Belgium: Waffles, Castles, and a Midlife Adventure Awaits!So one day you realize you have an extra week off work, quite the rarity for an industrious American Capitalist ©, and, since you're in the midst of your midlife "I'm going to die before I actually see the world" crisis, you must choose a travel destination. The answer is obvious: Belgium, of course!
To be honest I'm not sure whether the average American knows that Belgium is a sovereign nation. I'll admit that I didn't know the majority of Belgians spoke Dutch! My ignorance turned to excitement as I realized I had an educational opportunity on hand.
Having only a week I knew that it would be an insane trip, inadvisable to anyone with even a semblance of self-respect. But, as I spent more time pouring over Google Maps and ignoring important life responsibilities, I realized that I had accidentally chosen the perfect travel destination. I could draw a 2 hour radius in the Flanders / Holland region and have a million novel experiences at my fingertips. And the trains....oh man, we'll discuss the trains.
OKAY, LET'S ACTUALLY TALK ABOUT THE TRIP
I flew into Brussels, having snagged a rare $500 flight from Chicago. I had an extra day before meeting a friend in Antwerp, so I thought to myself "the best thing to do after an 8 hour flight is to sit on trains for 4 hours, right???" Which of course means that I visited **Dinant**, a small tourist-heavy town in the Wallonia region of Belgium. The 2 hour train ride from Brussels was STUNNING, and I immediately recognized that a day was a paltry time slot for this region.
Arriving in Dinant, sleep-deprived, I of course immediately turned the wrong way out of the train station, which led to a longer-than-planned stroll along the promenade of the river Meuse. I then spotted the central attractions: a dark, brooding cathedral nearly matching the height of the nearby cliff face, atop of which rests the town's central piece: the citadel! But you must pay a tax to enter the citadel (well, plus 14€): a climb up 400 steep, narrow steps along the cliff side. I ended up calling these steps the "American Killer", since that appeared to be their designated purpose as I struggled to climb.
In all seriousness: Dinant is absolutely beautiful and worth at least half a day if you find yourself in Wallonia or Luxembourg. Bonus points: while there were plenty of tourists in town, I may have been the only American. I also had the best falafel wrap of my life near the citadel steps.
Now onto **Antwerp**! To be honest I initially didn't have Antwerp on my list, but it's perfectly situated as a gateway between Flanders (Ghent, Bruges, and Brussels, sort of) and the Netherlands. And oh. my. god. If you arrive by train you will immediately bask in the glory that is Antwerpen Centraal, the MASSIVE train station at the heart of the city.
Antwerp is often passed over for the likes of Bruges and Brussels, but it deserves at least a day of its own. The highlight for me was the MAS, a beautifully designed museum dedicated to various topics of history related to Antwerp and Belgium. Each level of the 10 story building offers a different side of history, from world wars to agriculture to sporting events. Upon reaching the highest level you are greeted with a 360 degree view of Antwerp and its breathtaking, humongous port area. MAS is truly a world class experience.
Also the Belgian beers nearly killed me. My Scottish friend wanted to "knock a few back", and I can now confirm that drinking 9% Belgian beers with a Scotsman is a valid form of euthanasia.
The next day was dedicated to **Ghent**. Or Gent. Or Gand. Should you visit Belgium, be ready to learn city names in 3 languages. Okay, so Ghent is sort of like Bruges but people actually live there. It's half médiéval beauty and half college town, with nearly 100,000 students. It's also the world capital of cathedrals. Good god, you'll walk through a massive cathedral with arches a hundred meters beyond your reach, and then you find out that it's the FIFTH tallest cathedral in the city.
Highlights: Gravensteen is like "the" castle. It's like something out of a video game. The canals offer incredible glimpses into architecture dating as far back as 1100 AD, and boat tours are only 12€. Most of the town center is closed off for cars, so enjoy the beautiful town without the threat of cars (you are just left with buses, teams, boats, and cyclists going world record speeds.)
