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Published: November 10th 2008
BRUSSELS
It was a one and half hour train ride to Brussels from Paris on the Thaly's train. I finally used my first travel day of my 15-day Eurorail pass good for first-class seating and
first-class it was indeed. Comfy seating complete with a complimentary meal, drinks, and wi-fi on board. I was in heaven. Were my train accommodations on the rest of my backpacking trip going to be this nice? So far nothing has come as close, but the train systems in Europe are great in general so I really can't complain.
I arrived in Brussels in the the early evening still thinking about Paris, but glad to know that I wasn't leaving the French language behind as the southern part of Belgium is French speaking. I'll get more into that in a second. At the train station, I was impressed with myself feeling comfortable and familiar with train station basics in French like "Sortie" (exit) and "Voie" (track). But of course this trip wouldn't be a trip without me being thrown a curve ball. Belgium is actually divided into two groups, the French speaking Wallonians in the South, and the Dutch speaking Flemish in the North. Brussels
Alley to "Moules & Frites"
Don't let the charm fool you...is officially a bilingual city so everything written in French is also translated in Dutch - road signs, street signs, public directionals, you name it. So if you ever find yourself in Brussels you should have this general knowledge, because otherwise, its information overload especially when you're trying to read a small map the size of your hand.
I must have left the California sunshine in Paris because it was gray rainy day in Brussels. Luckily my CS host Ruben lived in Central Brussels and not too far from the Metro station. To backtrack, when I initially requested to couchsurf with Ruben I noticed in his profile that he studied economics so to make my request more interesting I included in my request the question,
"Why is the Euro so much more stronger than the US dollar?" I really didn't expect him to answer, but in his response he actually sent me a link to an online article discussing the matter. If anyone is interested, here it is:
Stronger Euro vs. the US Dollar. Very efficient of him to do so. I should've known what I was getting myself into. 😊
When I finally met Ruben, he was dressed in casual business attire.
He had "hard at work" written all over him. After getting settled and more acquainted, I eventually got to the unavoidable question of
"What do you do for a living?". Turns out that Ruben works for the Economic Commission (EC). I wasn't sure what that was so I asked him to elaborate. In a nutshell, the EC is the political body overseeing the European Union (EU) that proposes and executes policies and legislation among the 27 EU countries. The EC would be comparable to our US Federal Government, but on a multi-national level if there was a governing body overseeing the US, Canada, & Mexico as a whole. Specifically, Ruben is a Project Manager for the EC, involved in foreign relations between the EU and non-European countries such as the Dominican Republic and Guatemala. Pretty impressive and I imagine quite a lot of responsibility considering the current state of the economy worldwide. Aside from the serious nature of his profession, Ruben was very laid back and interesting to talk to. He was nice enough to cook pasta for dinner and as we ate I listened like a sponge impressed with all the languages he speaks (Spanish, French, Dutch, German, English)
Belgium Waffle
Yummmm.....too bad they didn't have peanut butter. and his endless knowledge about government, politics, current events, etc.
The next day Ruben gave me some tips on what to see and do as he couldn't join as me considering my visit was during the week and he obviously had to be at work. No less than an hour had passed after Ruben left the flat when trouble came knocking at the door. To my surprise (well, not really) my alter ego "Gracie" decided to pay a visit. It was a little stuffy inside the flat so I to tried to open a window for better ventilation. In my attempts to do so my grace
lessness came out full force as I knocked a plant off the window ledge. Dirt all over his hardwood floor, a poor displaced ice plant, and a filipino mortified to death. I cleared up the mess and tried to pot the plant back in its home, but I would be amazed if the the ice plant recovered from such trauma the way it looked post-accident. At least I managed to be clumsy-free for the first week of my trip, but for those of you who know me well, "Gracie" was bound to come out.
Asian Invasion of Brussels
Look Steph -- there's a new pose for you... After the slight delay in getting my day of sightseeing started, I made my way to Brussels city center. My first stop was the Galeries St. Hubert, full of shops, restaurants, and cafes. In the center of St. Hubert was a very narrow alley way lined with restaurants. I was curious to explore its charm but little did I know that I was in for. "Moules & Frites" (mussels & fries), Brussels national dish written in chalk on the black boards -- of not
one restaurant but
all the restaurants. Strange it seemed that they all shared the same menu and the further I went the more interesting it got. Each restaurant I walked by I was greeted by a waiter, addressing me in English to make me feel at home. I soon caught on to their ulterior motives in trying to woo me to eat at their establishment each offering me a better deal than their neighbor, throwing in a free beer or coffee to seal the deal. Used car salesmen disguised in an apron, vest, and tie. I wasn't going to fall for it. Well at least not the first 6 times. But it wasn't the free
Atomium
A model of an iron molecule enlarged 165 billion times. coffee or beer that sold me, it was the waiters good looks. But I was hungry too,
really, I was. 😊 Sam was his name, but I'll refer to him as "Cute Sam." Budget conscious, I opted for a large portion of paella instead of the moules & frites to eat one-half at that time and the other half later for dinner. I enjoyed my meal, free beer, and conversation with "Cute Sam" about his recent travels in the US before heading out for more sightseeing. My next stop was Grand Place, Brussels main landmark. It was the usual snapping of photos and browsing through shops, but now all this was accompanied by the sight of chocolate water fountain displays and the smell of fresh made Belgium waffles to die for. I couldn't resist. I wrapped up the day visiting other Brussels landmarks like the Maneken Pis fountain and the Atomium. The evening was spent hanging out at Rubens. When he arrived home he noticed his disarrayed plant before I could even say anything. He mourned, I consoled, and by the grace of God I still had a couch to sleep on that night.
