Earlier this month, Tonje and I invaded—er, visited—Brussels, the capital of Belgium, and the capital of Europe, for that matter. When my co-worker first heard about our plans, her initial reaction was a puzzled, “What’s in Belgium?”
“Chocolate,” her husband supplied. “Belgian chocolate.”
“Oooh.” She nodded in understanding. “That’s right.”
It isn’t a major tourist destination, for sure. While getting ready for our trip, I’d scanned the local bookstore’s travel section. There were only four or five guidebooks that named a Belgian city, and out of those, only three contained anything substantial. Most guidebooks on Belgium will list a combination of any three of its cities—Brussels, Bruges Ghent, Antwerp, Waterloo—complete with maps. The reason for this is that, well, frankly, the place isn’t that huge. You can cover a lot of ground on foot, and these cities aren’t more than an hour’s train ride away from each other.
Nor is the country as jam-packed with tourist sights as its other European neighbors, so you should definitely know ahead of time what you intend to do and see in Belgium. Otherwise, you might wind up like the baffled lady who stopped us at the train station, just as we were to catch the next ride to the airport, and asked the loaded question of, “What is there to do here?”
Whether you’re planning an excursion to Brussels yourself, or are intending only a short stop before continuing on your way to Paris or Amsterdam, here are seven things you should know about this capital of the European Union.
1. Brush up on that French!
Yes, they’ll tell you that Brusselians can speak all three languages—French, English, and Flemish (Dutch)—but a more appropriate word would be “should.” French, we noticed, appears to have first preference in Brussels. Such a suggestion will not sit well with a lot of Belgians, considering the language issue remains a hot and controversial topic in the country. All the street signs, museum placards, and even fast-food menus have both French and Flemish translations on them. But even Caroline—Tonje’s friend who lives just outside the city and who showed us around one day—remarked with great irony, “Everyone is supposed to know both French and Dutch, but most of them speak just French.” While visiting the Museum of Cocoa and Chocolate—where you can get free samples, by the way— a show-and-tell session was conducted entirely in French.
English translations aren’t as common unless you’re in museums or areas commonly populated by tourists. So if you stray from the central, popular areas for a breath of fresh air, be warned: English translations aren’t always available. There was one incident on the first day of our arrival when Tonje and I engaged in various degrees of sign language and sheepish smiles in order to acquire dinner. It was a little embarrassing at the time, but when we achieved our goal of food, our famished selves savored every bite.
Luckily, between Tonje and myself—I with my rusty French, she with the ability to read Flemish as a mangled version of Norwegian— we managed to muddle our way through and figure out where to go or what we were eating. Lest I give the impression that the city unwelcoming to visitors who don’t know either language, though I’d like to quickly point out that in the major areas, people do speak English quite well. And no matter whether you’re in the heart of the city or in the farther-off vicinities, whether either of you know the language or have to resort to your own version of sign language, no snootiness will greet you if you happen to run into stumbling blocks. Brusselians are kind to hapless visitors, no matter which language we mangled.
2. You’ll know the mushrooms
Brussels is not a big tourist trap, which is both a good and a bad thing. You won’t have to battle your way through huge crowds in order to peer at a distant painting or statue (though trying to get up close to Manneken Pis on a Saturday is still something to think twice about). On the other hand, entrance and directional signs aren’t always big and obvious; you may end up walking around an entire block trying to find access to a building, especially if surrounding areas are under construction and “alternate entryways” have been made. Tram stops aren’t always clearly listed, so get a metro-and-tram guide to help. Just keep a sharp eye out and know the address of your destination, and you’ll have a better time of it.
Not being a major destination also means plenty of graffiti and “tagging” around the city. Janneken Pis, the female counterpart of Manneken Pis, is surrounded by such tags in the secluded off-street where it’s kept. When we went to see it, it was behind lock and key to discourage vandals. An occasional detour could bring you past a stench of urine. Brussels would be wise to invest more in preserving its architecture and design—the graffiti and littering at Place de l’Albertine, for example, located next to the Royal Museums of Fine Arts, could spoil the mood after you’ve just come out from enjoying centuries-old artwork.
You’ll definitely know the tourist spots, though. Grand Place has what I laughingly call “mushrooms,” in which visitor groups huddle together as they gaze in wonder around them, forming a mushroom-like appearance. And tourist spots aren’t all that bad—sometimes, you just want to collapse onto a chair and be surrounded by those as new to the city as you are.
3. These boots are made for walking
Well, do you really want to be wearing boots? Only if they’re mighty comfortable, and then some, I can tell you that. There is an abundance of cobblestone streets in Belgium, and while it paints a gloriously pretty image, it can also mean sore tootsies if you’re not careful. Choose your shoes wisely. Rubber-soled are best: tennis/canvas shoes, sports shoes, walking sandals, etc. After a hearty morning of exploring the city, Tonje was rewarded with blisters. Luckily, she had brought along an alternative pair of footwear in her handbag, and I had band-aids ever ready. She was able to while not cure the state, at least remedy the situation on the spot. Just make sure if your shoes haven’t been proven to withstand plenty of walking that you’re prepared to do the same thing.
4. Sit as you please
Ready to eat? Walk up to and settle at any cafe or restaurant table. In the US, you’re usually expected to be shown to a seat. In Malaysia, you can choose where to sit, while the restaurant host or hostess dutifully follows you to note your spot. In Belgium, just pick your table and make yourself comfortable. Eventually somebody will arrive to take your order. Be prepared to wait however long it takes, however—Belgians take their time enjoying a meal. This means you certainly can rest your feet as you dive into a good dish, and you might also have to wait several minutes before being able to flag down a waiter to ask for the check.
On the subject of meals, make sure you time yourself. What do I mean by this? