had 2 tables. I played with Brad, Randy, Kelsey, Nikki, and Stephanie. I won a lot at first but then my chips eventually dwindled down. Later, all the girls and Randy decided to go out to the Oude Markt to celebrate our last night here (since tonight we have to be in bed early). I moved over to the table with Ryan, Adam, Derek, Jake, and Liz and played there until I ran out of chips. I wasn't able to take a shower last night because there is no hot water here at our student house. And, I didn't think a cold shower would be too fun before I went to sleep. Last night, while everyone was eating, Katie and Kelsey presented our RA, Vincent, with his going-away present from us. We got him about 6 or 7 beers and made him a nice thank you card. He has been a wonderful RA and a huge help to all of us. He has definitely been a big part in helping our trip be much more enjoyable.

This morning, I packed up all of my stuff besides my laptop. Then I cleaned up my room the best I could. At 2:00 PM, our rooms will be checked. It is 10:40 AM now. Brad, Kirstin, and I are meeting Dr. Engler back at school to print our boarding passes and check in our luggage at noon. I hope my suitcases don't weigh over 50 lbs but I think it will be close...... We don't really have an accurate scale here to weigh them on, plus we would have to convert from kilograms. After we print our boarding passes, we are going to stop off at Velo and return our bikes. Hopefully we get our 50 euro deposit back. Then, we will come back here for our room checks. And then for the rest of the evening, I'm not sure. Maybe we will have dinner on the Oude Markt one last time. Or maybe I will go get some more chocolate to get rid of my left over Euros. We also need to call a taxi today to line them up for picking us up tomorrow morning around 8:00 AM. We will take a taxi to the train station here in Leuven. Then we will ride the 20 minute train to the Brussels airport. Our flight leaves from Brussels at 11:00 AM. We arrive in Chicago at 1:30 PM because of the 7 hour time difference. It is really about a 9 and a half our flight. Then we have a four hour layover in Chicago. We eventually will arrive in San Antonio around 8:15 PM where we will hopefully be greeted by our families and then go out to enjoy some awesome Mexican food.

I found out last night when Dr. Munster emailed our grades that there was a 2 point curve on the final exam which brought my average up from a 89.8 to above a 90. I ended up with an A in that class. I do not know the results for Dr. Engler's class yet, but I think I also made an A in his class.

I miss my family soooooo much and am sooooo excited to go home tomorrow. Although, when I see them it will feel like 3:15 AM to me instead of 8:15 PM. I think I will have bad jet lag and will sleep most of the day on Saturday. On Sunday we are meeting with my new roommate Karley to have her sign the contract and discuss her moving in. On Monday, my mom has volunteered me to speak to the Guadalupe County Aggie Moms Club about my study abroad program and adventures. I bet it will be fun sharing this amazing experience with some passionate Aggie Moms. Next Wednesday I think my mom and I are going back up to College Station to unpack most of my stuff back at my house in College Station. Then we will be coming back home before the weekend because my sister Kayla is coming in from Dallas and my cousin Melissa Marsh is coming in from Kansas City, Missouri. I can't wait to see both of them!

One thing that will definitely be a shock for us is the weather and the temperatures in Texas. It has been so nice and cool here the last few weeks that we have just grown accustomed to this nice weather. I hope I don't die when I get off the plane in San Antonio tomorrow night. A couple things I forgot to mention about life here in Leuven. In Europe, people eat pizza with a fork and a knife, not their hands! Also, most of the water here is carbonated so you have to ask for "no gas" or "no bubbles" when you order water somewhere. There are no free drink refills anywhere. The grocery stores do not sell any kinds of medicines such as Imodium, etc. For any kind of over the counter medicines that you would normally buy at Wal-Mart or H-E-B in Texas, you have to go to a Apotheek or pharmacy in town to purchase. There are many of them though so it is not hard to find one. Although, they all close at 6 PM and are not open on the weeks which can become a problem. I know there are more things that shocked me about coming over here but I most likely won't remember them until I get back home to Texas.

I have truly enjoyed my stay here in Leuven, Belgium. I wish I could have travelled more around Europe but being sick kind of ruined my last weekend. When I come back, I want to travel to Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Ireland, and the United Kingdom or England. I want to see many more places and do many more things while in Europe. I hope to someday bring my sister Kayla back with me. Hopefully within the next 10 years I can return. I have loved it here and could not have imagined this study abroad program being any better or any more fun. I have had the time of my life and have had some of the best 5 weeks of my entire life while here in Europe. I want to take an opportunity to thank each and every person that made it possible for me to come here. I want to thank my parents for their support first and foremost. Without their support, this journey would not have been possible. I also want to thank the Texas A&M University Study Abroad Office and Financial Aid Office, the Honors Program at Texas A&M University, and the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society who all sponsored me by giving me $1,000 scholarships each. I want to thank Dr. Engler for allowing me to earn $500 by writing this blog and grading papers for his class. I also want to thank everyone else who had input into making this program a success such as Orie Varner, our study abroad advisor, Sofie Bruneel, the secretary at K.U. Leuven, and the professors of our class.

