This week I'm following up my Paris Travel Guide/Recs post with a Belgium Travel Guide/Recs post! As I detailed in last week's post, I was in Europe from April 6th to April 13th with my mom and my younger sister Sarah, who's currently studying Art History and French in France. We made a girls' trip out of Sarah's spring break and had the time of our lives bouncing between Paris, Brussels, and Ghent.
Of course we took thousands of photos, tried countless amazing foods, and explored both touristy spots AND local spots (fun fact: we got some great local recommendations from Belgian friends of mine who were born and raised in Belgium)! This travel diary is a recap of what we got into during our 4-day stint in Belgium as well as a jumping off point for anyone who may be planning a Belgium getaway of their own — I highly recommend it ;)
Day 1 (Brussels): Walking Tour / Grand Place /
Chocolate
Chocolate
The first two days of our vacation were spent in Paris, and on the morning of day three, we boarded an international train at Gare du Nord and headed for Brussels. Quick insight: I don't know if it was just us, but while in Europe in general, we had multiple issues with Uber. This particular morning, we actually had three cancel on us, resulting in us literally running all the way to the train station — luggage in tow. Luckily we made it, and even luckier, my sister, being the travel expert she is, had purposefully picked a hotel relatively close to the train station just in case this exact thing happened. #PreparationAlwaysWins
The train ride from Paris to Brussels was very pleasant. I mean, we sat in velvet seats and ate French pastries, so what more could you ask for? TBH, I kind of felt like I was on the Polar Express because trains typically aren't as polished in the US. It was a quick ride too, as we reached our destination in about an hour and a half.
The first thing we did in Brussels was check into our hotel room. We stayed at The Augustin, a modern boutique hotel located just five minutes from Brussels' Grand Place, and it was fantastic.
After exploring the neighborhood a little bit and even wandering into a used bookstore, we decided our first order of business — before even getting food — was to see the famed Manneken Pis statue (pictured above). Yep, it's a tiny statue of a little boy peeing, and, I kid you not, it is one of — if not THE — most famous landmark in Brussels.
The level of stardom this statue has risen to is hilarious! It's constantly swarmed by people taking its photo and posing with it, and the statue is depicted all over the city (exhibit A below). Get this — they even dress it up for special occasions and holidays! It may seem silly, but snatching a pic with this little dude is a must-do in Brussels.
Next of course, we were all about the waffles. And let me just say, the streets of Belgium were literally filled with their sweet scent. Even if you wanted to, you couldn't escape the delicious smell (but um, why would you want to?).
We headed to Mokafé for lunch and obviously we got waffles (along with yogurt and omelets). Mokafé is a spot locals go to for waffles, and it's located under the glass arch of the Galeries-St Hubert, which is an area with a lot of shops.
While we all know about Belgian waffles, what I didn't know before this trip is that there are actually two types of waffles in Belgium. The first is the Brussels Waffle, which is actually what Americans typically refer to as "Belgian Waffles." Brussels Waffles are very light and flakey with a soft inside and crunchier outside and they're made from liquid batter.
The other waffles are Liege Waffles, and those are made from dough. They're soft throughout, sweeter, and chewier, and can be stuffed with chocolate or another type of filling. At Mokafé we had Brussels Waffles (pictured above) and they were just delicious — although all in all, Leige are my favorite kind.
Our main activity this first day was a walking tour of Brussels. It lasted two hours, was entertaining and educational, AND was free. My sister booked it through Bravo Discovery, and while we did give our guide a tip at the end (10 Euros per person is common, but students can be free), it was still much cheaper than other city tours.
Our tour met in Brussels' Grand Place (Grand-Place de Bruxelles), which you can see in the two photos above. Grand Place is the city's central square that's completely encircled by elegant historic buildings dating back to the 14th century — including City Hall. It's also considered one of the most beautiful squares in Europe.
As if "free" weren't enough, our tour ended inside a chocolate shop within Grand Place, and everyone in our group got a free truffle, which was delectable. This was our introduction to Belgian chocolate, and because it was so mouthwatering, we decided to stay in said chocolate shop and stock up on sweets.
We weren't in just any chocolate shop though, we were inside Mary Chocolatier, which has been selling hand-crafted chocolates created by artisan chocolatiers since 1919. Per their website, each chocolate is created with "the intent to attain the perfect harmony of flavors, scents, textures, and appearance." The below pics are me celebrating our chocolate purchases!
For dinner (after sampling chocolates AND street fries), we went to a very yummy local hotspot recommended to us by our tour guide called Fin de Siecle. We had to wait in line to get seated (even on a Monday night), but the food was amazing and oh-so fresh.
After our satisfying meal, we walked back to our hotel, taking in the Brussels' nightlife.
Day 2 (Ghent): Brunch / MSK Museum / Gravensteen Castle
We left Brussels on the morning of our second day in Belgium and took a 30-minute train to Ghent (or the Dutch spelling, Gent). Ghent was stunning! It felt like we were on a movie set the entire time we were there. It's very picturesque, very fairytale-like, and with the Lys River running through it, it felt extremely quaint and unlike any US city.
For both of our days in Ghent, we stayed at the Erasmus Hotel, which was more of a bed and breakfast than a modern hotel. The owner was incredibly sweet, and even though the hotel doesn't have an elevator, he helped us carry all of our luggage up six flights of stairs!
