Adventures in Leuven

We woke up at 10am, had breakfast (yogurt, bread and Nutella, jam, laughing cow cheese, coffee cake and coffee- it was Dan's first time making it for anyone other than himself- they said it was fine), got dressed (with Paul wearing an extra jacket of Dan's), and ended up leaving the apartment at around one in the afternoon.

It turns out that my car isn't as roomy as I thought:  on the way back from the train station the day earlier, the backseat of Dan's Volvo was praised for its comfort; Poet's backseat, on the other hand, was much smaller than anticipated.
There was nothing spectacular about the drive to Leuven; we stopped at a rest area, used the bathroom, and recieved four 50 euro cent vouchers- they were spent on a pack of gum which we all shared throughout the trip. 
Once we reached the town, however, the drive to the hotel took a while.  This has become an increasingly common occurence, due to traffic issues and errors with our non-beloved GPS, Jamie.  After a half hour or so of driving past one-way streets, we decided to park at a garage a short distance from the hotel and walk the rest of the way.

THE DOMUS

We all agreed that our Belgian experience should consist of beer drinking and some sight seeing, but we (Kristi, Kathy, and I) did not anticipate the men's overall capacity for beer and general debauchery.

The bar we spent most of our first night in- chosen specifically by Dan for its close proximity to our hotel.

Upon arriving in town, we checked into the hotel, then began walking and searching for a place to eat and have a drink.  We didn't want to begin the night's merriment right away, so we did a bit of sightseeing, took some pictures, and eventually ended up in front of the Domus.  And so our adventures began.


HERBIE AND THE CIGAR

Hermann (aka "Herbie":  'Just like our old fish,' Paul told him.  "What-ever!" was Herbie's reply) was our waiter; he was a bald, unsmiling man at first, until Paul made it his mission to wear him down.
We took our seats, found some menus, and immediately ordered a round of drinks.  The men decided upon the most potent beers, while I had a batida de coco (the first of many, all of which were delicious) and Kristi and Kathy ordered some beer as well, though they would not end up consuming the same quantities as the men.

We ordered plenty of drinks, and some food as well.  Everyone was getting a bit experimental with their beverages; at one point Herbie laid a raspberry lambic beer in front of Dan, and said, "Women drink this."  I finished that beer for him.  It was pretty good.

As the night wore on, the men got more and more excited, and began having the time of their lives.  "We're on vacation," Paul kept repeating as they downed beer after beer and Kristi began hiding her face in shame. 
We had the unfortunate luck of having sat ourselves right in front of the bartenders' station; by the end of the night, our table was unofficially known as "Entertainment Central," and we were surrounded by highly amused bartenders, waiters, and patrons alike.
Dan became obsessed with the idea of obtaining another Cuban cigar, and he and Paul decided to make this their mission for the night.  They began to question Herbie and another waiter, Tim, a young man Paul met outside during a smoke break.  One of the managers of the bar soon became involved (she told Paul that the cigars they had upstairs were old, and could not be sold, though he assured the entire wait staff that this was not an issue), and soon our table was receiving tips on where to find usable cigars- away from the Domus, of course.

Sometime during the evening (I have to admit, after my 8th batida de coco I awoke to find my head somehow wedged in between the booth and Kristi's backside- after that I slept with my arms on the table, forehead resting on top of them) Dan and Paul ventured out on their cigar-seeking adventure and returned to the bar hyper-active and smelling strongly of smoke.  They spoke of their adventures at the 'happening' bar down the street, and of how they were planning on returning there to visit their new friends. 
Also, they told us, the Domus closes at 2am, while the other bar closed "whenever," according to one of the patrons.

Of course, we (Kristi, Kathy, and I) were not keen on the idea of going to another bar with the drunk guys, after being somewhat sobered by their behavior at the Domus.  We told them to go on to the next bar without us, which they did, but only after congratulating Tim, who they had been watching hawkishly from our table while he chatted with a young lady at the bar (he had changed out of his uniform a while before).  They praised his 'player skills' while the young woman watched, wide-eyed and fascinated. 
Paul also took a moment time to pay the tab before he left, by standing in the middle of the restaurant, whipping out his credit card, and presenting it grandly to Herbie.

Kristi, Kathy, and I sat around for a while after they left, then decided to head back to the hotel sometime around one in the morning.  We thanked Herbie and left a nice tip; then, as we scampered quietly towards the door, we heard laughter and the following shouts coming from the bar:  "Cigar!  Cigar!  Hey, I want a cigar!"