Brussels and Bruges

2 weekends ago me and Cole took a weekend trip from Paris to Brussels (I know, it has taken me forever to write about it, but I've been too busy working actually doing stuff to write about it!)

We took off on the Thalys train from Paris Gare du Nord Friday afternoon, and it only took 1 1/2 hrs to get to Brussels-Midi station. Upon our arrival we checked into the Thon hotel, and our room on the 25th floor! It was a pretty fancy-shmancy hotel but we only paid $60 per night for it on hotels.com which was a pretty good steal. It was also only 5 minutes walk from the main square. The only problem was that even when the A/C was on the maximum cooling setting, it still wasn't very cold. However, since that weekend we have adapted to the lack of adequate A/C because they pretty much just don't have it in Europe. In Paris they really don't have it anywhere, not even our apartment, which is pretty inconvenient when its 95 degrees outside.

Anyways, Friday night we just strolled around and looked for food. We found a doner kebab place, and I was hoping that they might have some falafel, unlike the Paris doners! Happily for me, they had some delicious falafel and feta sandwiches. Cole had some yummy shawarma too! After that, we picked up some Belgian beers to drink at the hotel and headed back.

Saturday, we woke up and decided to forgo the 26 euro hotel breakfast. (Outrageous!) Instead we walked down the street for something quick. The only real option (other than doner) was a sandwich shop which turned out to be pretty delish. After our brunch, we wandered into the main square to check out the St. Michel cathedral.

Cole in front of St. Michel cathedral

After the cathedral tour, it started to rain a bit, so we opted to take the metro to our next stop, the Cantillon brewery. This brewery is the last of the breweries left in Brussels. It was pretty sweet, very small and old, and we did the brewery tour and tasting there. The kind of beer they make is the lambic, a sort of tart and fizzy beer to which fruit is often added, most commonly raspberry or cherry (called kriek).

Wheelbarrow

Hiding behind a barrel of lambic

Kegs!

Bottling and labeling

Thousands of full bottles!

After the brew tour, we headed back to the main area to find some food and some shopping. We found the possibly coolest beer store ever. They had tons of different types of Belgian beer, as well as Belgian beer posters and all of the proper Belgian beer glasses. They had so many awesome accessories but after all we can't take too much stuff home... (we are going to struggle packing as it is!) but we did buy two Delirium Tremens glasses to use back in Iowa. We also bought some delicious Belgian chocolates at one of the many chocolate shops, and also found a strangely delicious Italian restaurant that served amazing gourmet baked mac and cheese! Once again we stopped at the convenience store for some (slightly cheaper) Belgian beers, went back to the hotel and drank and watched the Spain/Paraguay world cup soccer match! Later that night we grabbed a quick bite at the nearby Brussels grill for some cheese croquettes, burger and fries, and hit the hay so we could get up early the next morning and head to Bruges.

Glorious. A Western Shop in Brussels. (They didn't even speak English)

Early Sunday morning we headed to the north station and bought tickets for the train to Bruges. It took about an hour to get there from Brussels. When we arrived, it was beautiful weather, sunny and warm with a little breeze. Perfect day for walking around! We strolled through the Sunday morning antique/flea market where they had just about everything, including an amazing crystal decanter that I desperately wanted, but was just too heavy to take home with me :(. We wound up on the other side of the market, and headed towards what looked like a more popular area of town. Luckily, Bruges is pretty small, so we were headed in the right direction.

On the canal in Bruges

At the main square, we sat down for some lunch. I think I had cheese croquettes again with salad, probably because it was the only thing without meat on the menu (they are very reluctant to add/delete specific things from menu items around here...) but it was pretty delicious, and we also got some HUGE 50 cl Hoegaarden beers. Not too shabby at all.

GIANT Hoegaarden!

Beer and fries-- Welcome to Belgium!

After lunch we strolled for a while. Lots of parks and shops all around the city. Our next destination (and pretty much our only planned destination in Bruges) was De Halve Maan brewery, which means "the Half Moon". This brewery was definitely a must-see if you are heading to Belgium. In fact, I would say Bruges is a must see, and I wish we could have stayed there a little longer. Anyways, at De Halve Maan we took a tour, and our guide was awesome! She was pretty hilarious, but also knew a hell of a lot about beer. At the end of the tour we got 2 free beers and also chatted with a couple from Minnesota who were currently living in London. They gave us some of their beer recommendations as well!

De Halve Maan brewery tour

Cole lookin' good on the tour

View from the rooftop of the brewery :)

Yes, that is a Budweiser can in a Belgian brewery!

After a great day in Bruges, we sadly had to rush to the train station to head back to Paris. However, we had enough time to snag some ice cream at a shop along the way, and saw someone familiar... PUNKY! This time with all his friends in tow.

PUNKY AND FRIENDS!!!