The Best Waffles, Beer, Fries and Chocolate: Can it Get Any Better?

When we moved to Germany, I will admit I never had Belgium as a bucket list place to go. I had heard of Brussels from my brother and sister in law who went there on their honeymoon European adventure, and I had heard of Belgium waffles, but that was about it! Three trips to Belgium in a year should be evidence enough that I LOVED it! Brussels and Bruges - two Belgian cities that have captured my heart.

Brussels

This city was one of our first cities we visited outside of Germany in our year and a half living abroad. The buildings in the main square, the Grand Place, lined with gold, were the most amazing thing we had ever seen! There was even a parade happening when we were there with a big mechanical dragon, which definitely caught our kids eyes.

Speaking of kids, this city has so many great activities for kids! The Mini-Europe was adorable. It showed all of the European countries and things that made them special. So much of it stuck with us as we traveled to several of those countries to see the life-size version! The Atomium was unique and an amazing piece of art as well as a fun attraction. Train World was fascinating. Going during COVID, we couldn’t get on the trains like they allowed before and now, but standing beside massive trains old and new, touching them and learning about them, it was truly incredible.

One unique thing in Brussels, is finding the “peeing statues”. Mannequin Pis is famous and you will find all kinds of trinkets of it in the gift shops. There is also a Jeanneke Pis (peeing girl) and a Zinneke Pis (peeing dog) adding a fun scavenger hunt to your city tour. The artwork including comics on buildings throughout Brussels is fun to see as well!

We ate our way around Brussels - the Belgian fries, the waffles, the chocolate, the beer. While not the healthiest weekend, it was DELICIOUS and worth every bite!

In a second trip to Brussels, we added in another incredible and what I feel is a must-do experience in Belgium - making our own waffles! Experiences are something that last a lifetime and this experience was definitely one of those! On this trip we found a fantastic playground for kids - such a perfect break in the day when traveling with kids!

One bonus tip that I haven’t personally seen, but have added to my bucket list is seeing the flower carpets. Every other August in the Grand Place a flower carpet is created like the picture shown here (which was taken at Mini-Europe).

Bruges

While Brussels had beautiful architecture and so many fun things to experience, another city that was beautiful albeit in a different way was Bruges. This city had a romantic “Venice of the North” feeling with canals and bridges everywhere. We took a canal boat tour, walked around and relaxed soaking it all in. We also enjoyed eating the amazing Belgian food around; one of our favorites that we didn’t try the first time we went to Belgium is Mussels and fries!

Belgium has so much more to see and do. I highly recommend exploring these cities and others such as Antwerp, Ghent and more!