Belgium

Belgium was a short, whirlwind stop on my route from Germany to the British Isles where I took in five incredible places in five days (one city to another is closer than my house is to the nearest movie theater!). After a flight and a few train rides, I made it to Menen, a small town in Flanders close to Kotrijk, and was met by my friend Trees, a Belgian girl who studied Russian with me in Voronezh. Her family welcomed me into their home and fed me delicious Belgian pastries before taking me into Ypres to sample Belgian burgers and beer (yum and yum!). We attended the “Last Post” Ceremony and then headed home to drink Belgian hot chocolate and watch British detective shows. Since my own family also loves watching British mysteries and drinking tea every night, I remember this evening as one of the most peaceful on my journey. I felt so comfortable with a Flemish-speaking family I had just met: one of the incredible phenomena of traveling by yourself in a strange place – never know when it will feel just like home.

The next morning Trees fed me a traditional Dutch breakfast: Chocolate sprinkles on bread. Yes, those sprinkles you normally put on ice cream and cake can be doubly savored as a breakfast food. I wish I had thought to take a picture, but a simple google search of “hagelslag” will sufficiently make your mouth water. Why hasn’t America hopped on that bandwagon yet?

Here are a few pictures of the other Belgian cities I discovered.

Gent: by far my favorite Belgian destination. I spent most of the day wandering through flower markets, discovering old castles, and ambling around the canals and taking in all of the incredible architecture-each building had some intricacy that set it apart from the others. 

Leuven: Trees’ university town dotted with cute shops and student cafes. Trees and I took the cold weather as an excuse to get Belgian hot chocolate.

Antwerp: Diamonds, diamonds, diamonds!

Bruges: The entire town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and therefore a charming town known for its lace and canals. Also lined with little Christmas shops that I adored but got yelled at for trying to take pictures in…Yes, I was that tourist. I ended my last night in Belgian sampling local Belgian beer (from a brewery that is building its own pipeline in Brugge) with my new Belgian friend, PJ, and his lovely girlfriend Suzie.

Essentially, my Belgian week consisted of eating and more eating and then walking through beautiful towns to walk off all the eating. What more can one want in Belgium?