Belgians really know Waffles

This weekend marked our first weekend out in Europe. Technically, our weekend started on Wednesday with American Night at one of the nearby bars. We got the chance to hang out, drink (responsibly) and really bond as a group. Then, after my one class on thursday and dinner at 6, Kristen, Cait, Genevieve, Jenna and I hopped onto a bus to Venlo, and then a train to Brussels. After arriving at 12:30 am, we realized that their "Tram" was no longer running. After being pursued by a crazy lady -  "Is Capital, Is Capital!" - we ran up the escalator and hailed a couple cabs nearby. One spoke english, so we had the other driver follow him and we arrived at our first hostel around 1. The 5 of us shared a room, but unfortunately there had been a 6th guy asleep when we arrived. We got ready all stealth-like, but no one could have anticipated the super squeaky bed frames. poor sleeping guy. 

Fast Forward to the next morning.

We went into the city pretty early, walked around and experienced the culture. We went to see the Manikin Pis (Peeing Boy) Fountain, which is exactly what it sounds like. The legend is a man lost his child in a crowd, only to find him peeing on a fire at the city walls. Supposedly it was set to burn the entire city, but in putting it out, the boy was a hero. It's a pretty awesome story, even though I doubt its truth. 

But the best part of this street was right next door, at a little waffle stand, where I tasted the most amazing Waffle ever. Really, it was like heaven - Warm and crispy and soft and fluffy inside.... ooh so good. From here we continued to walk around, we gazed at the Grand Palace, which is now a super-ritzy hotel, and eventually got some overpriced sandwiches for lunch. 

Later, we headed to the chocolate museum for 4 euros - it was pretty interesting, definitely worth the money, and we even got some free chocolate out of it. We spoke to a chocolatier who taught us how she makes pralines. Yum.

Anyyyways, we walked some more, saw a few cathedrals, and then headed to the Atomium - a giant Atom built for the world fair in the 50's - be sure to check out the photos to see it, as well as the view from the top. 

From here we took the train out to Brugges and checked into our hostel. We were all very hungry, and eventually settled on an amazing Greek place called "El Greco." Oh man... so good. I almost want to go to greece JUST for the food. Afterward, we went out to a bar, tried a belgian beer, then called it an early night around 12:30. 

To Be Continued.