Brussels, Belgium

I got off the train in Brussels and wandered in search of a map. I couldn't find one anywhere, but i did find a wafel in the station...it was beyond delicious. Seriously. I'm not lying. I finally found a place called travel centre, but it was for international trains and what not so they didn't have a map. I made the reservation for my overnight train tomorrow night from Amsterdam to Munich while I was there. That cost 17.50 euro which is about the same as a hostel...probably a little less...but it does save me a lot of time. And time. Is. Money. Right?! The guy that helped me there was great, and he told me where to go. What I was looking for was pretty much right across the street.

So...I walked over. On the way, a scary man stopped me and asked me for money. I gave him .02 euro. A penny basically. Then i got away from him.

I turned the corner and BAM!! The Grand Place. Ho. Ly. Cow. Everything was so...huge. And ornate. And detailed. And amazing. And awesome. I remember reading that this place was voted the most beautiful square in Europe in 2010. Rightfully so. I got a few pictures, then I found the TI with a map. .50 euro.

Brussels is big. Much bigger than Bruges. It has a lot more everything. I didn't think this was possible, but it has more chocolate shops than Bruges. There were many waffle stands including little trucks selling them. The places I went were very touristy, but everyone was really friendly and happy. Except the guy I bought my souvenir magnet from.

I headed to the Manneken Pis which I had heard so much about.  Manneken Pis means "little man pee," and that's exactly what it is.  A small (2 feet) bronze fountain sculpture of a naked little boy peeing into the fountain's basin.  It's pretty crazy that I paid all this money to come see a peeing statue. Okay, so this wasn't the ONLY reason I came...but it was on my list of must sees! He has many costumes that he is dressed up in according to a certain schedule. I got to see him wearing Monaco's outfit.  The other outfits are in the city museum...the orignal Manneken Pis is also in there.  The one I saw was a copy (1695) because the original (1618 or 1619) got stolen a couple times and they needed to lock it up. There are several legends behind this statue. I was going to post them all but decided to just link up. They're kinda funny if you have a minute and want to read them!

Anyway...It was tiny. Like I had to squint to see it. Haha. He was cute. Even better were all the souvenir Manneken Pis' and the life size or chocolate Manneken Pis'. I just think it's hilarious. I'm so immature. :)

I wandered to the Place de la Chapelle, Palais d'Egmont, Musee Magritte, and Place Royal. The pictures don't do this place justice. Everything is ten times more grand than it looks. I walked down the Mont des Arts and back to Centraal Station. I found the next train to Amsterdam and went to the platform to wait. Two hours in Brussels is no where near enough time, but I'm glad I stopped by anyway.

I was never scared of getting robbed in Bruges, but Brussels was different. There were lots of suspicious guys around. I was a little nervous. I would always try and have my back against a building or post. Then I'd look up and see what I was leaning against and be totally fascinated. I dropped my "look like a local" facade in Brussels. Partially because I had my big backpack and partially because I just wanted to have my camera and map out the whole time.

My train left at 13:22. This train is like the Harry Potter trains. There are separate cabins with six chairs and a door in each. A lady even came by with a food/drink cart!

This place is truly magical.

Enjoy more scattered, random, unlabeled pictures: