Around the World in 80 Days: Beer, Chocolate, and other delights

For Josh's birthday we took a long weekend and spent it enjoying one of his favorite things...beer. What better place is there to go then Belgium? A place known for its delicious fodder. We arrived early evening, and spent the twilight beer tasting and exploring the Grand Place. On day two, we traveled to Ghent and Bruges and learned much about the political strife that divides this country. Our last day was spent in Antwerp, the diamond capital of the world.

Shop selling over 250 beers. Josh was in Heaven!

This is chocolate shaped like Brussels' famous whiz kid.

Grand Place at night. We wished we were there to see the infamous flower carpet. Other then here, Brussels is very industrial. We appreciate the tips to plan on venturing outside of Brussels during our stay.

The Grand Place was recently voted Most Beautiful Square. It certainly was Grand, although we were never here during the day.

It was during this tasting that I discovered all the wonders of Cherry Beer. Yum!

The Birthday Boy!

Grand Place in the background, surrounded by Belgium flags.

We found the Manneken Pis or Whiz Kid. Josh is mimicking him. We learned that if you find him during one of his costume changes, he pees beer.

Delicious waffles!

Celebrating our first night in Belgium.

In front of a canal in Ghent.

Ghent castle.

Charming cobbled footpaths. On this trip, we learned that Nationalism is not characteristic of Belgium. The people don't reference themselves as Belgians, but rather are defined by the language they speak: French or Dutch. Really the only thing that unites the people is a sports team.

Even though we weren't in Ghent during the "Light the Night" festival, it was fun to experience the setup. We first thought this was a massive lamp sale.

The Lake of Love.

In the 18th century, the houses in the background belong to a convent of women who lived there while their men were off at war. As you can see the are more relaxed on who they let in.

We felt like this statue pretty much summed up the way handsome cabs went through the city.

I always thought chocolate was chocolate. I was wrong!

Church of Our Lady

In the Church of Our Lady, there is a piece of cloth believed to contain Christ's Blood. People are lined up to touch the encased tube and to say a prayer.

Michelangelo's Madonna and Child.

View from the Belfry. The Belfry is featured in the movie In Bruge, we all know what happened here. For some reason the picture of the actual Belfry wouldn't download.