Brussels & Brugge

Our trip to Brussels and Brugge over the weekend was super fun. Let me start off by saying that the Eurostar is the best way to travel... so much more relaxing and efficient than flying! I wish it went to more destinations, because we loved the ease of this mode of transport.

Friday night after work we jammed out of the office, picked up a quick pop up map of Brugge, and then headed to the train station. Two hours later, we arrived in Brussels. We spent Friday night in a bar, just hanging out, excited to be out of the city. The bar we went to was a Brussels staple, and our friend Matt who was celebrating his birthday was excited to ring it in there.

We spent Saturday in Brugge. http://www.visit-bruges.com/ The city was so cute, we loved the picturesque streets, the beautiful buildings, the gorgeous sights. We spent the day with Will and Em, Will who is on exchange in Amsterdam and from California. They drove out from Amsterdam to meet us and go on a walking tour. Through the day we walked through the town, spent awhile at a museum that showcased old Flemish paintings that were interesting. We went to the Our Ladys Church to see one of the few Michaelangelo sculptures outside of Italy. We went to a brewery to sample some of the beers. After our tour we ended the day by walking through a convent. It was beautiful. The picture at the top of the post is of JP and I in front of one of the many canal streets.

This picture is just a pretty shot of the landscape of the city...

Here is JP with our friends Will and Em as we are trying to figure out where to go on the map! Will's face captures our overall feeling of how easy it is to find your way around the streets of Brugge and Brussels...

After a quick drive back to Brussels with Will and Em in their super cool semi-automatic car, we got dressed and went out with the larger group to dinner. We had dinner at a fun restaurant in the center of town that specialized in one of Brussels key culinary treats - mussels and french fries. http://uk.chezleon.be/index.asp?ID=476 After dinner, the whole group of us (12 in all) headed down the street a bar called Delirium. http://www.deliriumcafe.be/ This place was incredible- with over 600 beers offered, it was like candyland for the boys. If you could think up a beer, more than likely they had it here. It made for an interesting Sunday morning to say the least.

Here is my yummy dinner- mussels with tomatoes and parmesan cheese with some fries and beer. It is figure flattering in all the wrong ways!

Sunday started at noon with some traditional waffles for breakfast/lunch and a walk through the town. Some of the group headed to Brugge and some of us stayed behind in Brussels to hang out. The weather was very cold, not conducive to walking around much so we holed up in the Museum of Instruments which proved to be a very fun way spend time and stay warm. After that we enjoyed some last beers before we went off to catch our train.

All in all, I would recommend a weekend in Brugge definitely. Some people really liked Brussels. I didn't not like it, but I don't have plans to return. If anything though, a trip to taste the beers (there are so many to chose from!) and sample the cuisine is worth it! Well, that is when you eat in London all the time....

To see all the pics we took you can visit our album online: share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AaOWLNy4bN2O0 Remember you don't need to sign in to see these.

Our next trip will probably be Stonehenge at the end of the month- just a quick day trip from the city. The next week will be more or less getting ready for the biggest event yet in 2008, our Valentine's Day Dance on Saturday the 16! :) Enjoy the week everyone.