tiistai 11. lokakuuta 2011

Instincts and experiences

Haha. Where to begin. Well, dad was here and about now he's landing in Helsinki. It was wonderful to have him here. We had a really nice time, road tripping in northern France and spontaneuously also in Holland. Renting a car might actually be my new big thing. The freedom,the countryside, the scenery, the authenticy of it all.. Aww, loving it. The worse part is the car. Even small scratches can end up costing dearly. Fines can double in amount because of the extra administrative charges the rental company demands. Any minor fault or misunderstanding - you pay. But still, driving past fields and farms is just wonderful, so if the company recognizes the risk that the 30e car rental can become a 730e + major stress load -day, then I'm all up for it.

Thankfully everything went well for us. My dad is a good driver and I'm good at reading maps so we explored a whole deal in 3 days. We stayed at a small B&B in the French countryside (more exactly Le 8 Bis in Saint-Gobain, Picardy), the house was built in 1780 and was renovated really nicely so it was worth a Tripadvisor recommendation. Coming back to Brussels the first time we we're very lucky to find a parking space just 5 blocks from my house. The second time we were lucky to spend only 2:15h in traffic in Brussels trying to get to the main train station. This was probably the first time I was caught in traffic this bad and also made me all less understanding for people who take their cars to the city centre. This morning I made almost the same journey with metro on 12 minutes.

Here in Brussels we stayed at my place. Mhamed was supposed to go to Köln for 5 days. Noup. When we came home from the airport with my dad he was waiting in front of the door, saying he locked himself out and left everything inside. His dodgy friend was also with him. That evening, or any other, they didn't go anywhere. This friend slept in Mhamed's bed (did I mention Mhamed regularly sleeps on a sofa?). Mhamed slept on the floor, coughing heavily all night. Well, now I got my first picture of Mhamed, here with my dad.



On Saturday we left for France. I leaft my key with Mhamed whose mother supposedly was coming over. On Sunday evening we came back, only to find Mhamed still here. He was extremely drunk, singing and dancing around, talking to himself, walking in and out of my room, suddenly shouting in arabic at the trash bin in the bathroom. He also (unfortunately) talked to my dad and also his girlfriend, convincing everybody that something is seriously loose in his head.

Apparently that same "friend" was sleeping on the sofa again. He was not reacting to any calls or pokes. Occasionally, when Mhamed regained logical consciousness, I managed to find out that the friend was someone who he would help on Monday in court for stealing a car. He was not responding because he was on methadone. Before passing out, he had drank my dad's beers and eaten his bananas that were in the kitchen. Mhamed on the other hand had had a big fight with his mother and his sister who is the owner of this apartment. Now the sister wants Mhamed out and me as well. She also kept the key I had lended to Mhamed.

You can imagine how happy I was that dad saw all of this. It hasn't been this bad earlier but this was just plain ridiculous. The worse part is that I don't have a key but instead a heck of job searching for yet another flat. This feels like failure in a sense because I had promised to myself that I will stay here the 3 months no matter what, just to prove that I could. Well, now it's just way too intense and just plain stupid for me to stay here anymore. I already have all my valuables at work. Sometimes pride just isn't worth it.

The little voice inside of me is saying "Told you so". I know. Coming here was all but a safe choise but you know me, I like the adventure. For sure, this has been a really interesting experience and it will be a funny memory to tell about later on. When I was saying goodbye to dad he said "Girl, I think you're even too courageous.", referring to my experiences abroad and now this. I know I have made many choises that have been risky and I'm very fortunate for not having me or my posession damaged. Whatever is looking after me has a hell of a job keeping me safe. I'll try to take better care - by finding a nice and calm flat for 2 more months in Brussels, to start with. But then again, my instincts tell me to carry on living and exploring life. I'll do that.


1 kommentti:

  1. Voi muru, voimia sinne! Tästä tulee todella hauska tarina :)

    VastaaPoista