Belgium

When Sean and Chris told M-A and I about the deal they had found for return train-travel to Brussels and two nights accommodation in the Hilton, we said "We're in!". Whether or not they were actually inviting us was irrelevant.

So we dragged ourselves out of bed last Friday morning at an hour so terrifyingly early that the sun had yet to rise, even at London-latitude in the summer. After a bleary-eyed couple of hours on the Eurostar, we arrived in Brussels and headed for the Hilton. The difference in standard between the Brussels Hilton and the accommodation we shared on our previous travels as a group was immediately apparent. I mean no offense to the Oxford Backpacker's, but there were noticeably less dreadlocks behind the desk this time*.

After taking care of some important business - making sure there was somewhere we could watch the Aussies take on the All-Blacks in the Rugby Saturday morning - we walked to the Grand Place.

It was a cracker of a summer's day, as we walked around Brussels' cobble-stoned streets. We visited the Manneken Pis, who was dressed in suitably formal attire for our visit. Something about that little statue urinating happily into the fountain seemed to remind us that we had been in Belgium for hours without sampling one of their famous beers. This was quickly rectified.

Having realized that the total of our group's research into being a tourist in Brussels consisted of M-A's flicking through the Lonely Planet guide on the train, she was unanimously elected tour leader. Our newly sworn-in captain then informed us that for our afternoon's activities we would visit the Atomium.

This metal monstrosity was built for Expo '58, and supposedly resembles an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times. An elevator travels to the highest sphere and offers a view of the surrounding area. Ventilation wasn't great inside the sphere, and there are better views of Brussels available for a lesser price. I feel I shouldn't be too negative towards the Atomium. I imagine visitors traveling to Brisbane's Sky Needle are hardly blown away.

On the way back to the hotel, Chris and Sean went into a store to purchase a few beers to have in our rooms. Chris "impulse-buy" Crichton thought he spied a bargain in a two-litre bottle of beer. Turns out, the price was for the beer only and didn't include the bottle - the idea being you reuse the bottle. Unfortunately for the boys, the store attendants didn't speak much English (or chose not too), and they were stuck with a rather over-priced, over-sized bottle. It made the trip back to London with us. Maybe one day he'll return and get it refilled.

As we wandered into the restaurant-strip for dinner, we knew we'd have to run the gauntlet of touts attempting to entice patrons to dine in their establishments, rather than the generally identical ones on either side. Being the experienced tourists and hard-headed negotiators we are, we managed to hold-out on the first tout at the first restaurant we came to for about twenty seconds before taking a seat. Fortunately their menu did include what Sean desired - Belgium's 'national dish' - a big bowl of mussels with a side of fries.

After our meals, we wandered further down the narrow alleys and found a place called Delirium Cafe. The decor in this place reminded me of a tacky American chain restaurant, with memorabilia stuck all over the walls and ceiling. Also, a painful reminder of how things were before anti-smoking laws. There was a no-smoking sign hanging, but it was difficult to make out through the clouds of smoke. Their range of beers, however, was unbelievable. 2004 is the number they quote, and the menu would pass for a menu of the world's beer. While we cannot vouch that all were available, we did sample a selection including apple beers, coconut beers, and beers with alcohol contents so high they would surely be classed as fortified wines anywhere else. Every beer seemed to come in its own glass, some (such as the test-tube contraption Chris is pictured with) even required a deposit.

In my opinion, the best part of staying in hotels with a few more stars on their signs (and a few more digits in their price) is the included breakfast. And the Hilton's was a first-rate breakfast buffet. After eating more for breakfast than I would usually eat in a day, we went to the Irish pub we had previously ascertained would be showing the Bledisloe cup between Australia and the All-Blacks. There was what I imagine is a decent crowd for a pub early-ish on a Saturday morning, the majority of who were antipodeans. By the end of the game the patrons could be easily further divided into Australians and Kiwis - the former boasting loudly while the latter quickly finished their drinks and headed for the exits.

The rest of Saturday was spent wandering further around Brussels. We found a strange beach festival (no, there is no beach in Brussels) where we met Robert de Castella's former masseuse (at least I hope that is what he meant when he said he was his 'rubber'). We told him we'd say hello next time we ran into Deeks.

We climbed to the roof of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart - JAC**. From here we had a good view of Brussels.

Saturday night, with the complimentary cocktails at the Hilton's Hawaiian themed bar giving us the impassive glaze necessary to ignore the touts' sales pitches, we made it deep into the throng of restaurants before choosing one. Chris, M-A and myself shared a large helping of seafood paella, while Sean again got the mussels. As Sean was eating his mussels, he began to notice that almost all of them contained small crabs. Having not ordered a side of small crabs, he was a little concerned by this. The summoned waiter explained in French, while M-A translated, that the crabs were normal and fine to eat. Seeing Sean was not convinced, he took one and ate it himself. The rest of us found it all rather amusing. Sean did not***.

After dinner we headed back to Delirium to cross a few more beers off the immense list.

Sunday, M-A and I took a train to Bruges. Bruges' attraction is its historic city center. The narrow cobble-stone streets, canals, and medieval architecture give the small city a great atmosphere. We hired some bikes and spent the afternoon exploring. One tip: Bikes + cobble-stones = sore arse. And before anyone asks, yes, I was riding a girl's bike. That's all they had left!

Belgium has definitely got some great things going for it. First-class beer, waffles, chocolate and seafood is always a strong start (I strongly recommend not consuming all at once). Brussels, being the headquarters of the EU and NATO, is a government town (to call it the Canberra of Europe would definitely be do harsh though). It does have some impressive architecture, and as mentioned, culinary attractions. It also seems to suffer from Paris-envy - from its very own Sacred Heart Basilica with the faux Champs Elysees running up to it, to the replica Louvre Pyramid located outside our Hotel.

If Brussels is business, Bruges is tourist. Bruges was very picturesque, and the streets were dominated by bicycles, horse-and-carriages, as well as pedestrians. Though half a day was probably enough.

Good weekend. Until next time. . .

* And more languages. I am still impressed by displays such as the concierge ending a call in French to address us in perfect English, then serve the guest behind in Flemish.

** JAC = Just Another Church.

*** My subsequent research indicates the waiter was truthful. Mussels do often contain Pea Crabs, and they are fine to eat.