Today, we're in Brussels, Belgium. We just spent four full days at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. You can find the previous post about the Olympics here.
We packed our bags and headed for the St. Pancras Station, to catch the Eurostar train to Brussels. The station was pretty empty this early in the morning, but still beautiful:
The very next day, this station was wall-to-wall with athletes going home to Belgium, Paris and other parts of Europe. Glad we got out when we did ; )
We arrived in Brussels and decided to take as much of the city in, with the few hours that we had left in the day. We wandered through the streets of central Brussels, which is as cute as many of the other western European countries. There was a huge music festival going on over the weekend, so there were plenty of people there. We found a little classical music from this trio:
One of the things that struck us, was Brussels' dedication to desserts...and chocolate. We applaud this level of focus and dedication! We found a store with a delicious chocolate fountain in the window:
We then found this delightful shop called the The Artisan Biscuitier. They had an amazing display of cookies, chocolates and caramels. I know several members of my family that would love this place:
The sign here says Olives Au Chocolat. At first, I thought it was literally chocolate olives. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that they were chocolate-covered almonds...a little better, in my book:
When I said that Brussels was serious about chocolate...I wasn't kidding. On the same street as the Artisan shop, there were no less than nine chocolate shops within a stretch of 100 feet. I have no idea how all of these shops stay in business, offering very similar products. But here are just a few, to prove my point:
Our first big destination is the famous Grand Place - a square that is surrounded by amazing buildings, built about 300 years ago. Identified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, these buildings include the City Hall (with tower), as well as the King's House or Breadhouse. These Baroque structures were stunning! Here's a video to give a quick look at the square, then some pictures of the amazing architecture and decoration on the buildings:
Amazing, right? They were only two days away from a flower festival - where they create a literal carpet of flowers in the giant square! Just off the Grand Place, we saw a collection of small shops that specialized in...waffles! I mean, what did you expect in Belgium??
My wife just had to try one, so that we could give an accurate report of the city. Right? They specialize in "gaufre de Liége-Luikse wafel" or "Belgian waffle with caramelized sugar". We had to add some caramel sauce, just to guarantee its goodness ; )
We then navigated our way to the St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral, located just off the central train station. From what i understand, that current church was built in the 10th century, but there has been some form of church on this site since the 9th century. Another awesome example of Gothic architecture:
We then traveled back towards the center of the city, where the music festival was in full swing. We climbed up steps and found this beautiful garden, as we approached the Royal Palace.
Nearby, we took a walk in Brussels Park (Parc de Bruxelles in French, Warandepark in Dutch) Most of the park was in use for the music festival. The most unusual things were giant art sculptures, showcasing all of the iconic food that you find in Brussels:
Believe it, or not, you find Brussel Sprouts (or Brussels Sprouts) everywhere. I'm one of the few people that actually enjoy this vegetable, when it doesn't get too soggy ; )
I believe I've covered the whole chocolate situation, earlier in the blog post....
Belgian fries, or frites, are quite popular. Belgium claims to have created the fry - noting that they were first cooked in 1781. I don't care who invented them...they're delicious (see down below).
Beer is very popular here, as Belgians take it quite seriously. Monks in the Middle Ages were apparently making beer. Good for them.
After looking at all this food, we started to get hungry. We stopped by one of the street vendors for a taste of Belgian culture. The frites jumped out at us, so we grabbed some. Belgian fries are thicker than normal, and baked twice - all good. Sauces are an important part of the experience, but I chose plain tomato ketchup. The container they gave us was amazing - a giant cone. However, it had a reservoir for the sauce at the top of the cone...perfectly placed:
Our last scenic spot was a clock, in the middle of the city, attached to the Mont des Arts. It really caught my eye, as it had beautiful little sculptured figures marking the hours.
Built in 1958, the clock's figures feature historical figures, as well as artisans. The figures include Charles V, a WWI soldier, as well as a hero from the 1830 Belgian revolution.
That does it for our day in Brussels! I dare say that we covered a lot of ground - and were quite tired ; ) The next day, my wife returned to the U.S. My journey in Europe continues. Join me next time, for my push into Germany.
