Belgium was wonderful. It is probably my favorite weekend so far in Europe, but I still have to explore lots more places! The Benjamin family was great, and I loved spending the weekend at their home. It was great to have a big comfortable bed and home cooked food. I had a nice break from the metro system because we drove in cars everywhere. It felt so different to be in a car, but it was a nice taste of home.
On Friday, Mr. Benjamin took us off to the Waterloo battlefield. Marcy and I ventured around to the different museums. We first watched two different movies about Waterloo; I was actually quite interested in it. We saw Lion Mound, the big monument with the lion at the top. After climbing so many stairs, you overlook the battlefields. It was a gorgeous sight of green pastures, and it was just so peaceful. You could also see Waterloo as well. I wanted to stay up their all afternoon. We grabbed some frites before heading into the museums. OH MY GOSH.. I have never had better fries in my life. Belgium is known for the best, and they sure have them. They eat them with mayo instead of ketchup too, and there are so many different sauces you can choose from. I never thought that fries would be good with mayo, but they are delicious. This is such a bad thing, since ketchup is way better for you than mayo.. ugh. We tired the sauce, andalouse, which reminds me of chick fila sauce or thousand island.. haha, but WAY better! The museums were quite boring and very small. I was not really impressed with them. Overall, I really enjoyed the amazing weather and gorgeous view from Lion Mound.
Shabbat dinner was Friday night, and boy was it amazing. I could not have been happier to have real home cooked food in front of me. They made chicken baked with bacon and cheese on top, green beans, baked potatoes, and of course Shabbat bread! Ahhh.. it was incredible. It was great to be at a dinner table with people that have such a huge heart for Christ. We decided to cruise to Brussels, and it wasn't so much a smooth cruise. After an hour and asking several people for directions, Allyster finally got us there.. haha. We walked around Grand Place as Allyster acted like our tour guide. It was great fun! We stopped by Mannequin Pis, the statue of a boy peeing. It was quite humorous. Brussels was an interesting city during the night, but I got to experience the whole next day too!
Marcy and I went to explore the city with Dana, and it was an awesome time! We spent our day around Grand Place; we got to see so much and eat amazing food! The first stop was the Brussels museum, which was three stories and full of art and history. At the top floor, there were so many costumes for Mannuequin Pis. The city dresses him up for specific occasion. There was this gangster outfit; it was my favorite.. haha. After, the Museum of Cocoa and Chocolate was waiting for us. This was an awesome experience. There was a guy hand making chocolates, and he gave a demonstration of it all. We got to sample some! Mmm.. so worth it. We walked around and found a waffle.. ummm.. I don't think I can express how amazing a Belgium waffle is. It's like heaven.. literally! Just the plain ones are the best! The brewery museum was next. We walked through an 18th century brewery and then a modern one. It was interesting to see; we even got to have a beer at the end! It was included in the price. Belgium is known for a cherry beer called, Kriek. It is so good and tastes just like juice. It doesn't even taste like you are drinking beer. So good that I bought some to bring back to Paris!
We walked around to different shops in Brussels and soaked in the city. Later in the day, the streets got really crowded. We went over to get the best frites in the city and this amazing pizza Dana suggested. You tell them how big of a slice you want and they actually weigh it for the price. Weird, but it was so good! I got one that had like zucchini and onions on it. Mmm. After we went over to her house to see Izzy; she is so cute and getting so big since I saw her last! Dana, being the amazing person she is, filled up so much goodies for me and Marcy. I have never met someone so generous than her. It was such a blessing! She filled us up with some much teavana, coffee (including dunkins!), VELVEETA (which Marcy and I indulged in tonight haha), and so much more! She is an angel, as Marcy says. I could not agree more. Cannot wait to see her next weekend in Paris!
Today, we relaxed before heading back to Paris. It was great to wake up in such a nice bed to coffee waiting downstairs. God blessed me so much this weekend. Mr. Benjamin took us over to Villers Abbaye. It was SO gorgeous and right in Waterloo. The weather was more than perfect, and it was a great way to end our time in Belgium. We rushed to the train station, and Mr. Benjamin said to run to the train because it was already there. Sadly, we missed it as we were running up the stairs. Everything worked out, and we caught the next one to Brussels! It was funny though because it was like a scene from a movie when we were running up to the train. I forgot to mention.. one of the little girls at the house asked the first night, "What are these humans doing here?" It was so funny.. hahaa. Her mom said she thinks humans are the same as adults, but still it was just so hilarious! I guess you had to be there, but I will never forget that! Oh, and Marcy got stuck in the metro door while trying to steal behind me. I literally had to pull her through, but the bad thing was that her luggage was stuck on the other side.. hahahaa! We finally found this woman to open it for us that worked there. She was lecturing us in French, but we didn't really know what she was saying. We have the best experiences in Europe, haha.
I am already having withdrawls from Belgium; the frites, waffles, beer, and amazing people. My weekend was well spent, and I am so thankful for such a great time! :)
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