I first met Dee sometime in September 2019 as we were starting our Erasmus in our student accommodation, Fraternita San Damiano in a historic town called Ravenna, Italy. It may seems like a compulsive travel plan but we made it to Belgium in just 2 months later! We both loved how beautiful Belgium is and made great memories together. I must say, from this trip I learned that Dee is that one friend you can rely on any situation (yes, after a couple of sips at the Delirium Café...). I am so excited to write about our trip, share awesome photos and recommend the hostels where we were staying.
Why Belgium?
I can't remember the reasons why we chose Belgium but it could be because of €10 flight with Ryanair that we both didn't mind the least. It was probably one of the most random countries to choose but we both haven't been to so we went for it. Besides, the photos we found on Google are awesome so we began planning the trip. Brussel, Ghent, Bruges and Antwerp were the main cities and we're interested to visit. I remember how well connected Brussel is with trains, buses.. the main issue was probably we were a bit disoriented due to the lack of signs! One of the underground stations was chaotic for me because the doors of the tube is open on both ramps. I am used to a one-way directed flow of people but it wasn't like that in that particular station. We were never lost though. Google Map is everything. :)
Day 1: Brussels, Bruxelles
So we took the flight from Bologna to Charleroi ("schar-le-rwa") Airport at the outskirt of Brussel on 20th November 2019. The timing of the flight was comfortable and as we arrived there was a frequent shuttle buses that costs €17 per way to reach the centre of Brussel in about an hour.
We booked a simple dorm, Hostel Galia for the night which was supposed to be 6-beds female dorm ensuite but to our surprised there was a guy occupying one of the bed. It was weird but not really because it was 4 beds in a room and some more beds in another adjacent room (where the guy was staying) but he was sharing the bathroom in our room. I don't think we liked this hostel very much. We walked far and felt like the location is dodgy and darkly lit to get to the hostel. But Dee is from Kenya so she told me she can deal with anything. I booked this hostel due to its location being in between the city's attractions, Grand Place and Mannekin Pis and the train station as we need to catch a train up north to Ghent the following day. That was €53.94 for the both of us per night. The room was actually nice, private and comfortable.
So, one of the first places we went in Brussels are the Atomium, Mannekin Pis and the whole tourists' streets en route to the Grand Place, Delirium Café and a random street market we passed by to get to the Brussels Central Station.
The Atomium is one of the most interesting structure I have ever seen. It was originally constructed for the 1958 Brussels World Expo, and made into a permanent landmark after an extensive renovation 2004-7 that changed the material from aluminum to the shiny stainless steel. At 102 m high we've got the best panoramic view of Brussels.
Brussels was the first city we visited and it sets up such a high mood for the both of us. We planned the trip not expecting anything and ended up being so amazed by how beautiful this city truly is! I remember the moment we walked into the Grand Place (it was like a huge square surrounded by 'gingerbread houses' on the cobblestones road) at night and the lights all around us made it looks more majestic. Our jaws both dropped at that very moment we arrived at the Grand Place. It was hilarious as we exchanged looks with each other and were left with no words to describe the charm of this place.
It also baffles us to see this Mannekin pis and Jennikin pis statues, souvenirs, chocolates, t-shirt and trinkets. Why and how did this obsession over a little boy and girl pissing? We never understood it til this day no matter how much we read it online. The story of Manneken Pis varies but it is indeed, the best-known symbol of the people of Brussels.
S W E E T S & T R E A T S
Now this is what I'm talking about. I've heard of Belgian chocolates all over but never in my life I've seen so much sweets and treats until we got to Belgium. The tourist street where the Mannekin pis is located and on the way to the Grand Place, is the sweet-tooth haven for all you know! The waffles, macaroons, candies are on display on every store and imagine the smell of freshly made, warm waffles in that damn cold November night! WOW. and the toppings are everything you can dream of.
Day 2: Bruges and the medieval city of Ghent
Moving on north, we took less than an hour train ride from Brussels Central Station all the way to Bruges. It was €6.60 per trip which I got to enjoy being under 26 years old at the time (while Dee paid €14.40, oops!). We didn't know what to expect in Bruges but for Ghent, we know that a big university is located there. We arrived around dinner time so we didn't explore the city much and proceeded to our hostel.
Bruges
We added Bruges because one of our friend has recommended it to us and we figured to walk around for half-day/few hours and stay the night in the nearby city of Ghent. Since Bruges is small, but a historic city centre and a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO, we thought this was the best way. We got lunch and caught sunset before taking a short train to Ghent.
