Brussels: Chocolate, Waffles, and Beer

Note: This is the final post (6 total) about my 3 week-long Spring Break. To read about London, Berlin, Paris, Istanbul, or Amsterdam, use the navigation on the right side of the page. Enjoy!

After a great time in Amsterdam, Eric and I took a 2-hour train to Brussels, Belgium, our last stop of the trip. We were only there for 2 nights, but we still got to see a lot of the city, and eat a lot of waffles! 

We stayed in the perfect location, one block away from Grand Place, the most famous spot
in all of Brussels. After we got settled, we walked around for a bit to explore the surrounding
neighborhood.

Grand Place - we ate at a Belgian restaurant in this building, where Eric and I had excellent
French Onion Soup, and shared Mussels in Beer.

Grand Place

Enjoying a Belgian beer on the first night!

The next day, it was unfortunately quite rainy. We opted for a double-decker
bus tour, so that we could see everything in just a few hours. This is the
Cathedral Saint Michael.

Brussels is also home to the Atomium, a strange monument
constructed in 1958. It has been named by CNN as Europe's
"most bizarre building" and I have to agree.

Not many people took the bus tour with us in the rain, and Eric
was quite sad about it.

Brussels also serves as the capital of the European Union, hosting
its major political institutions. These are the European Parliament buildings.

The Royal Palace of Belgium

Les Galeries Saint Hubert, home to many high-end
shops and chocolate stores. Don't worry family (especially John),
I picked up some to bring home.

For dinner, Eric and I visited a fantastic burger place right near Grand Place.
I had a Tex Mex Burger, which was absolutely fantastic!

One of the most famous symbols of Brussels, for some reason, is the Manneken Pis.
I thought it was quite strange, but whatever.

On our last night, we went all out with the waffles! I got one with
chocolate, banana, and powered sugar. It was delicious!

A close-up just for good measure.

We stopped by Grand Place one last time to see it lit up at night. 

It really was quite a sight!

Before heading back to our hostel, Eric and I stopped at Delirium, one of the most
famous bars/pubs in all of Europe. It has over 2,000 beers! 

My favorite was a cherry beer called Floris Kriek. It tasted more
like soda than beer!

Though we were only there for one full day, I had a great time in Brussels. We were able to see all the sights, and then just enjoy wandering the city. Though the weather wasn't great, it really was a beautiful place. To get back to the UK, we boarded a Eurostar train that took us directly to London St. Pancras International Train Station, a 5-minute walk from our residence hall. I had been gone for more than two weeks, and it really was nice to get back to London!

With that, I have officially finished blogging about my spring break trip of a lifetime. After 21 days, 6 countries  4 time zones, 4 flights, and 2 trains, I definitely had a lot to share. It was so great to see my family, and to spend time with Eric and his family. It was incredible exploring places like Berlin and Istanbul, which are cities I'm already looking forward to revisiting. 

Now, I have 10 days in London until I'm off on another trip, this time to Budapest, Munich, and Prague. But, I also have 5 essays due in one week, which will definitely keep me busy until then. I hope you enjoyed reading about my trip as much as I enjoyed writing about it. Stay tuned!