Sheltering Sky

Brussels was cold and wet, as I used to picture it when I was younger. Just before midnight the airport bus dropped me at Schuman, quite far from the city centre. Holding an umbrella, with the bag hanging from my the shoulder, I started to walk down Rue de la Loi. The streets were empty. Thursday. Cold. Rue de la Loi -such an important address and what an ugly street. I walked by the main EU buildings. They were dark. In my hand the printed map with directions to the small hotel was getting wet. It wasn’t a good map to begin with, I thought, so I memorised the name of the street, threw it away and headed towards the centre. After a while, I found the Rue Nord. The hotel was small, old, charmless. Cheap. I dropped on the bed like a dead horse and slept all night.

The training next day at the Spanish Permanent Representation was useful. Spanish EU officials told a few of us how to become one of them, how to pass the final EU interview. It was all very well organised. Definitely worth the trip. We finished at around eight, so I had Friday evening in Brussels on my own.

Vendredi soir à Bruxelles. I decided to go to the cinema. I thought of Tatiana and how we used to discuss in Moscow which films we will watch next time we are in Brussels. Back then we had week-long trainings at the Commission headquarters, at least once a year. After some thought, I bought a ticket for The Perfume. Tatiana would have approved. I had read the book a very long time ago. In the film, I especially enjoyed the panoramic scenes with the houses on the bridge.

Then I went back to the hotel. I had a plane to catch next morning. New York was waiting.