Ghent

Greetings from Belgium!


We made it!  We landed on Wednesday, and were off to quite the speedy start.  But it's about 1:30am and we have to wake up at 9 tomorrow, so we'll see what my brain can do with about 20 minutes.

Last night we played in the Sint Elisabethkerk for the second time in almost exactly one year.  That place creates such us massive sound!  Its also, unfortunately, does a supreme job and insulating frigid, frigid air. I forgot how difficult it is to play an instrument that depends solely on the very specific muscle memory of your fingertips when you can't really feel your finger tips.  crazy.  But I think we did alright for having been awake for 30 something hours straight.  That day of travel is a doozy.  And although I slept on the plane for a good amount of time, I may have been the only one.

Afterward, we signed a bunch of things (cds, posters, the inside of someone's coat--haha), and then split up to go to bed.  A few of us stayed with our friend Braum.  He's been to all of our shows in Ghent, and this is the third time in a row he's hosted some balmies!  And its so nice to walk into a familiar place with a friend even when on the other side of the world.

Travis, Kendall, and I pocketed our exhaustion for a while and couldn't resist staying up and chatting with Braum and his girlfriend Hayde.  She made us tea, and he brought up some Belgian beer from their basement.  Trav was amazed, apparently, he housed quite the collection.  We talked about America and Belgium and fast food and Starbucks and how stupid it is that we all paid thousands of dollars per semester of college.  Except our hosts--In Belgium, even if your parents are well off, you pay around $500 for the year.  Sooo crazy.

It is cold here and this town is lovely. All day we walked on cobble stone roads, dodged bicycles, and struggled to read Flemish (or Dutch? They are similar) signs.  Its so much quieter here at night, being miles and miles from the highway.  And it could just be me, but it feels a little calmer here.  I like it.

Ok. sleep time.

-aisha