American Girl in Europe 16 So that was crazy

He asked me to go back through it alone and it wasn't me but didn't let me leave. Then he asked Annah to walk through and it went off! Yikes. So he wanted to search her bag and obvi she didn't take anything but he didn't trust us so he put the backpack past the sensor and it didn't go off. Then she went through and it didn't go off. So it was just wacky sensors here too but they definitely checked us out ha. So that was crazy! Then we walked down random streets and just looked in stores. We think we saw a famous person because there was this guy taking pictures with people and he had a security guard and the line went past like 15 stores. But we had no clue who it was. After that we went to a souvenir shop and a couple people bought some miniature clogs which were the cutest little guys. Then we got friets (fries) with andalouse sauce which we as a group decided it kind of tasted like zax sauce.

(to be continued) traveldiariesapp

American Girl in Europe 15 Ceilings Had Paintings On Them

After that the group was free to split up and make their way back to Verviers on their own. We first went into this bookstore that was in a really old cathedral which was so neat! The ceilings had paintings on them and they were worn and faint but still beautiful. We then visited some clothing stores. Europeans are really into their clothes. They are like super fashionable and keep up with style even more than dare I say, Americans. Not everywhere though. That's the thing. Some places are super sketch and others are super modern and sophisticated. We left one store and the beeper went off which was weird because we didn't buy anything. So in America we just keep walking usually because it just means that their sensors are messed up. Well in Europe, they have little guards at some of the stores and they definitely stopped us.

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American Girl in Europe 14 You Will Be Ran Over

We saw a lot of ponds and some statues too. Some of the tree leaves were orange and were on the ground. It was almost like it was fall except it was like 80 degrees. So hot. But it was a nice reminder that cooler weather is coming. We took lots of breaks because it's hard traveling with 28 people. Everyone wants to take pictures at every place so it's a bit hard to keep moving ha. Maastricht is so cute and clean and there are lots of bikes. You really have to watch out or you will be ran over. 

We saw an old bear cage which is now like an art exhibit and has statues of animals and this creepy lady petting a dead giraffe. It was weird, but the university there designs the dresses for the lady every 6 months so that's interesting. We walked past some markets and festivals too. We also visited the Basilica of Our Lady and it has a statue of Mary in it.

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American Girl in Europe 13 I'm Just Cheap

Maastricht, Netherlands, 08/26/2017

Honestly the clothes weren't that cheap and they didn't have many stylish pieces haha. I'm a bargain hunter and don't like to spend more than $10 on nice clothes and no more than $5 on my good deals. Most of their "cheap" stuff was 5 euros and that's just too much to me. Anything I considered buying was at least 10 or 15 euros and I just wasn't ready to drop that kind of money yet lol (laughing because it't not thaat much, I'm just cheap.) Maybe later. I did see some ADORABLE shoes. We will see. After the market we packed our lunches and headed for Maastricht. We got on a train to Liege and then switched trains to Maastricht. We just walked the streets as one big group and saw lots of buildings and adorable shops and crossed a river.

American Girl in Europe 12 Street Market

A lot of people were going to a thrift store which sounded really interesting but if I had to sleep. I slept a little and then a little homework before dinner. 

After dinner we went out exploring Verviers tonight. We just walked down streets and looked at the buildings and people. There was this huge concert here tonight and there were a lot of people on the streets. It was a free concert but there was security to enter it so we decided to not check it out but it was hopping and from we could hear it sounded pretty cool. 

We walked to the McDonalds and a shopping area. Everything closes early here like 6 or 7 so we didn't get to go in anything.

Saturday mornings they have a street market right outside our window. They started setting up for it in the wee hours of the morning but luckily it didn't bother me. At about 8:30 we went to explore their treasures. It loops around a whole block of the town's streets. They have clothes, shoes, jewelry, fruit, meat, flowers, vegetables, animals, and trinkets galore. We mainly were just looking at everything. 

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American Girl in Europe Europe 11 Take A Nap Or Die

So thankful for our wonderful group leaders who are willing to cook for us all and thankful for no gano this semester. After lunch, we went to get gelato. The man did not speak English so we slightly struggled communicating with him. I got fraise (strawberry.) Loved it! We came back and I was ready for a nap but for some reason I was inclined to do some homework. I know that if I didn't spend some time on it, I'd procrastinate too much and be left in a stressful situation.

Then at 3, we had a Skype session with our French teacher. She introduced herself and just mentioned a few things we learned that day and then she asked each of us our name and how we were in French and we had to respond in French.

It was a little (okay a lot) awkward for everyone since it was difficult to hear and hard to remember all that we had to say. It was a hot mess but we got through it. After that I had to take a nap or die. Those were the only options. I was not functioning at all.

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American Girl in Europe 9 Verviers

I really do want to learn phrases that I can use in town because it is so nerve racking trying to communicate with people who don't speak the same language. I hate being those people who always ask them if they speak English because I don't want them to think we expect it. We are just totally helpless unless they can speak or understand English.

So, I am excited to learn some useful phrases at least. At about 10 we started Our Western Heritage class. Again, we listened to a video of the teacher going over the syllabus and then listened to her narrate a PowerPoint presentation. This was exhausting because it lasted like an hour and a half and we hadn't moved since 8:30. I was totally done after not moving and just listening for 3 hours. That may seem pitiful, but I'm used to only listening for half that time and with breaks in between. Also, I became dead tired at about 10:30 and wanted nothing more than to just go back to sleep. I felt exhausted.

After that class, we had chapel and then lunch. Lunch was pork chops, corn, cauliflower and broccoli, applesauce, and of course bread. Always bread. It was delish.

Traveldiariesapp (to be continued)