Belgium: Waffles and Chocolate

Capital: Brussels

Largest City: Brussels

Population: 11.8 Million

Currency: Euro

Language: Dutch, French, German

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In April of 2019, my husband and I stopped in Belgium on a two-week long trip to several different European countries. I prefer the French name for Belgium - Belgique - so therefore, I'm going to call it Belgique. Brussels, the capital and largest city, is where we stayed while in Belgique. Brussels is not my favorite compared to other European cities we visited on this trip.

The Food of Brussels

The highlight of our trip was stopping for lunch at a restaurant called Pasta Divina. It's located in the old town of Brussels, and it is owned by an older couple from southern Italy. As of writing this, it is the best Italian food I have ever had. The pasta is homemade by the wife. The tiramisu was to die for!

Along with the pasta, we tried other Belgique foods including french fries dipped in mayo. Several waffle shops were around everywhere, so of course, we also tried waffles and chocolate. Our hotel had information about a free chocolate tour that met in the old town. Unfortunately, we could not find the tour. Instead, we made our own chocolate tour and went to various bakeries to try different types of chocolate. My husband and I absolutely love chocolate, and Belgique chocolate was amazing.

Stopping for Belgian waffles while touring around Brussels

The Attractions of Brussels

Beyond eating to our heart's content, we also explored a few of the big tourist attractions. The biggest tourist attraction of Belgique is Manneken Pis. Manneken pis is a fountain sculpture of a little boy peeing that dates back to 1619. He's not very big. He has been stolen before. He has over 1,000 different outfits. In the old town, you see chocolate sculptures of him. It's very interesting how this became one of the biggest tourist attractions in Belgique!

Viewing of Manneken Pis

Outside of the old town and a fair walk away, we stopped at the Atomium, which is a unique geometric art piece built for the World Fair in 1958.

Day Trip to Ghent and Bruges

In addition to our Brussels exploration, we also took day trip with a tour group to Ghent and Bruges. We did not spend long in Ghent but what I saw, I thought it was cute. It did, unfortunately, hail on us while there.

Viewing of the beautiful city of Ghent on a cold day in northwest Belgium

As for Bruges, I have heard a lot about it, especially since the 2008 Martin McDonagh film In Bruges was filmed there. I was, unfortunately, disappointed by Bruges as it was very touristy and crowded. Roughly 115,000 people live there, but it has nearly 9 million tourists who visit there each year!

Final Thoughts

While I am in no rush to return to Belgiuque or Brussels, I did enjoy seeing what the country has to offer. Though, in another thought, I may have to return just to have another meal at Pasta Divina!