On my last full day
in Brussels I spent the day doing laundry and running a few errands. I had to somehow make it up to Ruben for the ice plant incident. I had Ruben's only set of keys which he'd been meaning to get an extra set of, but has not had time between work and still settling into his flat which he moved in a few months before. So my plan was to make him an extra set of keys, but my only challenge was finding a place to do so knowing there wasn't a Home Depot or Ace Hardware around, so I got to Googling. Luckily after just an hour of researching I had luck in finding a hardware store nearby and was a task MUCH easier than the gift certificate debaucle in Paris. After copying the keys I decided to stop at the market to pick up some things to cook dinner, especially since Ruben was arriving late in the evening taking Chinese lessons straight after work. I know, right? I think its worth mentioning too that on the nights he doesn't have Chinese lessons, he takes Russian lessons to keep himself "challenged." Incredible. Well I was about to challenge his
Moules & Frites
A Beligum tradition... taste buds by making him chicken adobo and rice. To my delight soy sauce is readily available in the grocery stores in Brussels. 😊 Upon Ruben's arrival home he was pleasantly surprised that he didn't have to cook and that he had one less errand to run on his to-do list. I'm pretty sure I redeemed myself as a worthy couchsurfer. 😊 My last night in Brussels was spent having dinner and good conversation with Ruben. It was even more nice for me to have rice as I'd been craving it like a junky craves heroin. Ruben really liked the adobo. It wasn't like yours mom but you would still be proud of me. I said my good-byes and thank yous that evening as I was getting up early the next morning on a day-trip to Bruges.
BRUGES
I ventured off early in the morning to get a few more hours of sightseeing in Belgium, but this time beyond Brussels borders taking a 1-hour train ride to Bruges, one of Europes most visited medieval cities known for its well preserved architecture. Upon my arrival I made my way to the Markt, Bruges central square. A charming, picturesque place
PIMP
Take some notes fellas.. with its old buildings, canals, and horse carriage rides. Before leaving back to Brussels I grabbed a quick lunch at a "Moules & Frites" joint talking myself into finally experiencing the Belgium dish. I was greeted by Niels who kindly seated me. While waiting for my food Niels was entertaining company and a flirt to say the least, trying to convince me that half a day in Bruges wasn't long enough and that I should stay a bit longer. I amused him for as long as I could until finally saved by the arrival of my food that I enjoyed and washed down quickly with a glass of Belgium Beer. I had to keep my visit short to get back to Brussels in time to catch an afternoon train to Amsterdam. Before leaving, Niels said in his broken English, "I come to America, I come visit beautiful girl." I smiled writing my email down if he wanted to keep in touch and then gestured with pen in hand for him to do the same. But instead of doing so, he walked behind the bar, grabbed something off the shelf, and with the press of his hand he instantly turned a blank piece of paper into a personal business card complete with email and phone number. "Oh no he didn't!" I thought in my head laughing hysterically out loud while trying to get the words out, "Why do you have a stamp?" I couldn't even pay attention to his explanation still consumed with laughter as were two Aussie ladies who had a front row seats of the entire thing. One word for Niels: "PIMP." Though my visit to Bruges was very brief, that single moment was completely worth it.
For more pictures, click here ----> Brussels & Bruges Pictures Where in the world is Lynn now? click here ----> Lynn's Twitter Page
BRUSSELS TID BITS
- Brussels is headquarters for NATO & Capital of the European Union (EU).
- The European Union (EU)is comprised of 27 European member countries. Though each member country has its own government, laws, etc. there are standardize laws that EU countries are governed by, including the use of common currency, the Euro. European countries like the United Kingdom & Switzerland are non-EU members, thus why I've had to deal with changing foreign currency between these countries AND the wonderful exchange rates. 😊
- Recycling in Brussels is the law. Fines are imposed for citizens who have poor recycling habits.
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melissa
non-member comment
Oh Gracie....
Lmao I thought for sure you were going to say that you broke the whole window! I can just see you trying to sweep up the dirt and pat it back into the pot...slick move Gracie! Way to pimp while you're there, keep the good pimpin for Italy and pull one for me too! Have a wonderful week!