Forget about Belgian chocolates, Belgian architecture is really where it is at in my book. (Besides, Javier is Swiss and we could never even hint that anything was better than Swiss chocolate.) The jagged outlines and intricate details make them look like quaint gingerbread houses. Add vibrant and contrasting colors and you get some of the most adorable buildings in Europe.
Our time in Belgium was unfortunately short. We had plans to visit an old school friend of Javier's on the other side of the border in the Nederlands. We first visited Brussels where the old center of town has buildings with these magnificent facades I have mentioned. At the time they were doing a fair amount of restoration, but what we could see was very impressive.
Brussels is famous for being the capital of the European Union, but the main reason people visit the old center is to see the awe inspiring Manneken Pis. Wait. It really isn't so awe inspiring. Take a look for yourself...
There it is, the most famous site in Brussels. A 24" (61cm) high statue of a small cherub-like boy holding his penis and relieving himself. Javier had given me fair warning as we searched for this statue; telling me that it was definitely overblown in its popularity. This did not help my shock when we reached the fountain. I really expected it to be bigger!
We had a small coffee in a pub nearby so we could get internet. That night we still needed to travel to Bruges to the house we were staying at. We wrote to the Flemish family who were going to host us, and were on our way.
The next day we toured Bruges. While the buildings may not be quite as intricate as in Brussels, they are much more colorful and bright. The town center really feels joyful.
Bruges is a very nice town to walk around. There are canals weaving through much of the center, with small bridges and alcoves to explore. We spent quite some hours visiting all the nooks and crannies we could find before we had to rush to the Netherlands.
