One of the few things I don’t exactly like about Antwerp so far is the constant raining all the fuckin time. Wet shoes are the last things I would ever want. At half past six, the rain was having its usual late afternoon drench and in theory the night was still young. But the encroaching darkness and saddening sound of downpour suggests otherwise. I should have left the lab an hour ago but the rain had other plans stubbornly holding me captive, resisting any escape into the night. The air was saturated with shivering cold as I walked the drenched streets, cocooned in my winter jacket, hands buried deep in my pockets. The streets adorned with yellow and brown leaves, kissed by raindrops, bore witness to the waning autumn days. Such a beautiful sight I would say, except for the rain soaking up my shoes. As the rain played its melodic percussion on the streets backdropped with dazzling lights from occasional cars passing, I could hear the faint noise of my own footsteps interspersed with the drowning opm tune "Raining in Manila", with my earphones pressed against my ears. Fate indeed always finds a way to make us feel.
Eventually, hunger forced me to pause, finding myself ending up in a lonely Chinese restaurant in my neighborhood, bathed in dim, enveloped in deafening silence, but comforting smell. Normally, I detest rainy nights like these when hunger compels surrender to dingy places, however, this time was different. It led me to a surprisingly satisfying meal, actually my first proper Antwerp dining experience. So despite my usual distaste of the rain, today is an exception. An inexplicable fondness lingered within, forced me to feel good about it, unexpectedly brought me to a comfort place.