So, that's all..... the program has come to an end and it is time to return to reality in Texas. Fall semester classes will start at Texas A&M on August 30th in only 2 weeks. I will be starting my last and final year at A&M. I will graduate with my bachelor's degree in May of 2011 (only 10 months away)! I can't wait to get back and live up my senior year! There are so many things that I must do before graduating from A&M. As I leave this study abroad program, I want to say once more, peace and love from Leuven, Belgium. I am looking forward to getting home and giving all my souvenirs that I purchased to my family and friends. I also can't wait to share all my wonderful stories with them. I love each and every one of them and have missed them tremendously! Goodbye!

-Sabrina Luensmann-

Addition to Previous Post

One more picture. Ann and I eating our hamburgers or "pork burgers" at the barbecue in the garden at the student house. See next post for lots more pictures!!!

Random Pictures

Below are random photos from throughout the trip that I got from Ann. I have tried to comment all of them so you know where/when they are from. I ended up not taking my bike back to Velo today. So, tomorrow I am going to clean my room and pack, then head to school around noon to print out my boarding passes for our flight, then take my bike back to Velo, then get my room inspected at 2 PM, and then enjoy the rest of my last day in Leuven and last day in Europe!

Derek and I on the train on our way to Paris, France.

Ann and I pointing to the door with the shower in it at our hotel in Paris, France.

Me being crazy outside the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France.

Our Paris Group - Ann, Me, Liz, and Derek - in front of the Eiffel Tower.

Me being silly in a park in Paris, France.

The Eiffel Tower.

Ann, Liz, and I in Paris, France on top of the Eiffel Tower.

And again!

Liz, me, and Ann on top of the Eiffel Tower. Behind us is the city of Paris, France at night.

Our Paris group on the top of the Eiffel Tower.

Liz, Ann, and I in front of a huge mall in Paris, France.

Liz, me, and Ann having fun in Paris, France.

Ann and I hiding behind trees in a park in Paris, France.

View from the garden of our student house. Look closely. You will see all of us in our rooms, like the Brady Bunch.

Having margaritas at La Cucaracha during our first week here in Leuven, Belgium.

Ann, Brad, and I at the first restaurant we ate at in Munich, Germany.

A circle of friends.....hanging out at night in the garden at our house.

Our slip-n-slide set up on the day of the Belgium National Holiday.

Our Munich group - Liz, Jake, Ann, Me, Brad, and Jaime - at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany.

Brad, Me, and Ann at Quo Vadis having pizza on our first night here in Leuven, Belgium.

Ann and I at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany.

Jake, Ann, and I at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany.

Brad and I at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany.

Stephanie, Kirstin, Molly, Me, and Brad waiting to get on the canal boat ride in Amsterdam.

Stephanie, Ann, Molly, Me, and Brad waiting to get on the canal boat ride in Amsterdam.

Brad, Liz, Derek, Jaime, Me, and Jake eating our bratwursts in Fussen before we made the hike up the hill to the castles.

Ann and I at the top of the hill in Fussen. About to tour Neuschwanstein castle.

Me at the Heineken Experience in Amsterdam. Holding a fake cup up to the mini keg.

Ann and I with our beers at the Augustine beer garden in Munich, Germany.

Liz, Ann, and I at the Augustus beer garden in Munich, Germany.

The "I amsterdam" sign at the entrance of the park where we attempted to watch the World Cup Soccer Finals in Amsterdam.

Liz, Me, and Ann at the top of the Eiffel Tower.

Liz, Me, and Ann in France.

Ann and I in front of a monument in Paris, France.

Liz, Molly, Stephanie, Me, Nikki, and Kirstin having drinks at Louvain Louvain on Girls Night in Leuven, Belgium.

Our whole group (+ Ann) this time.

And again!

On our way home from the Oude Markt at Girls Night. We ran into some locals.

Interacting with high school locals on our way home from the Oude Markt on Girls Night.

Time to Pack Up

I just got done taking my last final exam for the study abroad trip. I am not feeling too happy right now. I did not do well on Dr. Munster's exam this morning. I made a 30 out of 52 points. I studied mostly the old homeworks because the last test was mostly all homework problems. Yesterday he said that the final was going to be similar to the mid-term. It was 22 questions and the midterm was 10. It was only 2 math/homework problems and 20 questions that were multiple choice and true/false. I may have just made my first B ever in college......... :( I knew it was going to happen eventually but I didn't want it to happen while I was here in Belgium. Oh well. We will just have to wait and see how the final grades turn out. Dr. Engler's exam was not too bad. It was about how I expected it to be. It has some multiple choice and four work out problems about manure treatment.

I plan to take my bike back to Velo today and hopefully get my 50 euro deposit back. Then I need to deal with my food that is in my cabinet and my refrigerator. I only have a little bit, and I will most likely just end up throwing all my left over food out. Tomorrow morning we are supposed to start packing and have our rooms cleaned by 2:00 PM. Elke, from the Belgium housing authority, is coming at 2:00 PM to check us out and make sure our rooms are clean.

