Headed for the train station once again, but this time we were going in the opposite direction towards Brussels, the seat of the European Union. We got off at the Brussel-Centraal station one of three different train stations you can get off at. (The double “aa” isn’t a mistake. Lots of words in Belgium have “aa.”) This can be very confusing and with my recent train luck it’s a good thing Rik was there. 
First stop: the Grand Place. A large flower market dominates the center, but the buildings surrounding it were highly impressive. We found the Hôtel de Ville, which resembles a church, and signed up for a guided tour. The ticket also got us into the Museum of Costumes & Lace and King’s House Museum, which is directly opposite the Hôtel de Ville, for free. The Museum of Costumes had a special exhibit on clothes from the 60s and the dresses and lace were just too cool. 
It was a quick visit because we needed to get to our tour at the Hôtel de Ville. 
During the tour, we saw various portraits of famous personages, like Napoleon Bonaparte, and the different rooms where affairs of the state take place, the Board room and Marriage room. I learned that Brussels was attacked by Louis XIV and in the process part of the Hotel de Ville was destroyed. On top of the tower is Saint Michel and his figure is located everywhere throughout Brussels because he is Brussels’ patron saint.
Second stop: the King’s House. Inside were paintings and sketches of Brussels through the ages. But the best part was the display of Manneken Pis (in Dutch: Little boy peeing). Manneken Pis is a small fountain a block from the Grand Place and it is a HUGE tourist attraction. At the museum they had his entire wardrobe and jeesh does he have a lot of clothes, over 800 outfits. 
I’m definitely jealous. He has costumes from everywhere and impersonates SO many people. The townspeople have dressed him up as Elvis, Mozart, Nelson Mandela, a Native American, an FBI agent, Dracula, a bunch of balloons, a German, a Thailander, etc. After seeing all the costumes we went to see the little man.
I’m definitely jealous. He has costumes from everywhere and impersonates SO many people. The townspeople have dressed him up as Elvis, Mozart, Nelson Mandela, a Native American, an FBI agent, Dracula, a bunch of balloons, a German, a Thailander, etc. After seeing all the costumes we went to see the little man. We were in luck because there was a lady in the middle of changing his clothes so I got a before-and-after shot. 
On this day he was from Portugal. The minute she finished and turned on the fountain, there was a raucous applause and the French man next to me declared, “Ça va mieux!” (That’s much better!). His statement was hilarious because in the museum we’d seen a film from the 90s showing different tourists’ reactions to the fountain and his response would have fit perfectly into the documentary.
On this day he was from Portugal. The minute she finished and turned on the fountain, there was a raucous applause and the French man next to me declared, “Ça va mieux!” (That’s much better!). His statement was hilarious because in the museum we’d seen a film from the 90s showing different tourists’ reactions to the fountain and his response would have fit perfectly into the documentary. 
Third stop: the Royal Palace and Brussels park. The present Royal Family doesn’t use it as a Royal residence, but it was still neat to see it. In fact the king lives in another castle (at Laken) which is in a suburb of Brussels. Brussels Park was so different from the French gardens. French gardens are well planned while this Belgian park still had some wildness about it. 
Fourth stop: MiniEurope. Basically like going to Disneyland and walking amongst the Storybook Land Canals.* Every country in the European Union was represented by at least one Lilliputian national monument. So now I don’t have to visit London or Barcelona or Rome because I’ve already seen their greatest monuments. Just kidding. If traveling and site seeing were just about seeing grand monuments, it wouldn’t be half as fun. Traveling is all about experiencing everything with all your senses. You want to see everything, yes, but just as important, if not more so, is feeling, smelling, tasting and listening to everything around you. 
That’s how you really get to know a place. Still MiniEurope was unbelievably cool and now I want to visit those places even more. It was especially amazing seeing the places I’ve actually been to: Chenonçeau, Ghent, Bruges, Brussels and Paris. 
Final stop: the Atomium. It resembles a gigantic iron atom (it’s 102 m or 335 ft tall) and was built for the 1958 World Expo. We took what was once the fastest elevator in the world to the very top where there is a restaurant and a panoramic view of Brussels. Afterwards we went into some of the other eight spheres via escalator or stair for an exhibit dedicated to World Expo 1958. 
It was funny watching the old cleaning product commercials for housewives—these women were mopping the floor in heels and dresses! On the walk back from the train station I told Rik that though I liked all the cities I’d seen, I preferred Ghent to them all.
He said a lot of people have said that because although Ghent is old, “C’est une ville qui vit” (It is a city which lives). Heidi
*Storybook Land Canals: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storybook_Land_Canal_Boats
Staircase in Hôtel de Ville
Napoleon
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