And 36 bug bites later...

We arrived in Breda, the city where Lieke goes to university on Wednesday morning. We had a pretty lazy day and it was nice. Her living situation is very different than anything I have ever seen. She lives in a house with five people. Each person has their own bedroom with a sink and a separate living room, both rooms can be locked with a separate key. The toilet, shower, and kitchen are community spaces. I just thought it was interesting. It seems like a good, practical, and economical living situation. Lieke.However, I cannot imagine it is really pleasant when someone is sick.
Wednesday night I had a difficult times sleeping because I kept getting bit...I woke up to find I had 36 bug bites: 7 on my face and 11 on each arm and the rest on my back and legs. What is up with that?
We had Lieke´s birthday party Thursday night. We went out to dinner with a few of her friends at the bar/restaurant where Lieke works, and then had a get together at her place and then went out to a bar. It was nice and fun. All of her friends speak English, so it was really nice to be able to be apart of their conversations, too.
I was asked several times about the driving age and drinking age in the United States. People are very curious to know why we are allowed to drive at 16, but not drink until 21. Europeans can do both by the age of 18.
I have mixed feelings about both issues. The fact is I think it is a good idea to have your license before you can legally drink. I got my permit in March 2003 and had already driven 24 hours by 4th of July weekend. I had so much driving experience and I feel like I can drive in any situation. Having my license that early has also allowed me to get a feel for driving. How it feels when I am tired or do not feel well and when I am O.K. to drive and when I am not. Knowing my limits before I started to drink has helped. Another difference is the access to public transportation in the United States is awful. For example, there is none in Galena. Also, University costs a lot less for studnets in Europe (because their taxes are so high)and therefore do not really need a job at such a young age. In most cases in the United States, the student has to pay for college and therefore needs a job and therefore needs a car to get to the job and therefore needs his or her license at a younger age. That is my theory.



Friday morning Lieke and I cleaned up the leftovers and glasses from her party the night before and I got ready to leave. Before I left we had one more run to McDonald´s for a McFlury. I love those things. Lieke and I got at least one a week while we were in Mexico. The cool thing about Europe is that they have different kinds of McFlurys, more interesting ones, too! This time I tried a Kit Kat one. MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM