Brussels

We arrived in Brussels Friday afternoon and bummed around the city for the afternoon and evening. It was great to check in to the Hilton, where we are staying for free using my Hilton points. After the tiny room and bathroom on the barge, our large room and bath seem luxurious!

The following are photos from the Grand Place (city square) in downtown Belgium, dating to the time of the late 1800's. it's very beautiful. 

The city seen from the upper section. Gardens are near the royal palace. The tower is on the Grand Place downtown. 

The Belgians have an obsession with urine. First, of course, there's the statue of the Manneken Pis, the little peeing boy downtown. The first day we saw him he was wearing one of the hundreds of outfits donated for him. This was a Hard Rock Cafe outfit. The next day he was naked.

Then there's also the lesser-known statue of Jeanneken Pis, a little peeing girl. Our guide told us this was in the cause of women's equality. 

And last of all, there's a dog who is also relieving himself. I think I've seen enough public urination for a lifetime, thank you. 

Saturday we did some shopping in the a.m., then started the afternoon with a beer tour. In all, we drank eight types of beer in four hours, ranging at the beginning from a lambic beer, brewed in open air but only in Brussels, to a chocolate beer at the end. With each beer, there was a snack, paired to the  different beer type. Our guide, Marc, also took us on a walking tour of the lower Brussels area, pointing out sights we would never have found on our own, like a historic marionette show which operates like a cabaret, with political commentary.  

Here's a photo of our happy beer tour group, taken at the end. 

The beer tour was so much fun we decided to stay for Marc's next tour that evening, which was a culinary tour, sampling typical Belgian food. We enjoyed first an appetizer buffet of pâté, beef tartare, prosciutto, sausage, cheese and two types of endive salad. Then came tomatoes stuffed with tiny North Sea shrimp. Main course was beef cooked in beer, served with potatoes. Of course, there were wines served with appropriate courses, but French wines, not Belgian, as Belgins don't make very good wine. For dessert he took us to a waffle cafe where the waffles were amazing. (Street waffles are pre made and covered in chocolate and other coverings, so they don't taste fresh and crispy like the ones we had.) We finished up the tour with tea and coffee. 

We saw Marc again on Sunday for the chocolate tour. We walked through the upper city this time, again seeing places not mentioned in guidebooks but very interesting. The tour started out with one chocolate store sampling, and then we went to a corporate apartment, where we learned how to make our own chocolates. After instruction, Marc turned us loose with chocolate and toppings and we made our own  chocolates. These were refrigerated to harden, while we again walked through the city, sampling chocolate at various stores along the way. At the end of the tour, each of us received our handmade chocolates, wrapped up in a fancy bag and labelled with our name. 

Brussels City Hall done in chocolate.o

Our chocolate tour group with supplies set before us, ready to begin the dipping and chocolate making. 

Fruits, spekoloos and marzipan to dip, along with heated chocolate.

Chipped caramel, raisins, sesame seeds, red peppercorns and flaked coconut to add to chocolate disks we made. Also had shredded almonds, whole almonds and walnut halves.

William & I dipping molded chocolate fillings.

Here we are with the finished products.

The competition at Godiva chocolates. Since they have a few years of experience on us, I suppose I'll concede that they do a better job than we do. 

Davey and Lilly riding the chocolate elephant.

Pat conferring with Karl Marx, who wrote his manifesto in Brussels.

Brussels is also home to many cartoons, including Smurfs and TinTin. 

After all the beer, food and chocolate, the rest of our stay here in Brussels was low-key. We bought the last of our souvenirs, checked out scenery and re packed our bags. We'll be leaving for home early on Tuesday.  

Bruges to Brussels -- Bike trip is finished

Took a walking tour around Bruges last night before bedtime.  It's a lovely city, a former Hanseatic League member with a rich history. After the harbor silted up in the Middle Ages, the town sat, neglected and ignored until rediscovered by artists and tourists many hundreds of years later.  Now it's packed in the daytime but quiet and peaceful at night.  Here are some photos of the town. 

Day 12 -- Ghent to Bruges

Distance: 30 miles

Hills: none, but a brutal, driving headwind and occasional rain

This was our final day of biking. And, although we have had extraordinarily good weather throughout our bike trip, all good things must end. And the good weather ended before the trip ended.  We were traveling west, in the face of a very strong headwind and rain part of the way.  

 

Passed a windmill on the way out of Ghent. This one is different because it's inhabited. The one yesterday was intended only for grain storage. This one has no storage space and is currently a private home. 

Here's a castle we passed by, also inhabited by a private family. 

Then we had a very nice lunch at a country inn and came back to the barge for our final dinner and a walking tour of Bruges.  Saw an interesting sign just outside town that was totally appropriate to the way I feel at the end of our thirteen day bike ride. (Sorry for the language, but I just couldn't resist.)

Day 11 -- Oudenaarde to Ghent

Distance: 25 miles

Hills: none

Started out the morning with a birthday song from the crew for Don. He was also presented with a crown, which he didn't wear long, a gift and a lei, which he wore all day. I rode with the short distance biking group, and when we stopped for coffee, Don and Pat treated the entire group.  Our coffee break was in lieu of the birthday cake they'd ordinarily have at home. The pastry shop had a lot to choose from. Here are a few of the choices folks made. 

We rode along the towpath nearly the entire day. We were passed at great speed by a peloton of about 30 cyclists participating in some sort of race. The long group also encountered racers, only a much larger group. Cycling is all the mania here. During the ride today we encountered twenty or so groups of cyclists out for training rides. Whereas cycling is the exception in France, and bike paths are few, here in Flanders there are paths nearly everywhere, and we've seen folks from toddler age to very old out on their bikes. 

Arrived midday in Ghent, which is a large, historic port town and textile town. There are some sixty-odd churches in town, each one sponsored (paid for) by a different guild or religious organization. The largest and most impressive is St. Bavo's , in the middle of town. No photos allowed inside, of course, but we wandered around with our mouths agape for quite some time and then walked around the town for a couple of hours before returning to the barge for dinner. 

After dinner we were treated to a boat ride through the city's canals. Here are a few photos of our trip.