Last night I got up in the middle of the night to use the restroom. When I opened our room door, two chocolate bars fell down. Vincent, our RA, put candy bars in each of our doors last night. Or at least we think it was him. Today, Kelsey and Katie and Dr. Engler are going to a beer store to buy Vincent a going away present from all of us.

I am so excited to go home on Friday. I can't wait to see my family. I hope everyone is doing great in Texas. I am not quite ready to face the heat! It has been cool and rainy here the past 2 weeks. I am sure it is going to be a big shock for me! Love from Leuven, Sabrina!

Final Exams Tomorrow

So sorry for the short update today, but we have both of our final exams tomorrow. Dr. Munster's final exam is at 8:30 AM and Dr. Engler's final exam is tomorrow afternoon at 1:30 PM.

Today, we had two lectures like normal. Before lunch, I had time to finish my last homework assignment for Dr. Munster's class and nearly complete the Study Questions on Constructed Wetlands for Dr. Engler's class. I went to the sandwich shop for lunch with Jake and Brad. I had tomato soup with boe-tie pasta and onions and bread. It was decently good. I stopped at DelHaize today after school to get some tortellini for dinner and I also got some candy. Then I took a nap and started studying. I was able to catch up with my mom on Skype this afternoon before she headed to College Station for the day/night. I am so excited that we only have 2 full days left here in Leuven even though I love the city. It's beautiful.

Tomorrow evening I plan to take my bike back to Velo if I finish my final in time and then start packing up some of my stuff. Look for a longer blog entry tomorrow!
Peace and love from Leuven, Belgium! Wish me luck on my final exams :) Sabrina Louise

Beautiful Day

I spent most of the day yesterday caring for Brad and writing my field trip report while he slept. He was only able to eat some chicken soup broth for lunch and drank sports drinks most of the day. I washed clothes from the field trip which smelled like manure (yuck) and washed our sheets since we had been throwing up so much. I also did a lot of cleaning up from the night before which was so rough for us. I had some tomato soup for lunch and was able to ride my bike to Subway to get a sandwich for dinner. My stomach still hurt pretty bad but luckily I didn't throw up or have diarrhea yesterday. Around 10:00 most of our friends went out to the bars to have drinks. Brad and I opted to stay in bed and watch a movie. We watched "Waterworld" on Brad's laptop. Our friend Jaime had brought a couple DVDs with him on the trip so we borrowed it from him. We went to sleep around 1:00 AM.

Today has been a great day so far. Nearly everyone has gone to Brussels or Ghent for the day since it is our last day to travel in Europe. Adam, Ryan, Sierra, Lindsey, Ann, Liz, and Derek didn't go. I would have loved to go to Brussels for the day, especially because it is nice weather, but because of our stomach virus I thought it would be best to stay here. I slept in and then went upstairs to check on Brad. He was already dressed, shaved, and ready to start the day but complaining that he was hungry! He ate a couple waffles. I finished my field trip report and then emailed it to the professors. Then I organized and rearranged my souvenir suitcase which isn't nearly as full as I expected it to be. Then around 1:00 PM, I went to Pizza Hut with Brad. We had the pizza buffet, although he only ate 2 pieces. Then we went shopping for a gift for Brad's sister Megan. We got her a very nice gift, but we hope it fits! Then we stopped by the Leuven souvenir shop for me to get a few more shot glasses and gifts for friends. I'm not sure what I will do the rest of the day. Maybe I will relax and read a book or maybe I will go for a bike ride through the forest to see the abbey. I'm not sure yet.

I have to fill out a form and send in the receipt from my doctor's visit to HTH, my international health insurance to get reimbursed for the doctor's visit. It only cost me 34 euros, but I guess that is almost $50 in US money so it is probably worth the trouble of filling out all the paperwork and sending it in. I will get Dr. Munster and my parents to help me figure it out when we get back home on Friday.

So, only four more days left! Tomorrow is our last day of regular school. Wednesday we have both of our final exams, eek! But we should get out of school on Wednesday relatively early I think; maybe even by lunch time. Thursday is a packing and cleaning day. We have room and kitchen checks before we leave the student house. We also have to take our bikes back to Velo and get our deposit back. Then Friday we fly out of Brussels. My group will make it back to San Antonio around 8:15 PM on Friday since have such a long layover in Chicago. I can't wait to see my parents!!!! I miss everyone so much. But I am very sad that our trip is almost over. It has been some of the best 5 weeks of my life. I have learned SOOOO much about myself and other cultures and the world in general. I have learned to appreciate the small things and life and to not take things for granted in America. I have learned what it truly means to reuse and recycle and preserve natural resources. I have learned how to get along with others that are much different than myself. I have seen lots of beautiful places and backpacked around Europe. But most of all, I have fufilled a dream of mine. I am so thankful to everyone that have helped me make this trip a reality. I will forever remember it! Love from Leuven! Sabrina :)