I really enjoyed Brussels. I wandered around and saw different sights, looked in little shops, ate waffles, enjoyed the views of all the old buildings...it was great. It was VERY COLD though. I could be wrong, but I was thinking it must have been around -15. My legs never get cold usually, even in Edmonton, but here they were COLD! Even in the hostel, I had to sleep with a hoodie and scarf, and a jacket draped over my blanket! Buildings there just are not made for those kind of temperatures. Even cafes and shops were cold. I think it also didn't help that I was walking around outside for hours on end though.
I got up fairly early (although I had to - breakfast ended at 9:30!) to start exploring. First I went to see a flea market...it was quite large, and all the vendors laid out antiques and other used goods in boxes and on blankets on the ground. I was impressed that they were able to withstand the cold. It was a little too antique-y for me though, so I carried on. My next stop was Manneken Pis. Hilarious. It's a TINY statue of a little boy peeing, but he's poised on this huge pedestal. He kind of looks like a cupid too. That one is very popular with the tourists. I made sure to stop and have a look in the little chocolate shops around, and ate my first waffle. This was my "local" waffle - i.e. how the locals eat it - plain with icing sugar on top. It was delicious!! The dough was really sweet and tasty.
The next stop was Grand Place - a big square surrounded by really old, beautiful buildings (including the Town Hall and a museum). I didn't go in any of the buildings (I think a lot of them were closed actually, some guy was telling me he tried...), but enjoyed the view from outside. I also stopped and took pictures of Beurs/Bourse. I am not sure which is the German or French name, but it's an old pretty stock exchange building.
I then navigated the metro system (it was also cold in there) to get to the Atomium. What a sight that was!!! Just look at the picture! It's Belgium's Eiffel Tower - a giant structure of metal balls and rods made to look like an iron crystal. Apparently it was constructed for the World Exhibition in 1958, when people still believed that atomic energy would save the world. The coolest part was that you could take elevators up to and escalators in between all the metal balls, and inside the metal balls were museum exhibits! Of course I was WAY too cold in there to stop and look at the exhibits, but I enjoyed the escalators.
Next I stopped for a hot chocolate to warm up while I waited for a little "Creator's Market" to open (it and other stores closed during lunch hour - strange!). A hot chocolate consisted of hot milk with a little shot glass of chocolate chips - funny!! The creator's market was neat - there were some very talented local artists/designers. I bought a couple prints from an artist there. Afterwards I wandered and saw some churches, another peeing statue (this one was a dog peeing on a fire hydrant - he wasn't quite as popular as Manneken Pis though), and stopped in a few cute little shops, including a cheap and delicious tea shop. St. Michiels Cathedral was huge and gorgeous - a lot like Notre Dame in Paris except I didn't see any gargoyles.
By the end, my legs/feet were killing me but I forced myself to walk to get one more waffle - this time the "tourist" one, i.e. slathered with an obscene amount of toppings. I got strawberries, whipping cream and white chocolate. It was...too much :). I felt horrible afterwards. I couldn't even finish all of it, at least all of the whipped cream. It was tasty though. However, I can see why the locals prefer keeping it simple :). Afterward I painstakingly made my way back to the hostel, and after resting for longer than I should have I went to the train station, arriving only 5 minutes before the train I had intended to take was going to leave. Fortunately(?), that one was cancelled anyways, and the next one was delayed by half an hour. Apparently trains are not that reliable in winter. Good thing I didn't arrive earlier.
Bruges
Sore feet and all, I refused to take any kind of taxi or bus from the train station to my hostel in Bruges, and made my way on foot. I hadn't realized the "easy 15 minute walk" would be 25 minutes along the side of a huge highway...again in -15 weather. As miserable as it was, I finally made it to my next hostel, which was actually located just outside of the town of Bruges, but fortunately still within walking distance. I was preceded by a South Korean fellow who I thought the hostel people were quite rude to, so I befriended him. His credit card hadn't been working and he had to pay for the room with his remaining cash - in coins! Fortunately this hostel only cost 10 EUR. I needed an ATM as well, and despite the front desk people warning us not to go looking for dinner in the town ("it's too expensive! bring 100 EUR with you!") we went anyway. And we found both an ATM and a delightful, reasonably priced restaurant in the heart of Bruges. (On the way we saw a TON of drunk people wandering in huge groups, all carrying wine/beer glasses, down the street - weird.) We had a steak dinner with delicious sauce (fortunately Byeong Soo, the Korean guy, liked sharing and was indecisive, so we got to try 2 sauces - peppercorn and mushroom), fries (actually no better than fries in Canada, I think), salad, a starter soup, and a dessert for 17.5 EUR. Turns out that was actually quite cheap for a meal in Bruges, or at least a dinner. I tried the Bruges beer - Brugge Zot. I think it was the most delicious beer I have ever had. I had it again while I was there, and even though I was cold and it probably helped me remain cold, it was worth it.
