Beaux-Arts

Everything at Académie royale des beaux-arts de Bruxelles seems very laxed, and almost unknown to many people, including the employees. I received my timetable over a week after starting at the school, which still made no sense, not only to me, but to the natives as well.


After going to all classes on this hectic and confusing timetable for two weeks, and straining my brain to understand every other french word being said, I finally found the Erasmus co-odinater who explained the system, in English, to me. I had been attending double the amount of lessons I need to be going too. No wonder I have been feeling more exhausted and drained as the days go on. 


In brussels, people, even strangers, meeting for the first time, greet one another with a hug
and kiss on the cheek. Back in England I don't even hug my friends, so to me, kissing a stranger is very.. strange! Plus having a cough and a cold for the past 10 days makes it more awkward, as I try to explain to people that they really don't want to come that close to me, but I have realised there aren't enough seconds to say this before they go in for the hug and the kiss. On the plus side to being ill, the nasal french vocabulary is much easier to pronounce. 


Last week when I was talking to the half welsh, half Belgian philosophy lecturer, a girl overheard me with my very British northern accent, and came over and introduced herself. It turns out she is also an Erasmus student from Camberwell, in second year Sculpture. Although I am finding the French language very interesting to learn, the relief ran through me as I have found someone I can have conversation with, without having to pause for five seconds between each word. For a second I felt like I was back in London. 


After being at the school for three weeks now, I'm still not 100% sure I'm attending the correct lessons, but the ones I am attending are enjoyable.