I went to Belgium..?

What an exciting thing to get to talk about! But why Belgium? Well, I wanted to go on a trip with my Mom who is an avid world traveler. While I love to go to places that she’s been, there’s just something very special about going to a new country with someone, and experience it for the first time together. After all, this is my first international trip (if you don’t count Canada) since the pandemic, and I really wanted it to be special. So where hasn’t she gone that I wanted to go?

In October of 2019, I was at the Met with a good friend and I was a little buzzed. As we were looking at the art, we found a piece that was from Belgium, and next to it was a map. He enthusiastically explained that there is a medieval town in Belgium that people don’t talk about nearly as much as they should. My phone was dying, and to remember, I took a photo of the map itself, and sent the photo to my Mom. I knew I had to go to Brugge.

Fast forward 4 years?! And I was listing places off left and right and there was my ace— Belgium. We had decided that we would spend some time in Brussels, the capital city, and then make our way to Brugge. We had booked an Airbnb a little out of the way and the train to Brugge was relatively quick and easy. We toyed with the idea of going to one more place in our 4 full days and ultimately decided on Amsterdam for reasons I’ll get into later but yes, I am a huge nerd.

Day 1.

So after a very long flight, customs and an Uber we made it to Brussels! The hardest part was the fact that we took off around 9pm my time and landed in the morning in Brussels. I took a 2 hour nap, which honestly wasn’t enough and we walked roughly 30 minutes from our AirBnB to the Grand Place—the central square of Brussels.

Every moment I spent in the Grand Place (pronounced Grahnd Plahce) was literally magical. The gold adornments, intricate sculptures, and reliefs on each building blew me away every single moment I spent there. Considering it is a 360 viewing experience, it is nearly impossible to capture everything in a photo all at once. The biggest negative is that because it is the most “touristy” part of the city, there are your typical Hard Rock Cafes and Starbucks shoehorned into some of the beautiful architecture— it’s just done in a way that its almost not noticeable. Somehow touristy has much more charm than it does in my home of NYC, or even Rome or Dublin for that matter. Additionally, there was a graduation happening in the Grand Place, that made it a little more crowded, but I did the best I could with my tripod and some patience from my mom.

We took a historic tour that included Chocolate and Waffles, and I wish I absorbed a little more, I was just so exhausted. Our tour guide was SO sweet and enthusiastic and I really learned so much despite my tiredness. Some key highlights of the tour include:

After the tour we went off on our own and visited the aforementioned Poechenellekelder for a quick lambic and a rest. Prior to coming to Belgium I had developed a love for lambic beer which originates there, so I wanted my first drink in the country to be just that. I was a little sad that it was the usual Lindemanns this time, but somehow it tasted better because vacation. To many the marionettes may have been cool and interesting, but I couldn’t help being a little scared of them..

We grabbed a legit dinner in the Grand Place, and got to watch a bunch of kids graduate which was super fun. Lots of excitement and confetti! It started drizzling right before our food came, so we sat under an umbrella and ate our Moules Fritte outside as many of the other Europeans did. What I found most interesting, was that because Belgium is such a central, country and often a travel hub, we watched our server who spoke both perfect English and French, slip perfectly into Dutch when needed. And here I can barely speak perfect English!

Day 2

Finally got some sleep and was ready to start day 2! We made it back to the Grand Place early to check out the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula. The building was as architecturally beautiful on the outside as it was on the inside. Something cool my Mom always tells me is that when you enter a new church for the first time, you should make a wish! I really like that tidbit, so I always do :) My mom likes to light a candle for a loved one in churches as well so we did just that while marveling the incredible Stained Glass inside.

After visiting the cathedral, we actually went back to Le Funambule, because although the plain waffle was wonderful we had to try one of the specialty waffles. They also had buckets of nutella that I literally could not stop thinking about for one minute. Of course I got a waffle with strawberries, whipped cream, and nutella— while my mom got one with strawberries and bananas. I don’t know how fruit seasons work in Europe, but I didn’t expect October strawberries to be SO juicy and delicious. The whole thing was amazing, but with the whipped cream it was super filling.