I have to mention that I was verrrry happy that this hostel was actually very warm. Yay! The lady at the front desk was just horrible though. Not a nice person and not helpful at all. I had to look up and find the transit website to find out when the bus that went to the train station left, even though she said there was no website. (No way was I walking there again.) But anyways. About Bruges...
It was also cold and snowy in Bruges. Snow covered the little cobble stone streets and boy it was slippery to walk on! Fortunately no accidents though. Byeong Soo and I explored the town together on Sunday. We are both the same kind of traveler - like to wander around and explore on our own, so it worked out well. Most of the buildings in town were built in Medieval times, so it was really interesting and cool to see. There was lots of brick and stone, and the town was set up like one would expect in that era - like a protected, walled fortress. There was a canal and walls that surrounded the town, and between the canal and the walls was a grassy area with windmills situated on little hills. Kids were out sledding down the hills, which was fun to see. There were also canals that ran throughout the centre of town, with little stone bridges to cross. I had really wanted to do a trip through the canal, so I was a bit disappointed that they were totally frozen! Of course, that didn't seem to stop the ducks though! We still saw several floating in a little patch of water they must have melted through the ice with their body heat!
Another thing I was looking forward to was seeing the main square, with the famous tower of Belfry that you can climb a bunch of stairs to get to the top. This was a major component of the movie "In Bruges" and so I was really excited to see it. It was somewhat disappointing, because they were doing construction in the square and the tower was closed for renovations :( :(. We saw some very cool old churches too. There were tons of churches because (I think) this is a major training area for new priests. At lunchtime we stopped to "warm up" at the cheapest cafe we could find in the area (still around 15 EUR for lunch though). At first I thought it looked cute and quaint, but then the Shakirah playlist, unfriendly waiter and the smoking chef kind of ruined the atmosphere. It was also cold in there, not helped by the beer...
I realize I am not painting the most positive picture of Bruges, but I did enjoy it. It was a lot more touristy than I expected (the town was pretty much dead besides all the tourists wandering the streets, although I suspect this was also due to the fact that it was a Sunday), but it was still beautiful. There was a little chocolate shop at every street corner, some that could only be found in Bruges. After exploring for a few hours, we had seen most of the town, so we made our way back to the hostel to catch a train to Brussels (where I would continue on to Germany.)
The train back was BRUTAL. I have now decided that I LOATHE taking the train for long distances. I had to catch 4 different trains. And one thing you take for granted when flying is the SINGLE destination. Not the case with trains, you have to remain constantly alert to make sure you don't miss your stop. Meanwhile, you are trying to understand the foreign language on the loudspeakers and signs. Also, the warm airport - train stations are COLD. I know, because I had to spend about 3 hours waiting for transfers at various stations - an extra hour for one because my previous train arrived 16 minutes late, and exactly one minute after my next left. After 7 hours of this, I arrived home at 10pm - 2 hours later than I had hoped - absolutely fried. And to find still no internet at home after 7 days, I was not a happy camper. Of course my experience is nowhere near as bad as Byeong Soo, who had waited 10 hours in a train station in Amsterdam to get to Bruges, without any certainty of a train ever showing up (tracks were frozen). So, decision has been made - avoid trains in winter at all cost, and stick to flying :). I don't care what sights I miss!
Back at home...I am finally writing in the blog, because after 10 days (and 130 EUR for a new router), I finally have internet again! Yay! I was so bored, I signed up for a membership at the fitness centre. Turns out it's a bit cold for the exercise I had originally planned to do here, so aerobics/pilates/etc will be a nice substitute. I already went to one class - dance aerobics - and wow was that funny. Apparently I am a slow learner when it comes to dance. Some moves I never mastered. I was laughing at myself the whole time. I guess it didn't help that it was in German though. Good times.
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