Belgium Review
Ah, Belgium, the land of carbohydrates. I was drunk on waffles the whole time I was in Belgium. I'm normally a pretty healthy eater, but dieting goes out the window in the name of traveling in my book.
Carbs on carbs on carbs.
It was a nonstop eating and drinking frenzy in Brussels - Belgium waffles, Belgium chocolate, Belgium beer. Yes, I had beer - those who know me well are probably a little shocked because I hate beer and it hates me, and it's just a glorious hateful relationship. But I wasn't going to let that stop me from trying some of the best beer in the world... beer still isn't my favorite, but I'm really glad I got to experience it. Most of the locals we conversed with in Brussels were kind of grouchy - but I assume it was because they are forced to exhibit god-like willpower by restraining themselves from consuming all of the scrumptious carbs they're surrounded by day in and day out.
Sugar coated waffle with melted nutella, strawberries, bananas, and whipped cream.
One of the things I loved about Brussels that had nothing to do with the edibles/drinkables was the city square. It was beautiful.
The Market Square in Brussels.
And of course you can't go to Brussels without seeing the little peeing boy statue. The statue is dressed in costume, so below is a snap of what we got to see. :)
Manneken Pis "Little man pee"
From Brussels we went to Antwerp. I liked Antwerp, but I definitely enjoyed Brussels a bit more. Brussels felt more alive. But one of the highlights of my experience in Antwerp was when our local guide took us into the Gothic Cathedral of Our Lady and analyzed some of the paintings by Ruben. This is one of those things where if you're into art, you loved it, but if art isn't really your thing, then you were probably a little bored. I could have listened to that guy all day.
Gothic Cathedral of Our Lady
The Market Square was lovely, but it looked particularly awesome at night. One of the nights we had dinner at a restaurants there. It was at that place that I experienced European's enthusiasm for putting mayo on their fries! I'm generally think mayo is just ok and barely ever it eat normally, but I decided to give it a try. The mayonnaise in Europe tastes different than the Hellman's variation that we are used to. I was shocked that I didn't hate the french fry/mayo combo, and in fact kind of enjoyed it!
The city square.
While I was in Belgium, I did try absinthe. I honestly didn't know anything about it other than you can't get it in the US. But a group of us went out to try it together. It tasted like black licorice (one of my favorite candies), but was extremely intense and whoahhhh nelly, was it strong! I got a good buzz from a single drink, but no green fairies for this girl. Though I'm sure a few of those would make anyone lose their minds, but one was enough for me.
Overall, Belgium was a really fun experience. I'd love to check out Ghent, and would definitely be open to going to Brussels again.