Now off to **Rotterdam**! The absolute must-see attraction here is Kinderdijk, which is actually 1/2 hour outside of Rotterdam by Water Shuttle. No, not water taxi. Not water tour. Not one of the other million boats that might accidentally send you to Denmark. If you choose the correct transport, then you will enjoy a scenic ride along the river...Meuse. Yes, the same one from Dinant! You will end up at a UNESCO world heritage site with over a dozen fully functioning windmills from the 1700s, sitting along canals dug hundreds of years prior to provide water to Rotterdam. My suggestion? Rent a bike and enjoy the serenity of this beautiful site. And don't be afraid to accidentally go too far and end up in a random neighborhood like we did!
So the city of Rotterdam was absolutely flattened by the Nazis, giving it a very different look from cities like Amsterdam. If you enjoy architecture, then Rotterdam is world class. The Dutch have found a perfect balance between utilitarianism and beauty, which is well-represented in their architecture. You can escape the glass-faced skyscrapers....or view them looming over 17th century row homes. You can even envelope yourself entirely in modernity with the Markthal. Your choice!
Okay, can we talk tulips? That means we're off to **Hillegom**. Honestly I don't have many snarky quips or soliloquies for this portion. The tulips were simply breathtaking! Seeing one color stretch across the horizon in perfect symmetry absolutely blew my caveman brain apart. My advice? The Dutch countryside is incredibly accessible, so take a train to a remote stop and find yourself a tulip field. The tourist traps are fine, but you can save some money by (respectfully) visiting a field open to the public.
After the tulips it was time to pay for my crimes, mainly speaking horrible French and Dutch, which takes us to **The Hague**. This was probably my favorite city of the trip, which is a shame because I took absolutely horrible photos. My legs almost fell off from walking around this city so much. It was like everything I enjoyed from my trip combined in one city: beautiful modern architecture, a preserved medieval town center, huge parks that simply don't make sense within a city, and even beaches! Instead of trying to explode your weak American heart with kilometers of walking (like I did), I'd recommend taking the tram that runs from the beach to Delft. In case I haven't mentioned it: public transportation is EXCELLENT and so easy with tap to pay, so make sure you utilize it. If you're an American you will weep imagining our country with similar infrastructure.
Based on a random Reddit comment I took that tram to **Delft**. Incredible. Canals, architecture, and the coolest belfry I've ever seen. It was criminal how little time I spent in this town. Please rectify my mistake and give Delft a full day when you visit.
Unfortunately our trip is nearly over. After spending an hour or so checking out the port of Rotterdam (huge! amazing!) I headed for **Brussels**. So....Brussels has a bit of a reputation. I heard the words "sketchy", "unsafe", "unfriendly", and "dirty" oft repeated in my planning. Due to these warnings I chose to only spend a day in Brussels.
Did I just get lucky, or is Brussels waaaaaay better than people claimed? It was like I was back in my days of studying in France. Cafe culture, museums, architecture, brilliant views from atop the Mont des Arts. I LOVED Brussels - and I only saw a fraction of the city! Even if you find the local Brusselians unfriendly, it's a city with tons of immigrants, so just spend some time with an Italian or Spainiard who has made Brussels their home.
Bonus points: my flight home passed over Greenland!!! Total bucketlist item for me. Unfortunately the guy in the window seat couldn't have cared less, so I have no photos as proof, but it was truly seeing the Greenland mountains from above.
TLDR, which is CLEARLY much needed:
Trip: Dinant -> Antwerp -> Ghent -> Rotterdam -> Hillegom -> The Hague -> Brussels
Cost: about $2,100, flight included (snagged a deal for $500)
Lodging: hotel in Antwerp, hostels in Rotterdam and Brussels (yes, at one point it was me and 30 French teenagers and yes, I felt old)
Highlights: Dinant citadel, MAS (museum in Antwerp), Ghent canals, Kinderdijk (windmills), tulips in Hillegom, The Hague in general, architecture in Brussels
Food recs: of course you must eat fries, chocolate, waffles, and beer, but also try international food. I had excellent Italian, Chinese, and Turkish, and the grocery store food was quite good too.
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