When we went to Italy in 2017, my brother insisted on buying Pokemon cards because he felt it was important to get them in different languages as we travel to new countries. On the flight to Belgium I asked myself— well how am I supposed to do that here?! In my search for a perfect magnet and some postcards (bc I collect), we stumbled upon a little Japanese store in the middle of the Grand Place that had so much nerd stuff it made my heart sing. Of course I marched right to the front and asked what language their cards were, to which they replied “French” and I slammed my card down right there (probably). I was just so happy to see so much fandom representation in the store, and I had a VERY hard time not grabbing the SDS sodas because you rarely see merch for the series.

After a quick stop at a nearby cafe for an espresso, we made our way back in the direction of our AirBnB. My boss has a friend local to Brussels, and highly recommended the markets they have on weekends (we chose Flagey), that I would say are larger scale Farmers Markets you’d find in the US. This was easily such a highlight for my mom and I both, as we enjoyed local wine and oysters for crazy low prices. We also brought home some local cheeses, wine and a baguette to take back with us. One of the cheeses we found was a Mimolette, which I weirdly remembered as someone’s answer on an interview when I asked their favorite cheese.

We ended up going shopping for a bit because I needed to get better shoes to keep trekking on. I was hoping to find them in my tried and true Primark, H&M, and Forever 21 and when it felt like we lost all hope, we found a local fast fashion equivalent in Bershka. Additionally I found the Danish Brand Flying Tiger and SCREAMED because I haven’t seen one since their NYC locations closed, to my own heartbreak. I had to grab a few things from there as well, because I have no idea when I’ll make my way back into one. The rest of nice was super chill because we had to wake up super early for the next day.

I should mention at this point that I’ve been talking about this entire trip for months now to pretty much anyone who would listen—my friends, co-workers, VP, etc. After telling every single person who had been to the country, the feedback was always the same: “Brussels is fine and everything, but you’ve GOTTA go to Brugge.” At first the feedback was comforting, but when you hear it 100 times, it begins to become a little worrying. If everyone goes there, is it really going to be that charming? Are we about to head into Duloc hell with Times Square level crowds? Only time would tell. Additionally, we felt a little cursed because there was a marathon happening that weekend, beginning in near Brussels, and finishing in Brugge. We weren’t sure how it would affect us, but we knew it wasn’t gonna be good— we agreed the best thing to do was to keep the expectations low.

We had to wake up SUPER early for the next two days, to maximize our time in Brugge. We took a morning train out of Brussels-Zuid towards Brugge. Shortly after leaving the city of Brussels, the scenery quickly shifts to open farmland with precious cows, horses, and sheep. The train ride was more or less an hour long, and it was a beautiful ride.

Getting off the train in Brugge was just magical. I felt my fears leading up to the trip melt away right as we left the train station. Immediately, you can feel the difference in the architecture right away. Since it was still early the streets were relatively empty, so I was able to get some nice photos upon arrival. This is my preferred way of taking photos, so I can get it out of the way and continue to enjoy my day without having an impending shot-list.

There were some cute shops, ranging from souvenirs, to cafes and even a Harry Potter themed store— which of course immediately brought me joy. I loved walking into each of these stores to see all of the different trinkets they had for sale. Some were hidden behind small alleyways, while others were on the main stretch.

One of my favorite initial spots we checked out was the Gruuthusemuseum. Due to time constraints, we didn’t have the time to go inside, but the exterior and the grounds surrounding it were truly spectacular. It really felt like a medieval castle. I of course got some of my favorite photos of the day there— one of my highlights was just spinning around like a maniac in my flowy skirt right outside.

After some initial sightseeing, we were getting a little cold and a little hungry, so we made our way to the Markt (Main Square), that’s usually pictured on most postcards. I was the most excited to see this iconic square and I can’t say I wasn’t a little disappointed. The square and the architecture were both absolutely sensational— the problem was that the Marathon finish line was set right there. Parts of the square were blocked off, there was loud booming music, the crowds were out of control, and the most egregious: not only were there port-a-johns, there were open air urinals (dixi’s if you’re wondering) mere feet from the iconic buildings. Additionally, the Basilica of the Holy Blood was covered in scaffolding, and the Belfry Tower was partially obstructed by the Marathon from some angles. Could it have been worse? Yes, of course, we were half expecting it. But it was still disappointing nonetheless.

