Day 1 of freedom

My mandatory quarantine ended last night, and I've really been looking forward to getting out and exploring Mechelen. Funnily enough, though, the first city I was able to explore today was the nearby university town of Leuven. My fellow United Statesian* student at the carillon school, who arrived a few weeks before I did, was already enrolled in a Dutch class at the university that starts in a few days. I'm joining the same program so we can commute and practice together.

*It was recently brought to my attention that "United Statesian" is a better alternative to "American" because it accurately refers to the correct country rather than the entirety of the Americas. It's in Merriam-Webster!

So I hopped on a train first thing and made my way to Leuven. After enrolling in the Dutch course, I wandered to the university library of KU Leuven, which houses the university carillon and faces a large square called Ladeuzeplein (Ladeuze Square). The old and ornate architecture of the library and tower was striking. The square is also home to Jan Fabre's Totem, a sculpture depicting a huge needle piercing a beetle. Apparently, the artist found the relationship between his piece and the surrounding architecture to be more of a surrealist juxtaposition than an aesthetic harmony. (More on Belgian surrealism later, after I understand it better.)

Then, it was back to Mechelen and to the bulk store. I was thrilled to find a grocery store in my town that was focused on being zero-waste and environmentally friendly, and I was even more thrilled to find that they had ALMOND BUTTER! Folks, any kind of nut butter is pretty hard to come by in these parts, but almond butter + in bulk + zero waste? Happy Carson.