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| Brussels-Belgium Hotel- Room with a view-beautiful |
Day 2
Yesterday was our last day in DC. Everyone seemed to be excited about the days end so we could get on our way to Dulles for our 6pm flight. Despite the excitement we had one last meeting/discussion at the GMF office whats is means to be American and the difference between us in US vs today's Europeans. The discussion was led by the rather interesting, and quite accomplished, Professor Gary Weaver, professor of American and European Beliefs and Values.
I won’t take you through his whole lecture but the overall points he made was that there is in fact an "American Culture" and the differences between us and Europeans is that we as Americans are "Doers".In short, we take action and responsibility for our lives and future and this is distinctly rooted in our northern European protestant background. This is very different from the modern day European who is more collectivist and whose sole purpose is "To Be", as in to be with one’s community or to spend time with one’s family and one’s success is not measured in money or accomplished goals, but something as simple as how much you actually didn’t work and were able to spend time in your community. His point was that America's culture is one of accomplishing goals or missions and this was rooted in and perpetuated through the first protestant immigrants who came to this country looking for a new life or second chance. He went on to say that modern day Europeans are completely opposite and view Americans and somewhat shallow etc.....and on and on.
So here’s what I took away from this discussion and we will move on.
1. Yes there is a distinct American culture and its one that I am very proud of. We get things done and truly have the ability to see that anything is possible so long and one works hard and never give up. Many people take this for granted and see this as arrogant to somewhat foolish. But trust me--this ability to believe in oneself despite what the world or others tell you is amazingly powerful and life/history altering. The first settlers proved that and here we are today.
2. This whole debate of whether or not we are a Christian nation is nonsense. We are without a doubt a protestant nation and while the debate of separation of church and state is a lively and needed debate, we must not forget or gloss over that we are a nation founded on Christian principles and our public discourse and social policies must take this into consideration. I’m not saying we should legislate morality via public policy but I am saying that when engaging in debate about issues like same sex marriage or right to life issues we must not ignore our founding principles. Again, I’m not saying we legislate via the bible but we can’t ignore the basic principles that have brought us this far.
After the discussion we wrapped things up and loaded into the van for Dulles airport.
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| A few MMF Fellows |
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| Taking off for Brussels |
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| More fellow Fellows |
Plane took off at 8 (2 hrs late)
Watched the Town again and inspired by Bens physique i told myself i was going to hit the gym as soon as I got to the hotel.
Day 3
After a seven hour flight and zero sleep we landed in Brussels. It was 9am local time and 5am our time in DC.
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| Cab Driver |
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| Hotel Check in |
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| Downtown Brussels |
Didnt hit the gym. Instead I had lunch at a pub in front of the European Parliament with Larry, investment banker from Chicago (Fellow), and Tamara (Fellow) who works for SDGE in Sacramento.
Since I didn’t hit the gym I decided to eat healthy and ordered the Ham and Cheese sandwich with a fried egg on top. Sounds odd, tastes delicious. Gulped down a Leif Blonde and we were off to the hotel.
Our hotel is beautifully suited between the European Parliament building and the public square where a 20 ft statue stands and two large pieces of the Berlin wall seem to be looking (almost standing watch over) the area. It’s an eerie reminder of what this city has been through. Occupations by the French, Dutch, Spaniards and Austrians are rather evident in the architecture.
Brussels is an amazing city and after a quick nap i headed downstairs for a meeting with the high level diplomat of the King. Insightful, confusing, frustrating, resilient are all the words that come to mind as I reflect on the history of this country that he shared with us. But a once in a life lime experience nonetheless and I truly walked away knowing and recognizing how little i know about Europe and its struggles and how isolated we are, both geographically and perhaps every intellectually curious wise, we in the US are from the rest of the world.
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| Brussels Hotel Room |
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| View from my room |
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| Local Shop near our hotel |
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| Brussels Downtown Square |
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| English Pub-Beer and Ham and Cheese Sandwich w/ Fried Egg |
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| Sports Bar down the Block-Go Bears |
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| View from my room |
On a final note- I cant overstate the impact the recent middle east and african uprising are having on the mood here in Europe. You can feel the interest, the curiousity, concern and even optimism of everyone we interact with. These people have been through thousands of years of war, dictators, and oppression so there is a common concern and hope that many feel for those in Libya etc. Interesting and revealing.
7:30 pm
We will be leaving for Museum Night Fever where 19 museums in Brussels open their doors from 7pm-1am to visitors. It ends with a big after party at BOZAR, the biggest exhibition space and the Centre for Fine Arts in Brussels.
Again, I am so truly blessed.
