As previously mentioned I spent Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 (today) in Antwerp Belgium.
A group of us, five girls from the house I'm living in, headed out just after 9am on Saturday morning to catch a train to Antwerp. The train ride took just over 4 hours and involved about 3 train switches and a slight delay. We arrived in the beautiful Antwerp Centraal Station around 2:30pm. The station is a thing of beauty and has three different levels for trains to come and go. It is quite a thing to see.
From the station we headed straight into the heart of Antwerp stopping along the way at a diamond museum - they are huge for diamonds. The tour was free for some strange reason, something to do with Valentine's Day I think. Although it had interesting bits we were all quite happy that we didn't have to pay as it was long. That said, if you were interested in the intricacies of diamonds - where they are found, how they are cut, people who created things which help create diamonds, etc. - this would be the place for you.
As we headed back out the sky started to mist on us, what a nice treat. It was quite cool and quite damp. We walked along a main shopping street towards the city centre. It is a lovely walk with beautiful buildings to entice your eyes the whole way along. We stopped in a few shops but none of us really wanted to (read: could afford) to shop much so we just basically perused the busy streets. I started to get hungry, and being in Belgium I figured the perfect snack to get me between lunch and supper was (naturally) a waffle. It was a basic waffle with no toppings but it was so delicious! Crunchy but soft and oh so sweet. I gobbled it up in a matter of moments.
At this point we decided it would be best to check into our hotel/hostel. I say both because two girls joined our group last minute and we had to split up the bookings due to a time crunch. Three of us headed to a hotel on one side of the city centre while the other two went to find a hostel on the other side. While we found the tram station to take us to our hotel a nice, older lady found us. She was very excited to help us out and tell us all about where to go and what to do, and even helped us find our stop (it was the same as her's). Our entire tram ride she told us about what we were passing. It was lovely.
We parted ways and quickly found our hotel. It was a wonderful little hotel, especially for the price! Such a steal. When we got to our room we discovered there were beds for 5 so we called the other girls - who happened to be lost - and directed them to us so we could all stay together in the same room. So convenient.
While the two found the hotel the three of us found a sushi restaurant close to a huge gothic cathedral in the city centre. I know, I know - sushi while in Belgium? Shouldn't you be eating at a quaint little Belgian restaurant?! - you are probably right but we were so hungry and sushi sounded so appetizing. The sushi was great - even though it took forever to get to us, I think there was some sort of mix up in the back. It didn't even matter though because it tasted delicious when it arrived.
After dinner we went searching for a good bar/pub/restaurant to sit in to have some beer, you know they are quite good at making it. When we started to walk around we realized how many amazing restaurants there are, I've heard Antwerp is a foodies' heaven, the food is all amazing and all different. Each restaurant looked more wonderful than the next. So, if you are looking to go on an eating vacation I recommend Belgium.
We found a nice restauranty bar that looked out onto some wonderful scenery and sat down. From here we asked for the best local beer and some waffles. Ha, a great combo I'm sure but hey, tourists do what tourists do. I had a waffle with chocolate sauce and ice cream - SO good! I wish I could describe it. The chocolate sauce is so much better than home because it actually tastes like rich dark chocolate and not syrupy sugar. These are dangerous. We sat there for quite a while enjoying ourselves until we were totally stuffed and quite exhausted. From there we made our way back to the hotel for, what we determined would be the first quiet sleep we could get since we arrived.
We were all exhausted so it didn't take long for all of us to fall into bed.
The next morning we enjoyed a lovely free breakfast (I love free breakfasts!) at our hotel before venturing out for our second day on the town. Fortunately for us the nice lady on the tram had told us about a large market that would be taking place nearby so we already had a plan for the day. We walked to the very busy market and looked, shopped, and snacked for the next hour or more. They had everything from clothing to tools to chocolates to fresh produce. Everything. I bought a great new scarf.
We decided that to keep costs down we would try to walk around the city and not worry about paying to get into any museums and such. This was a pretty good plan. The day was much nicer than the day before as there was no rain.
From the market we walked to the train station to lock our backpacks in a locker and find out when the return train times were. After we had done this we walked around. A lot. We saw the old palace - where there is now a restaurant and a chocolate shop - where I bought 3 chocolates for €3.50. They had all sorts of flavours, I bought a peanut one (no actual peanuts), an Earl Grey Tea one, and told her to give me one other classic flavour. I had initially told her to surprise me with the 3rd one but she thought I meant with something crazy and offered me a fried onion chocolate or a bacon chocolate. As interesting as these sounded I was unwilling to spend my money on something so outrageous. [I just now, after getting home, ate the chocolates and they were divine! I liked my two flavours better than hers but the Earl Grey one was amazing. Good thing I didn't buy more because they would all be gone!]
We also went to the main Gothic Cathedral, walked to a castle, and generally took in the architecture. Eventually we stopped for lunch at an Italian restaurant where I got a margarita pizza that was only €3.20 with a student discount! Talk about wonderful budgeting. We spent most of the day just walking about taking everything in. We eventually made our way to a second smaller antique market for a look but it was all quite expensive.
On the way back to the train to head home we stopped in a liquor store - more like a beer store - that had 280 different types of Belgian beers for sale. I picked out two to take home and try. I'm looking forward to it.
We caught the 5pm train back to Groningen which had us back at home around 9:30pm. By that time we were all hungry and tired. I made dinner, went through my pictures, and relaxed.
Quite a busy few days.
One thing I miss from home that is different from here is drinks at a restaurant. They don't serve fountain pop and they don't serve tap water. This means if you want water you have to pay almost $3 for a small bottle of water. Boo. This also means that if you want a pop you only get about 330 mL (I think). What if I'm thirsty?!
Ha. I think the highlight of the trip is the amazing food and treats. I didn't think waffles and chocolates could be so delicious. And the restaurants looked amazing.
Antwerpen Centraal
This is what you see coming up the escalator from your train. Gorgeous!
This doesn't really do it justice, but the architecture is outstanding. Very rich and detailed. This is along one of the main shopping streets.
A local beer.
Which one?
I couldn't tell you, the waiter recommended it.
I enjoyed it. Good enough for me.
Waffle before.
From left to right: Australia, Canada, Canada, Sweden.. oh wait, I mean...
From left to right: Tess, Sara, Bianca, Josefin
My chocolates.
So good.
So expensive.
I'd do it again.
You are a fabulous writer and story teller. Pictures are great too. Architecture brings back memories of 07. Even choc from Harrods. A room with 5 beds, did you luck out or what. That should a been pricey. What a blessing to be able to do this. Make me jealous.
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