Brussels aka: Bruxelles, Brussel

I lived in Belgium for a year and I have some Belgian must-have experiences for you. Obviously, you must have mussels and some good Belgian beer. Chocolate is also requisite. I always loved to buy mine at Leonidas and then walk up to the Mont des Arts and look down on the city as I let my praline melt slowly in my mouth. :)

Also, people always have waffles(try a gaufre liegoise instead of the crazy touristy concoctions) in Belgium, but so many miss out on frites (fries). Buy your frites in a nice big paper cone from a friterie and get a delicious and unnutritious sauce slathered all over it. My favorite is sauce americaine, which is a little spicy and very tasty.

Take the time to drink a beer, coffee, or fresh mint tea at a cafe. My favorite cafe was Le Roi des Belges, which is located in Place Saint Gery (not far from Grand Place). There are several other great cafes there to choose from, including the very popular Mappa Mundo. (Place Flagey in Ixelles is also a cool place to go for a drink. Cafe Belga is always happening.)

For good cheap eats in central Brussels, there is a street lined with pita shops just off the Grand Place. It is lively and inexpensive…as well as good eating! My favorite restaurant in Bruxelles was Centre Hemisfere, which serves great international cuisine at a reasonable price. I can’t remember exactly where it is, but it is only a few minutes walk from the center.

Lastly, if you are planning to travel in Europe, don’t underestimate Belgium…or skip over it completely. Ghent, Namur, and Antwerp are super cool places to spend a day or two. Bruges is beautiful.

Wall’s

The little girl is much more cute than manekken pis.

Don’t try to walk from the station into town! Take a taxi – we thought we would save ourselves a few euros, but quickly found that the way to the town centre on foot was not well signposted and we took a few wrong turns through some less salubrious areas.

Visit the weekend antiques market in the Place du Grand Sablon. When you’re bored of browsing through knick knacks, there are many delicious chocolate shops around the square to drool over :)

Brussels is a good transport hub for visiting other cities in Belgium as well, like Bruges.

I’m going there in hmm..4 weeks or so :) I can’t wait! I have wanted to visit Brussels so long! I want to visit at least Institution of Natural Science, Grand’Place and see the European Parliament.

Is there any suggestions what is really worth seeing or doing in the city?

Yes, like any other capital city, Brussels tends to be overcrowded, noisy and quite agitated. Even so, it’s a very nice place to be in, being totally definitely different than a big city like Budapest, Paris or Berlin.
It is a big place. You have a lot of museums and places that you can visit, lots of ways of having fun, and of course all the usual food and shopping.
I loved the whole Mannekinen Pis brand. I love the Delirium bar. I loved the Belgian Centre Of Comic Strip Art. I loved also the European Parliament building. I definitely loved the Royal Palace as well. I guess I loved everything about this place.
It has something about it. I guess the whole Belgium has that “welcome! enjoy! relax!” feeling.

Well, its difficult to get an opinion from only one day and having most of that day walking around the Grand Place, but it’s a decent place for a stop, especially for its foodie opportunities ( chocolate, waffles, mussels, beer, I mean these are worth the trip alone!)

the only way to get out of Brussels is on a ICE train doing about 250 kph. If you don’t go that fast the gravitational well that is Brussels will encapsulate you forever. :) Seriously though if you are catching a flight out of Brussels make sure it’s not Brussels South Airport…that’s no where near Brussels.

Dandoy does fabulous Spekuloos biscuits; even if you don’t like them much the shop is magical :D

Was there at the end of April, and going again in November. The city was a very positive surprise :-)