Mar 3

Mar 3 Belgium, Brussels

The City of Waffles & Chocolate

While studying abroad in Paris I knew I wanted to revisit the magical city that I traveled to during middle school. I spent a summer visiting with my sisters and mother and fell in love with the quaint beauty of this city. When I returned to Belgium in March of my study abroad semester, it was just as magical as I remembered.

In typical study abroad fashion, I missed my first AND second train from Paris to Brussels due to a long night out. But after some overdramatic tears and help from concerned bystanders I got a ticket and was on my way to meet the same family friends who had invited me to stay in their home so many years ago. What's an abroad trip without an unnecessary hungover breakdown that causes a scene?

Once I arrived to the Brussels train station we went straight to a restaurant for lunch. We ate on the rooftop of the beautiful Musical Instruments Museum in the heart of the city. The museum's facade is an ornate masterpiece that resembles musical instruments. After some truffle pasta and a glass of wine accompanied with a spectacular view of the city, we set out to our next museum. My family friends took me to the Magritte Museum, dedicated to René Magritte's abstract works. Although interesting and beautifully painted I found his works to be so abstract that I had no idea what he was trying to say. You might recognize one of his most famous works, a painting of a pipe which says "Ceci n'est pas une pipe" which means, "This is not a pipe" in French. After finishing at the museum, we kept walking through the city till we happened upon the main square, Le Grand Place, that was surrounded by ornately-designed buildings that seemed to be out of a fairytale. Memories of when I had been in that exact spot over 10 years ago, soon came back to me. After such a great first day, we drove to the nearby town where my family friends lived, Waterloo (yes the same Waterloo where Napoleon was defeated and the muse for the ABBA song). I went to bed excited for what the next day in Belgium would have in store.

The next day we decided to visit Antwerp, another major city in Belgium famous for their diamond trade, as we had already been able to see so much of what Brussels had to offer. After only a quick car ride, we were transported into what seemed like a different world where the language (Flemish) and architecture was different. We walked along the river and through the main square. My favorite thing that we did was visit the Banksy pop up exhibit. It was my first time ever seeing any of Banksy’s work and this collection blew my mind. He’s an anonymous artist who comments on controversial topics through his graffiti art. What I appreciated about his artistry is that there was some interpretation of what the piece was trying to say, which helped me understand the abstract. We finished the day by strolling on the bank of the river at sunset.

Belgium was truly as magical as I remembered!

*I would’ve loved to revisit Bruges another city in Belgium famous for its canals*

Recommendations: Musical Instruments Museum, Magritte Museum, Grand Place, and Antwerp (nearby city)