Bonjour or Hallo from Brussels! I have the unique opportunity to be the first blogger for the 2011 Study Tour of Europe for Educators. This is quite appropriate considering that this is my first trip to Europe, and I was surely met with many awe inspiring moments as I walked down the beautiful cobble stone streets of Brussels and viewed amazing architecture, storefronts, skylines, markets, hotels, and, of course, chocolate shops.  When I discovered that some sort that chocolate was generally available on every block, I knew this was the place to be!

We’ve had quite an eventful weekend so far. We arrived at the Pittsburgh airport only to find our first flight to Washington, D.C. was cancelled. After some wonderful finagling our fearless leaders from the Council were able to get us to D.C. on time, and we had an uneventful, although a bit uncomfortable, seven-hour trek across the Atlantic Ocean to Belgium. I have to admit, when I reached land, I visualized Pope John Paul II kissing the ground and understood a bit more about that need to take such an action!  We took the train to our hotel which was right in the middle of everything that is significant in Brussels (Hotel Ibis), stored our luggage until our room was ready, and off we went on our adventures for our first day. Sleep? No way! Who needs sleep? We had way too much to experience!

We began our first day in Europe with an amazing breakfast of specialty breads, rolls and croissants at Le Pain Quotidien.  This brightened our plane weary souls and gave us the energy to walk for the next several hours. Who wouldn’t benefit from warm bread, delectable spreads, and strong coffee?! From this point we toured the church of Notre Dame and its gorgeous stained glass windows, sculptures and gothic architecture.  This was a high point for me — to see a church this beautiful and not have it be digital or in print was wonderful. We continued to walk around Brussels to locate key points of interest that we could earmark for return to later. This included for me, and several of my fellow educators, a trip to the Fine Arts Museum, an amazing Belgian waffle with chocolate and whipped cream (which sadly found its way onto the pant leg of my jeans) and some interesting shopping.

While the afternoon was ours for further exploration, we met again as a group for dinner and discussion with Dr. William L. Chew and Virginie Goffaux of Vesalius College. We had a lively discussion regarding Belgian history, politics, culture and the background and nature of Vesalius College.  This was followed by authentic Belgian cuisine. My fish waterzooi was the perfect meal to end a long, but rewarding, day.  As I sign off feeling like I have been up for twenty four hours (wait-we have!) yet feeling like I have experienced a week’s worth of adventure in one day, I say thank you for letting an inexperienced traveler participate in what is proving to be a rewarding week of life long learning opportunities!

On our free day in Vienna, Jamie, Mandy and I decided to head east to Budapest, Hungary. This experience began with an interesting train ride, without air-conditioning, on a 90 degree day. After three and a half hours, we arrived in Budapest. We immediately changed our Euro into the Hungarian dollar. Although Hungary is now party of the European Union, their economy is still not strong enough to support the Euro. Our day revolved around a hop on hop off tour that took us to various areas of interest. For the most part, this city was still working through the effects of the Cold War. Many buildings were closed on our journey across the Danube to the top of a large overlook.

When we arrived at the overlook, our guide told us that we were looking at Pest and the main economic center of the city. He then explained that most of the people lived in the more mountainous area of Buda. We had lunch at a small café and spent a great part of the afternoon shopping through an open market. The people were all incredibly friendly, and we even made friends with a man from Taiwan on our journey, who told us of some must see sights of the city. After venturing around the Parliament and two of the most famous rejuvenating spas in Hungary, we boarded our train for a scenic trip back to Vienna.

— Ashlee

We entered the NATO gates to 28 waving flags saying welcome! This is a 60′s style campus of buildings in need of renovation and modernization. Our first presenter, Dr. Stephanie Babst, Deputy Assistant Secretary General, Communications Coordination, Public Diplomacy Division (wow, what a title—wow, what a woman—wow— she was at Penn State for a year and earned her PhD at Harvard) outlined the agenda for NATO including a new strategic concept. This will adddress the core concepts and goals for the alliance during the next decade. Looks like NATO is planning for a lot of change to meet the needs of our every changing world! They also need to get rid of the window air conditioners and go green while reconfiguring their internal structure and facilities!

The morning sessions continued with a list of experienced, bright and heavy “players” here at NATO. It was beyond interesting and informative for our group. Specific topics included th Afghan situation and the Holbrook Coherent Plan. We also discussed the pirate activity off the coast of Somalia and other current “hot spots”.

