5-6 p.m. - Most people are arriving back home. We're all exhausted. Yet, we cannot let ourselves by weakened by our sleep deprived bodies. We need to live. We need to experience the city. After all, we have only another 7-8 weeks left. That's why we try to break our week from becoming a rut by doing activities after work.

After a week of hard work at the RAF and the internship, I got off earlier on Friday to prepare for the International Festival. This meant lots of hopping from the RAF to Target to Harris Teeter and back to the RAF. Belgians are always well organized and prepared; that's why we had to take care of practically everything the day of the event itself!  

As time flies (and it sure flies fast) we are about to reach the midpoint of our stay here. Seriously? I am both happy and sad. Happy for all the great experiences I got to experience so far, for all the awesome friends I've made and amazing people I've met. Sad, because I'll have to go home in May, and for the goodbyes I'll have to say. Some say the glass is half-empty, some say the glass is half-full, and the glass is still half-full… It can only get even more epic.

D.C. is one of the best places to attend a protest. So that's what I did. I attended a climate protest on the National Mall, advocating against the Keystone Pipeline. This is an issue I feel strongly about.

Although I've only been here for a little over two weeks, it feels as if I've been here for months. When the metro crosses the Potomac river in the evening, with D.C. and its Washington Monument right in front of me, and the high-rise blocks of Rosslyn (Arlington, VA) on my left, an immense feeling of 'home' surprises me. With a touch of my fingers on my iPod, music starts to play and I become the happiest man on earth. I transfer from the yellow to the red line in Gallery Place (Chinatown) and with the biggest smile on my face I hop off at NoMa and I am home.

Hi! Let me start off by introducing myself. My name is Jarco (or Jack as most people call me here) and I am a 22-year old communications major from Belgium. This semester I'll be participating in the Media & Communication program. Hop on for what's bound to be an amazing journey.And We Are Off January 27th, I am ready to board my plane from Brussels to Washington, D.C. Excitement, nervousness, anxiety… I've experienced them all that day, except one -- sadness. I was ready for the adventure.