Bruges is sometimes called "Venice of the North" as it is made up of lot of small canals. Here is Dee modeling for me (and yes, we took the opportunity to shop at Primark while we're in Brussel!):
Bruges for me was quiet and at some streets it was just us. It was enough to explore around by foot. We went to the Markt square, which has been around since 958.
We said bye to the little town of Bruges and enjoyed the soft sunset view.
We took a half an hour train to Ghent.
Ghent
Let's begin about our hostel, Hostel Uppelink.
For me, this hostel is so awesome that it could well be the best hostel I have stayed so far. I want to thank Dee for this gem again. This is the view from our room, 8-beds female dorm:
For the price of €44.44 for 2 people per night was a fair price. The location is prime and we even booked a free walking tour affiliated with the hostel. The free 2 hour tour by Younis was all we need to learn all we can about the city's history, attractions and charms. The city was the Medieval version of Switzerland with plenty of trading happened, guilds, CSR money paid to monks, witches, tortures, dragon statue in their tallest tower to indicate itself as a free city governed by a council, not a king.
Cheapest Friday market and specialty 1.3l beer which comes in a Coachman glass (has a round bottom and a stand to hold it in). Younis was very, very good and we enjoyed the tour so much that we went to some of the places he mentioned for us to go. For example, we had the BEST french fries (I swear) with this ancient, local seller named "Philippe" who's been frying probably the past 50 years or so. French fries is apparently from Belgium too 🍟.. It was "french" fries because french is widely spoken in Belgium.
We also learned that the top 5 languages spoken in Belgium are French, Arab, English, Dutch and Flemish. I can only remember bits and pieces of the stories and legends shared by the guide but Ghent was once a thriving port and a very rich city during the medieval time. All the pieces of gold statues on top the gingerbread buildings found not just in Ghent, but in many other cities in Belgium could very well once represented the rich guilds and families that used to rule and operate the towns.
We had a nice stroll around the city looking at the unique architecture, learning the histories and took lots of photos to last forever.
Day 3: Antwerp, the centuries-old Diamond District.
We took the final train of the trip from Ghent to Antwerp that took about an hour. We checked into Antwerp Hostel which was situated right in the middle of the city. We paid €54 for 2 people per night in a 4-bed female dorm. Coming from Bruges and Ghent to Antwerp was like a time warp because it was a lot more modern in Antwerp. Less medieval/Gothic architecture rather gave us a sense of a big city. Our hostel was very nice but was a little tricky to find. And the thing about diamonds? Yeah so every corners of Antwerp you will see diamond shops.
We did the free walking tour, learned the history of the city and went to some of the main attractions. Our guide, Veronica, as she told us everything we need to know about the diamond trading and the diamond heist, fashion capital, guilds and the golden Manneken pis statue, earliest printing press in Europe, Reuben's painting and Antwerp being Europe's second largest port after Rotterdam. The most interesting is the "Ant-" Hand and "Werpen-" Throwing folklore which is the hand of the giant being thrown off by Silvio Bravo. ✋
We find it expensive in here but if you're into shopping then Antwerp is probably the best for you. There was a lot of art installations all around the city and a huge shopping strip connected to the Antwerp Central Station. The station itself is an attraction, just come inside and admire the grandeur.
Nello and his dog Patrasche are the main characters in the 1872 novel A Dog of Flanders. They often visit the cathedral, where Nello admires the paintings by Rubens. Our guide said they died from the cold ... but the message here is pride and unconditional friendship. The story is very famous in Japan and lots of Japanese tourists visit.
At the end of the day, we took a bus from Antwerp to Charleroi that costed us €18 each for 2 hr ride.
Summary of our itinerary:
20th November 2019
- Departed Bologna, Italy to Charleroi, Belgium.
- Took a bus to Brussels city centre.
- Explored Brussel and stayed the night at Hostel Galia for €27 per person.
21st November 2019
- Took a train to Bruges to sight see and grab lunch.
- Took a train to Ghent and stayed the night at Hostel Uppelink for €22 per person.
22nd November 2019
- Explored Ghent and did a free walking tour.
- Took a train to Antwerp and stayed the night at Antwerp Hostel for €27 per person.
23rd November 2019
- Explored Antwerp and did a free walking tour.
- Took a bus to Charleroi Airport.
- Arrived to Bologna, Italy by nighttime.
Thanks so much to my travel buddy, Dee for being so amazing and fun! Belgium was so cold and we had to buy some more warm layers as it was nothing like the mild Bolognese weather. Belgium is an impressive country to visit with lots of attractions, over 2,000 beers to select from, the sweets and treats of waffles, candies, chocolates, french (belgian) fries, gingerbread houses and very old histories.
