Brussels Part Deux
We started Tuesday morning with breakfast at Buddy Buddy coffee shop. The shop crafts organic nut butters from peanuts, almonds, and hazelnuts and uses them as the basis for their drinks and pastries. Amanda had a praline hot chocolate and a chocolate, peanut butter, & sea salt cookie (right). I had a praline mocha and pain au chocolat. The cookie was great, the drinks were velvety and delicious, but it was the pain au chocolat that stole the show. It was the perfect mix of flaky and dense richness that easily rivaled the traditional version. The perfect way to start the day!
We hoped back on the metro and then walked to the European Parliament.
The metro then delivered us to the Monument du Cinquantenaire which commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Belgian Revolution, when the independent Kingdom of Belgium seceded from the Netherlands.
On average it rains 200 days a year in Belgium, which calculates out to 55% of the time.
Apparently, we managed to defy all odds by having four consecutive warm and sunny days to explore the city.
This Golden Retriever was loving life chasing a stick his owners threw into the fountain in Parc de Bruxelles.
Belgium Chocolates—the perfect afternoon snack. Item #4 ✅ ✅ ✅ ✅
The Royal Palace of Brussels.
The Brussels-Capital Region is governed by the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, which includes a Minister-President and four ministers, two of whom are French-speaking and two Dutch-speaking, along with three State Secretaries, at least one of whom must be Dutch-speaking.
Such beautiful buildings.
Mont des Arts
Then it was finally time to visit Manneken Pis (Dutch for Little Pissing Man).
The little guy is continually changing his costumes. Today he was dressed in an outfit representing Actiris, the regional employment office in Brussels.
He has had so many outfits over the years that there is an entire museum nearby dedicated solely to his many outfits.
On the side of the museum is a mural celebrating 30 years of Pis.
The side of this restaurant reads: Drink. Eat. Pee—which pretty much sums up life.
We ended the day with dinner at Liu Lin. Amanda had the Crispy Chicky Bowl (right) and I had Liu’s Coconut Curry (left), with a side of veggie prawn crackers. It was a delicious way to end the day. In case you’re wondering, we had chocolates for lunch, a waffle as an afternoon snack, fries and beer for dessert—all four Belgium food groups were enjoyed on day deux!