After checking in, we went to brunch at Cafe Theatre Restaurant and Bar on a friend's recommendation, and we enjoyed quite the spread — as you can see!
Feeling well-fueled, the three of us journeyed to the MSK Museum, also known as Museum voor Schone Kunsten, also known as Museum of Fine Arts Ghent, which is the oldest museum in Ghent.
At the museum's front desk, we purchased a 3-day city pass, which turned out to be such a worthwhile investment. The 3-day pass costs €35.00 per person, and it includes free access to ALL the top attractions in Ghent — including public transportation.
Ok, so my mom was SUCH a trooper during this entire trip. This type of vacation requires early mornings, lots of moving around and traveling, and tons of walking. We were only a few days into our adventure, but my mom was so exhausted at this point that she literally fell asleep in the museum. She was OUT COLD. We let her sleep for about 20 minutes and this is me laugh-crying at how hilarious the situation is (people were totally staring).
When we left the museum, we immediately stumbled into a gorgeous park right across the street that featured a waterfall, pond, and blooming cherry blossoms. Next, we visited the famous castle in Ghent, The Castle of the Counts, or The Gravensteen.
We took an audio tour of the castle, and it was a lot of fun. It's such a beautiful structure filled with rich history that was fascinating to learn about. It's a medieval castle that dates to 1180, and the view from the top alone (pictured below) is worth the visit.
For a midday snack, we got fries, trying a vegan place in the town center. A fun tidbit about Ghent is that it's actually been deemed the vegetarian capital of Europe, and we also got to experience that for dinner when we ate at a vegan-friendly restaurant called Faja Lobi Bed & Breakfast Cafe. Not much was open when we were hungry at 10 pm, but luckily we found this place, and it had excellent food and excellent service.
Day 3 (Ghent): Sweets / Boat Tour / Graffiti Wall
Our last day in Ghent began with me getting my hair done at Jay'z Hair & Beauty — they only accept walk-ins so it was perfect for me! Next, my mom, sister, and I went to Max for brunch where we tried the ORIGINAL Brussels waffle. This restaurant, which is very cute btw, is credited with serving the first Brussels waffles in Belgium. You can see our meal below — notice the lack of syrup ;)
After brunch, we walked to Saint Bavo's Cathedral, which contains a world-famous piece of artwork called the Ghent Altarpiece. My sister was dying to see it in-person so we actually listened to an audio guide about it while we were there, which made us appreciate the piece even more.
The candies pictured below are called cuberdons, and I like to think of them as Jelly Beans on steroids. I'm not a candy person, but these bundles of joy are SO yummy. Carts sell them in the streets and they're available in flavors like raspberry, blueberry, lemon, strawberry, and more.
Once we were loaded up on sugar, we took a boat tour of Ghent, which we really enjoyed. I've never been to Venice, but Ghent definitely has a Venice feel due to the river that runs through it. There are so many restaurants and shops along the water too, which makes for ideal scenery.
After our tour, we were approached by some locals who wanted to show us around. They took us to the famous Graffiti Street and even provided us with markers and spray paint so that we could make our own mark on the wall! I've never graffitied before, but it's totally legal in Ghent — just only on this one street!
This was the night we met up with my high school friend Flo! Flo was born and raised in Antwerp, Belgium and now lives in Ghent, but she went to my high school for two years, which is how I met her. She was in my gym class freshman year and we became fast friends. It was so special to finally visit her in her home country after all this time!
My mom, sister, Flo, and I had dinner at Mosquito Coast, which is another vegan-friendly restaurant. It's considered a traveler's cafe and features cozy couches, walls full of maps and tokens, and a pretty terrace. We all had a great time!
Day 4 (Brussels): Best Fries & Waffles / Art Museum / Mont des Arts
Our last day in Belgium was spent back in Brussels. We stayed at The Bedford Hotel and we had a great experience at this hotel as well as all the other ones.
This was the day we discovered the BEST Belgian waffles and the BEST fries. Our favorite waffle — maybe even our favorite food ever? — was a Liege Waffle from a window shop called Vitalgaufre. Other bloggers and actual experts agree, this is THE place for the best Belgian Waffles in Belgium. They were so good, my sister and I turned around and got more as soon as were were finished eating our first round. My mouth is watering just thinking about them...
Our cultural experience for the day was going to the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium. There's six museums total, but we didn't go to all of them. The main one we went to was the Magritte Museum.
Next to the museums was a beautiful park called Mont des Arts (pictured above). We took some time wandering through, taking pictures, and people watching. From there, we made it our mission (despite three cancelled Ubers) to get to Maison Antoine — aka the best fries in Belgium.
The place itself reminded me of the original Shake Shack in Madison Square Park, as it was just a large stand outside with outdoor seating. The fries lived up to the hype though and even came in that famous Belgian cone! Oh and from now on, I'm only eating my fries with mayo — that or Andalouse sauce.
Voila! That concludes my 2019 Paris and Belgium mini travel series. I'm so thankful that I actually got to eat a Belgian waffle IN Belgium, that I got to visit my friend in her home country, and that I got to tour a castle from the 1100s! So wild! My mom, sister, and I had the best time on this trip and are already dreaming up our next vacay — we're thinking Vienna?
I'm going to leave you all with this quote:
Nice post, it is a beautiful place. :)
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