After a mini break in Belgium, I have decided that Brussels is the Cleveland of Europe. Sure, if you’re in Ohio, you should check out the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but I wouldn’t make a vacation destination out of it.
I did explore all of the usual tourist attractions: beer, waffles and chocolate. For a city known for its beers, they really had a terrible selection of beer t-shirts, and after all, isn’t it really all about the beer t-shirts?
The other disappointment was Mannekin Pis, the famous peeing statue. It turned out to be really small and unimpressive. Let’s hope that doesn’t continue to happen on my year abroad.
Despite this, I really enjoyed the weekend. The city did have its charm such as the pedestrian back road we came across that was jam packed with restaurants, and not just the touristy kind. Also, I was able to practice my French. I was very proud of the fact that most of the food I received was what I had actually ordered. Thank goodness, because the first night at dinner the woman next to us (and I do mean “next to” as they seat you all at the same long table) had horse meat for dinner.
I also took a day trip to Brugges, a city which they can’t seem to agree how to spell. It’s billed as “The Venice of the North”, which means it has some canals and you can pay €20 for someone to take you around in a crowded boat. I really hate it when things are compared this way, e.g. David Beckham is the Michael Jordan of “football”. No, he’s not. He’s not even close. If he were the Michael Jordan of “football”, he wouldn’t need to be called the Michael Jordan of “football”; he’d just be David Beckham. Well, maybe I’m letting my home town pride show here.
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