After arriving at our hotel on the outskirts of Brussels, we had about an hour to relax before heading to La Grand Place, Brussels’ main square. The buildings in La Grand Place are so incredibly beautiful and detailed. There was some sort of festival going on in the square. They had set up a dance floor and were blasting hip hop music. The juxtaposition of the historic buildings with the modern music was amusing. We walked to the Manneken Pis, the famous statue in Brussels. It was much smaller than any of us had expected!

After that, I grabbed a waffle from one of the many nearby waffle places with my new Australian friends. I have to say, the area around La Grand Place has got to be the best smelling place I’ve ever been. You can’t beat the smell of fresh waffles! The classic Belgian waffle is dusted with sugar, but I decided to go with a more touristy version that had sliced bananas, strawberries, and chocolate. It was heavenly!

In our remaining free time, we got some pictures, looked in a few shops, and most importantly, tried some Belgian chocolate! The entire group then met up for dinner. We had a three course prix fixe dinner of fried mussels, steak with French fries, and chocolate mousse. I had a local Belgian beer with my dinner. I was pretty impressed with myself for having tried all of the foods Belgium is famous for in the span of a few hours!

By this time, I was so full that I thought I would burst. It was nice to be able to walk around a bit more before heading back to the hotel. On the walk, I got to know a couple of people from South Africa. I’m having a great time meeting people from all over the world! A few people decided to stay out drinking in the city center instead of taking the bus back to the hotel. Most of us decided to get a good night’s rest because we are planning on going hard in Amsterdam tomorrow!