Our lunch was elegant and delicious in the executive dining room. Our hosts were gracious and the conversation moved quickly from sport to travel, and then back to international affairs and Darfur, What a memorable day!

This is our last night in Bruxelles—–we better have a few more beers and more chocolate! Off to Vienna in the morning!

-Joann

We traveled on foot to the German Embassy and met with the German Permanent Representation to the European Union, Herr Jan Dopheide. A young lawyer from Germany, he was educated in Germany, France and the UK. When asked if this was typical of European students, he replied that only about 20% of European students use the “Erasmus Plan” to study internationally. (I wonder what percentage of American students study abroad). His presentation addressed the “German Question: Germany’s role in Europe, Past and Present.” His perspective was more international than some of the older delegates, due in part to his educational experiences and also to the fact that his tenure as a civil servant in the Embassy began in 2007 as the Lisbon Treaty was being drafted.

He was an excellent speaker, touching on topics from current missions linked with NATO (such as piracy off of the coast of Somalia, instituting the Rule of Law in Kosovo, and the police mission in Afghanistan). On matters of finances, Germany weilds 25% of production which accounts for 20% of the GDP of the EU, but has been outvoted on financial issues in the seven year budgets frequently. This, according to Herr is one of the problems the EU faces: consensus is needed in the Parliament in order to pass legislation. Consensus means unanimity. It is extremely difficult to get all 27 Member States on board on an issue in order to move forward as a collective group. As one of the largest and most powerful of the EU States, Germany has much power and, along with France and the UK, can use a “qualified majority” to discipline and negotiate with contentious Member States. Despite the special interests of the Member States that can keep consensus from occurring, the EU has been politically and economically successful. The EU is a haven of stability; Europe has experienced sixty years of relative peace and prosperity. To those who know History, that is a fait accompli that the Congress of Vienna boasted in the 19th century. Legitimacy and equilibrium are used to deter war instead of the threat of force. The Germans call this “Soft Power.” (Of interesting note: in 1815, Prussia (Germany) was only given 2/5 of a critical piece of land, Saxony, so as to keep them disjointed as the world was fearful of a unified Germany even then). This is a historic first that Germany gets along with its neighbors.

With all of its shortcomings, Herr and all of the dignitaries we spoke with agree that, while not giving up sovereignty totally, the supranationality that is the European Union is a good thing for Europe and those that are not called to be in this Union can be included in the ‘neighborhood policy’ and have friendly relations with Member States of the EU.

After our meeting concluded, Joanne, Joe and I walked back to our hotel and boarded a train for Bruges, a small town about 65 miles outside of Brussels. A quaint little town surrounded by canals, Bruges had the signature cobblestone streets laden with candy stores full of Belgian Chocolates. In order to see the town, we took a boatride through the canals. The architecture was magnificent; stone and brick buildings painted in brilliant colors lined the canals. Restaurants with balconies and opened windows overlooking the canals, were full of people enjoying the warm sunshine, cool breezes and delicious food. After our boatride, we visited many shops and walked to the outskirts of the town—where the indigenous Dutch and residents lived. How clean and neat their homes and streets were. Every home and shop had baskets and planters of gorgeous flowers, and everyone was so friendly. We must have walked six or seven miles, through commercial streets and parks. By 6:30, we were ready for dinner. Choosing a restaurant was not an easy task; there were way too many to choose just one! We opted for a little Belgian Restaurant on a back street. The large windows were raised to allow the cool breezes in. We ordered the local fare: vegetable soup and salade chevron chaude (salad with warm goat cheese). After our repas, we headed back to the train and back to Brussels. What a memorable birthday!

Thanks World Affairs Council, Sky, Christina, and the European Union; I am forever grateful.

~ Mary Ellen

Our second day in Belgium started with a very nice breakfast meeting at the hotel at 9am. Many of us took time after breakfast to do a little exploring in the Lower Town section of Brussels. Mandy felt great knowing that she was able to find a lovely gift for her mom at a Belgian lace store. Laura and Jaimie found an eclectic little art shop that was a mix of local Belgian art, American Jazz, and some unusual little gifts. If you want to get an affordable Vespa, they have one that’s about seven inches tall.


Among the multitude of shops in Lower Town, one grabbed our collective attention…Chocopolis. Where else will you find customer service that matches your taste to the perfect chocolate? The friendly clerk invited in for samples and told us that we can come and see them make the chocolate later this week. I think that many of us will be heading back there before the week is over.