Back to Europe

Monday morning began with goodbyes as we all made our way back to the airport to head to Belgium.  We were delayed because of the cold weather and ice on the wings of the plane. We were quite worried about missing our connecting flight since we only had 45 minutes. While we were stressing, we met the kindest flight attendant who laughed and talked with us the entire flight. When we landed she held the passengers on the plane to allow us to run to our next flight to Madrid. Even with her help, we missed our flight.  We were rerouted on a later flight through London and then on to Brussels.

There are several aspects of UWP that I find carry into my everyday life. For example, there is an UWP syndrome that I like to call "follow the leader."  We often find ourselves following whoever is in the front of the group. More often than not, the person in the front has no clue where we are going, yet we still follow them like a heard of wandering sheep.  As we walked off the plane, we just began walking and following the crowd, like we so often do.  However, this crowd took us to customs and border patrol. Once we arrived to the line of customs, we still continued following the crowd and waited in line until it was my turn to speak with the patrol officer. When I realized I did not have any customs forms and that I was not entering into London, we had to laugh at ourselves and find our way back to connecting flights. After a long and entertaining travel day, we finally arrived in Brussels where we then took a train to meet our host families for the week.

I was roomed with Daniel, from Mexico, and we had three young host siblings.  One of the best parts of staying with my host family was that they grew their own organic food and best of all, they had a peacock!  

After a restful night, I arrived Wednesday morning for a Community Impact day.  I spent the morning at an organization that helps poorer families find a way to sustain themselves.  With some of the families, I learned some Belgian country dances.  It was a fun morning of interacting with the families and sharing our cultures with one another.

In the afternoon, some of us went to a music school to interact with the children.  After singing with them, we all went on a long walk together around a beautiful lake in the forest.  

Thursday was an internal day with the cast.  Larissa and I spent time with Ken, our Associate Producer and Choreographer, learning the movement to some of the music in our Mexican medley while we were back in Denver.  For part of the day, Larissa and I helped teach the movement to the cast to help us get ready for our transition to Mexico in a couple weeks.  

Friday was our first show in Mol, Belgium.  It was a special night because I had dear friends come to the show, Tineke, Mark, Jolien, and Lander.  Three years ago, I backpacked through Europe and stayed for a week with family friends in Belgium.  I have kept in touch with them over the past few years and they came to the show in Mol.  It was so great to see them again and after the show, I went home to spend a few days with them.  

Saturday was a host family day so, after sleeping in for a few hours, Lander and I biked with his mom, Tineke, to the market to get some groceries.  After going to the market, Lander and I biked from his house 45 minutes to spend the afternoon exploring Antwerp.  Lander and I had a blast walking around the city looking at all the historic sites and beautiful buildings.  For lunch, Lander and I had Belgian fries, which were delicious.  After lunch, we walked down the big shopping street looking at all the shops.  

When we arrived home, we had a big dinner with some good Belgian beer.  Once we were done eating, we just sat on the couch and talked for hours.  I felt like I was right at home with family.  It was so special to get to stay with them again, even if it was for such a short time.  I look forward to the next visit with them in the future.  

Sunday morning, Tineke, Mark, and Lander took me back to our show facility for another show.  It was tough to say goodbye, but it won't be long before I see them again.