We woke up a little early on Wednesday. Somewhere around 7-ish. I love getting up around that time (read: this). Anyways, we heaed over…and yes, I slept in the car. When we got there everyone was running around. Better yet, everyone was a tourist. I didn’t feel like a loner anymore.
Before we left, the night before Marta and I were talking and she mentioned something about Bruges, Belgium being called the “Venice of the North”. The canals aren’t as vast, and the entire city isn’t floating, but it’s there. Everything is so awesome over there. A large chunk of the population is Flemish. Naturally, their lifestyle is put into the community, so the main way to go from Point A to Point B is by bicycle. This is probably why everyone in the region is fit too. Anyways, here’s a couple of shots.
This picture actually shows one of the smaller collections of bikes in the city. Trust me, they get pretty big.
A tour on the canals showed many of the nice features of living there as well as some of the history behind the city.
The most important part of our tour, and he’s hard at work.
One last shot before we left.
Next stop, Brussels, Belgium. This city is where the European Union headquarter is at. Brussels was once a fortress town centuries ago. Today, it’s a thriving urban city filled with it’s 1.8 million inhabitants.
This was once a train station and was turned into a shopping gallery. All sorts of goodies were found here. 🙂
Yes…this is a statue of a naked boy peeing in a fountain. There’s actually quite a bit of history and purpose behind this little guy. He’s called the Manneken Pis. There’s a whole bunch of rumors surrounding why he’s gracing us with his goods and…talent. The people of Brussels like to dress him in a bunch of outfits throughout the year. Check it out here. The site isn’t in English, but just look at the photos. I’m pretty sure you’ll be able to figure out who Manneken Pis is trying to impersonate. The flowers in the picture were to give respect to the Belgian 9/11 victims.
Later we stopped by Haagen Dazs to break our diet even further. Honestly, a day in Europe wouldn’t be complete without breaking the diet. 🙂
Before we left we had to get a shot of the Belgian Palace, which is where King Albert II lives.
Anyways, that’s it for now. We have to hit the hay. We arrived in Paris, France today. We got a couple really good shots around the city. Enough about that. You’ll hear all about our experience here when the time comes. Good night! We’ve got a long day ahead of us tomorrow.
-Rudy&Marta
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P.P.S. I think I’m starting to get addicted to cigarettes over here. Everyone’s doing it. Second hand smoke is very addictive.
P.P.P.S. Let us know if there are any issues with this post. The Wi-Fi over here sucks, so things don’t load right. I’m afraid things won’t upload right either. Don’t hesitate to say something. 🙂
