Brussels…and Antwerp?!
Thursday June 25, 2026
We stopped in a small town called Arlon after crossing the border and picked up some paninis for lunch. My French was immediately put to the test, but it wasn’t too difficult to communicate my order and payment details. We continued to Dinant, home of a beautiful cathedral by the Meuse River backed by a large cliff hosting a citadel on top. Unbeknownst to me until arriving, Dinant is also the birthplace of Adolfe Sax, the inventor of the saxophone. Several large saxophone art installations can be found around town, all painted in honour of a particular country, with most of them being found on the Charles du Galles bridge over the river.
An hour or two later, we were in Brussels. We checked out the Cinquantenaire Park, named for the 50th anniversary of Belgium’s independence, as well as the Berlaymont, the European Commision headquarters. We passed by a vegan protest and proceeded to the Leopold Quarter for some Lebanese food before retiring for the night.
On Tuesday, we went to the city center in search of waffles, chocolate, mussels and fries. Instead what we found when we got to the Grand Place was a ton of Japanese tourists. We ascertained that the Japanese Imperial Couple were due to meet with the Belgian Royals in a few hours, so we quickly covered some major sites like Mannekin Pis, the famous pissing boy statue, as well as his companion Zennekin Pis, a dog. We also saw the Tintin and Asterix & Obelix murals. We got back to the Grand Place with plenty of time to see everyone arrive and wave from the balcony of the Brussels Town Hall.
After lunch, we split up. I wanted to go to the Atomium but Andrew wasn’t keen so I headed off by myself. The building is incredible. It’s so much larger than you think it is. Each sphere is 18m in diameter, the top being the restaurant and observation deck, and three others holding light and sound art installations. It was originally constructed for the 1958 Brussels World Fair, a scale model of an iron crystal, and was never meant to be permanent, but still stands today, an icon of Brussels architecture and a nod to the steel industry. Dinner was at a Greek restaurant, possibly the best food we’d had so far on this trip. After sunset, I suggested we return to the Atomium to see it lit up at night, and so we drove back to admire the lights on the atoms.
Andrew had some loyalty points that were going to expire, and we figured there wasn’t that much to do in Brussels, so we cut short our visit by one day and instead booked in at the Sapphire House in Antwerp (part of the Marriott group!). I also managed to cancel our Airbnb in The Hague and we’ll be spending that at the Best Western instead. More than anything, I’m looking forward to having air conditioning as Europe struggles with an intense heat wave.
We left Brussels after having breakfast at IKEA and arrived in Antwerp on Wednesday morning. We covered the city center and some of the more famous buildings, and then we split up again; Andrew went to get a massage for a back injury that he sustained while trying to put on sunscreen. I was intending to head to the waterfront but I happened to pass by a cat cafe, so I went inside for a few minutes to enjoy a cold drink and the company of some adorable cats. I also went to see MAS in the north, and I got myself a Liege-style waffle. I was by myself for dinner as well, and enjoyed a relatively cheap Persian meal.
Posted by Jeremy at 7:45pm on Thursday June 25, 2026 :: 0 comments :: 