After several failed attempts to get some photos in the Markt, we settled on dining at Le Panier D’Or to try to make the best of an unfortunate situation. We had some nice Onion Soup and a beer and tried our best to enjoy people watching. The servers were so sweet and hilarious— at one point they were in competition to take the best photo of my Mom and I, which had us cracking up.

Once we finished up, we walked around and noticed immediately that some of the shops near the Markt were very different than the first few stores we stopped into. There were quite a few commercial businesses respectfully hidden in these historic buildings. I definitely wasn’t expecting a Dunkin’ and a McDonalds, but the whole thing was just funny juxtaposition to me.

From here, we spent some time at the Church of Our Lady of Brugge for a few reasons. Obviously the architecture and stained glass were amazing. Although my mom grew up a bit religious, I wasn’t raised that way so it’s always interesting to go to a place, albeit multiple places like this with her. She likes to donate a little money, light a candle, and say a prayer. Since my brother and I are both at a bit of a weird place in our life, she made a point to write out some manifestations for us in her words: “and leave them all over Europe.” It really means a lot to be honest, considering I am always feeling so awkward in these spaces.

The most special part about visiting this Church was the fact that there was a live piece from Michelangelo. Madonna and Child of Brugge was sculpted by Michelangelo and was his first piece during his lifetime to leave his home country of Italy. Not only was the sculpture absolutely sensational, his style is immediately identifiable. Although there is so much happening around this piece, it is just captivating, it’s the only place your eyes can go. It was just a wow moment, in such an unexpected place.

After departing from the Church, we grabbed a quick tea to warm up and a waffle of course. At that time there was a Pokémon Go Community day event happening for Timburr, so I was simultaneously and frantically trying to catch all my shinies with limited service. Fatefully this seems to happen when I go to Europe, because the first Charmander event was during my trip to Dublin. Thankfully in both instances, I got two and was happy with the circumstances.

…And then we headed to Brussels again for round 3

We left Brugge later in the afternoon, since we had done everything we really wanted to do while we were there. We were also cold and it was a little rainy, with my hair that means its time to go.
The ride was pretty quick and painless, and because I am me I am always reflecting. Amidst reflection, it stopped raining for a bit, and I said out loud: “Huh, this would be perfect for a rainbow, I wonder if we’ll get one!” And on command, we rounded a corner and there it was, right over the corn fields and cows. I practically erupted in tears. The more I looked over at it the more vibrant it got— and I was the only person on this very quiet train ride getting SO excited about it.

It was a FULL one, not just a piece. Eventually I couldn’t contain myself, and I went down to the first level of the train and took a bunch of photos. I even got a few people to turn around and get excited about it too. I felt like this was my main character moment. My life has felt so uncertain for a while now and especially after such an amazing day, I always take these moments as signs that everything is moving in the right direction.

Once we got to Brussels, I needed to get a scarf, because I couldn’t take the aforementioned cold anymore. I may have been cold but man was I super picky, none of the street vendors had the right color to thickness ratio I needed. There was actually a seemingly endless little mall right by the Mannaken Pis where I finally found my perfect scarf that I think I am gonna wear forever. We also had to pay our boy one more visit, where we got to see him without any of the excess clothing and actually see the statue on its own which was cool.

Since shopping always works up an appetite, my Mom and I agreed that Italian food was the way to go and stumbled into a restaurant near the Grand Place. It was such a nice time and the food was so good. I’m so basic but I really do go crazy for a good authentic spaghetti pomodoro and a bottle of Italian red.

Even though we JUST had dinner, there was only one thing left to do— Fries. My mom was at first adamantly against this, but I insisted because they were invented in Belgium and they’re pretty famous. I was also subject to seeing the cones from La Friterie for the entirety of the trip and had to give in to the pressure. Goddam, did they deliver. Despite having had a full dinner, they were both delicious and not filling, if that makes any sense. Even my Mom who was very skeptical changed her mind on the dime when she tried them. 100% worth it. Plus it gave us an excuse to have one more night walk through the Grand Place, all lit up, sans graduates for one last time. It was just perfect.