We packed our bags and headed for the St. Pancras Station, to catch the Eurostar train to Brussels. The station was pretty empty this early in the morning, but still beautiful:
The very next day, this station was wall-to-wall with athletes going home to Belgium, Paris and other parts of Europe. Glad we got out when we did ; )
We arrived in Brussels and decided to take as much of the city in, with the few hours that we had left in the day. We wandered through the streets of central Brussels, which is as cute as many of the other western European countries. There was a huge music festival going on over the weekend, so there were plenty of people there. We found a little classical music from this trio:
One of the things that struck us, was Brussels' dedication to desserts...and chocolate. We applaud this level of focus and dedication! We found a store with a delicious chocolate fountain in the window:
We then found this delightful shop called the The Artisan Biscuitier. They had an amazing display of cookies, chocolates and caramels. I know several members of my family that would love this place:
The sign here says Olives Au Chocolat. At first, I thought it was literally chocolate olives. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that they were chocolate-covered almonds...a little better, in my book:
When I said that Brussels was serious about chocolate...I wasn't kidding. On the same street as the Artisan shop, there were no less than nine chocolate shops within a stretch of 100 feet. I have no idea how all of these shops stay in business, offering very similar products. But here are just a few, to prove my point:
Our first big destination is the famous Grand Place - a square that is surrounded by amazing buildings, built about 300 years ago. Identified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, these buildings include the City Hall (with tower), as well as the King's House or Breadhouse. These Baroque structures were stunning! Here's a video to give a quick look at the square, then some pictures of the amazing architecture and decoration on the buildings:
Having fun at the entrance to the City Hall Courtyard...
Amazing, right? They were only two days away from a flower festival - where they create a literal carpet of flowers in the giant square! Just off the Grand Place, we saw a collection of small shops that specialized in...waffles! I mean, what did you expect in Belgium??
My wife just had to try one, so that we could give an accurate report of the city. Right? They specialize in "gaufre de Liége-Luikse wafel" or "Belgian waffle with caramelized sugar". We had to add some caramel sauce, just to guarantee its goodness ; )
We then navigated our way to the St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral, located just off the central train station. From what i understand, that current church was built in the 10th century, but there has been some form of church on this site since the 9th century. Another awesome example of Gothic architecture:
Nearby, we took a walk in Brussels Park (Parc de Bruxelles in French, Warandepark in Dutch) Most of the park was in use for the music festival. The most unusual things were giant art sculptures, showcasing all of the iconic food that you find in Brussels:
Believe it, or not, you find Brussel Sprouts (or Brussels Sprouts) everywhere. I'm one of the few people that actually enjoy this vegetable, when it doesn't get too soggy ; )
I believe I've covered the whole chocolate situation, earlier in the blog post....
Belgian fries, or frites, are quite popular. Belgium claims to have created the fry - noting that they were first cooked in 1781. I don't care who invented them...they're delicious (see down below).
Mussels are apparently the national dish of Belgium. We saw restaurant after restaurant in the center of town, serving mussels by the bucket. Due to the country's coastline with the North Sea, they are available year-round
Beer is very popular here, as Belgians take it quite seriously. Monks in the Middle Ages were apparently making beer. Good for them.
After looking at all this food, we started to get hungry. We stopped by one of the street vendors for a taste of Belgian culture. The frites jumped out at us, so we grabbed some. Belgian fries are thicker than normal, and baked twice - all good. Sauces are an important part of the experience, but I chose plain tomato ketchup. The container they gave us was amazing - a giant cone. However, it had a reservoir for the sauce at the top of the cone...perfectly placed:
Our last scenic spot was a clock, in the middle of the city, attached to the Mont des Arts. It really caught my eye, as it had beautiful little sculptured figures marking the hours.
Built in 1958, the clock's figures feature historical figures, as well as artisans. The figures include Charles V, a WWI soldier, as well as a hero from the 1830 Belgian revolution.
That does it for our day in Brussels! I dare say that we covered a lot of ground - and were quite tired ; ) The next day, my wife returned to the U.S. My journey in Europe continues. Join me next time, for my push into Germany.
No comments:
Post a Comment