Day Trip to Brussels

March 19th, 2018

Spring teased us last week and then winter came back with a vengeance.  On one of the coldest and most unpleasant days of the year, we decided to spend ten hours outside exploring Brussels.  (Actually, we had planned this trip months ago and purchased the train tickets, so it was just some bad luck.)  Temperatures in Brussels hovered around freezing, and a brisk wind brought wind chills down to the teens.  We walked for miles from the train station to the royal quarter to the old city center, ducking into churches and cafes and shops when we needed to thaw out a little.  I think Brussels would be a lovely city to explore on a 70 degree day, but most of our memories of it will likely be linked to the temperature and the biting wind.

The most impressive thing we saw in Brussels was the Grand Place, a pedestrian square ringed by remarkably well-preserved and ornate buildings dating from around 1700.  Here are Glenn and Kate, bundled up, in front of buildings on one side of the square.  

We also ate at a very nice, casual restaurant that specialized in Asian-inspired burgers and other sandwiches, Baogo.  They served the sandwiches with Belgian-style fries and had Belgian beer on tap.  I had a sandwich of pulled pork with Chinese spices, green onions, pickles, and cabbage slaw on a bao bun with Xi'an spiced fries.  We thought it was great and were commenting that we would go to that restaurant all of the time if it were in our Paris neighborhood.

Brussels also had a sort of funky, hipster side that was very much on display.  Here are some pictures:

Reflection of mural in windows

Waffle minibus

Storefront of an antique shop

Murals in underpass