First Week

I have been in Luxembourg since Wednesday now and I have been having a great time.  I live in Bettembourg which is about ten minutes from the main city in Luxembourg and about a thirty minute train ride from school.  Some of my friends and I have been exploring Luxembourg and visiting places around it.  I have been lost once which wasn't a big deal because I was with two friends; we quickly found a train station and simply rode back to our location.  We were only lost for about half an hour. 

I am living with a host family of one.  She is a grandma and she is a very sweet lady.  Her English is not the best and sometimes I have to change what I say to make it more basic.  She knows about 5 different languages and English is one of her weaker ones so I can't imagine how hard it is for her.  She makes me breakfast every morning which usually consists of cereal, toast, fruit, and yogurt.  I am living with one other guy named Kurt and he is a nice guy.  He is also junior and a business major.  We don't have any classes together but we have been talking a lot as there is not much to do in the town of Bettembourg.

During this week we have had orientation activities.  It has actually been fun meeting everyone and I can tell that I will get to know almost everyone very soon.  There are about 115 of us at my school.  Almost all of us are from Miami but several are from other schools.  We are studying in a castle and it is actually quite neat.  I have yet to post pictures of the castle on facebook but I will do that soon. 

Our orientation programs have consisted of the typical meetings and rules that we must follow, but it has also included so much more.  We have gone off to explore the country and learned how to take public transportation.  We have also gone to a castle in France and a winery in Luxembourg to see how wine was made. 

It has been a good first week here!  I have learned several things already......
1) You don't need to tip at most locations because it is already figured in. 
2) You should not smile at strangers because it means that you are trying to flirt with them. 
3) All power cords should be unplugged from the wall if they are not in use no matter what. 
4) Milk is served warm both for drinking and with cereal. 

All of these have been interesting and a wonderful experience.  I am looking forward to learning more about the culture along  with all of the traveling.   I plan on going to Switzerland this weekend with some friends.  People have been very nice and the biggest challenge has been communicating with people who speak little to no English.  Classes start tomorrow and though I am not looking forward to studying, it will be nice to be on a set schedule. 

I will try to keep this updated if you are interested.  Again I have posted pictures on my facebook if you want to have  look.  Living in Europe is quite fun!

Sincerely,
Brad Granger