Thursday, March 17th (Part 2)

[Jared]: First, some exciting news. Today an essay about our trip to Belgium appeared in the San Diego Union Tribune! Check it out...

Thus I thought it fitting to conclude the blog series for the Belgian portion of our trip.  Don't worry, France is still to come.  I'm sure we'll get through it by the end of the summer.

As Beth said in her last Brussels post, Thursday was only a half day for the conference.  Unfortunately one of the topics I was most interested in was covered in the last session of the day or I would have slipped away sooner.  After the session, I bolted for the metro so that I could meet up with my wife at the train station.  She was so kind as to pick up some sandwiches and salads for our train ride.  She also carried a suspicious amount of empty chocolate boxes.  :-)  Kidding!  She brought us lots of truffles to share on the ride.

We were able to catch a train even earlier than we expected which had us in a good mood from the start since it meant more time in Bruges.  We settled in for a smooth and comfortable ride.  I know Beth is the transportation geek in the family, so you might expect she'd be the one to sing the praises of trains, but seriously - high speed rail rules.  After lunch I tasted one of my favorite chocolates of the trip.  It was a whiskey truffle.  So good.  Unfortunately, I was expecting more of a whiskey-flavored creamy filling and was therefore caught off-guard when it turned out the center was filled with... a shot of whiskey.  In addition to our chocolate, we enjoyed reading, listening to podcasts, and a misty view of the countryside which included a few wind farms.

The train drops you off a good distance from the historic city center in Bruges, so the first thing we did was hop on a bus.  Eventually we hopped off at the Markt Square.

This historic square was even more charming than the Grand Place in Brussels, if less grandiose.  We quickly got our bearings and set off on another famous Rick Steves walking tour.  Our first stop was the Basilica of the Holy Blood.  Ever since college I've been fascinated by church architecture and this site was no exception.  The lower chapel was very dark and Romanesque, while the upper chapel was ornate and Gothic.  The upper chapel contains a vial which is said to contain drops of Jesus Christ's blood.  Supposedly the vial was brought to Bruges during the second crusade.

Next we headed where any fun loving (reformed) Christians might go... to the brewery!  I've been on several tours of modern breweries, but never enjoyed a tour as much as this one.  It was amazing to see some of the equipment and learn the processes people have been using for centuries.  I was especially blown away to learn about the spontaneous fermentation process used to produce lambics.  Due to a variety of geographical factors, there are wild yeasts and bacterias present in the air surrounding Brussels and Bruges.  The wort is simply pumped onto copper vats on the roof and exposed to the air.  Fermentation occurs and voila... delicious beer.  Our tour guide also hit us with this piece of wisdom:

All profits from Trappist beers are given to the poor.  So, in Belgium we say, if you drink a Trappist beer you have done your good deed for the day!

Some of the most beautiful views of our trip were from atop the brewery.  It occurs to me that I have yet to mention that in addition to medieval architecture, Bruges also boasts canals throughout the city.  If it hadn't been drizzly, we would have certainly taken a cruise.

And what brewery tour would be complete without a free sample?

To be continued...

Brussels, Monday March 14th

[Beth]: Monday morning we awoke (mostly) refreshed and ready for a week in Brussels.  In making our hotel reservation, we were able to get breakfast for both of us included.  Which turned out to be an amazing – and delicious! – deal.  Each morning there was a full spread of pastries, eggs, meats, fruit, and juices.  We got our own pot of fresh-brewed coffee, and we quickly fell in love with croissants with chocolate spread.  I can think of no better way to start the day than with coffee and chocolate!

Jared went off to his wind energy conference, but since most of our readers aren’t in the industry, we will spare you the details.  However I will show you our balcony, which my businessman-husband just happened to be standing on!

While Jared was busy learning and networking, I got to explore the city and its sights!  On this first morning, I explored the area around the Grand Place and Hotel de Ville (aka City Hall).  I had planned on going to the Costume and Lace Museum, but sadly it was closed for a month for renovation.  So I took these pictures in a nearby courtyard.

I had lunch at the quaint yet bustling Maison des Crepes.  Since it was sunny and relatively warm outside, I ate my ham, cheese, and egg crepe at one of the sidewalk tables.  Along with my Lindeman’s Peche (peach) beer, I enjoyed people-watching as I ate.  I love people-watching, especially in a new and foreign country.  What a wonderful way to learn about a new locale!

After lunch, I headed for St. Michael’s church.  But, on the way, I somehow got pulled into Neuhaus Chocolatiers.  As would become a habit in the coming days, I stopped in, bought two or three (or four…) truffles to sample, and took them to a picturesque location.  In this case, I sat in a little park at St. Michael’s and again enjoyed some people-watching whilst indulging my sweet tooth.

St. Michael’s is a wonderful, Gothic cathedral that has been the center of Brussels religious life for more than 1000 years.  The white stone building is gorgeous and has a wonderful view of the Lower Town.  Inside, I was able to see excavations of the medieval church walls displayed under glass floor panels.  It is so amazing to think of people worshipping, getting baptized and married, and holding funerals here for 10 centuries.  And as an architecture fanatic, I love getting to see all of the historic elements.

Upon leaving the cathedral, I headed uphill and cut through the Parc de Bruxelles.  Even with the trees bare for winter, the expansive park was pleasant to stroll through.  I even happened upon a man warming up on the bagpipes and was treated to some Scottish tunes as I headed for the European Parliament.  In contrast to the very old buildings in the Lower Town, the complex that houses the European Parliament is modern and sleek.  I went on a half-hour audio tour, which ended in the “hemi-cycle” where the members meet and do their world-leadership thing.  Even though the U.S. isn’t part of the E.U. and all the videos about the importance of the Parliament were a bit over-dramatic, it was pretty cool to see the room.  There are boxes around the back, like the booths at a baseball stadium, where the proceedings are translated into 26 or so different languages.  That way, each delegate can hear and participate in his own language.  Pretty cool.

After this, I walked further afield and through another park, Park of the Cinquantenaire, to visit Auto World.  I feel like I have a healthier interest in cars than most girls, so this museum was pretty cool.  The museum has hundreds of automobiles, starting with the first Benz up to more modern cars.  I really enjoyed the older ones from the 20’s to 40’s.  My favorite, though, was the 1965 Triumph: a car that is also a boat.  It is both street- and sea-legal!  Oh, the silly inventions of the 1960’s.

By this time, it was 5pm and I was exhausted from all the walking.  So I hopped the metro back to the hotel and met Jared for dinner.  Possibly the coolest restaurant for ambience we went to all trip, and definitely the craziest bathrooms.  Stay tuned….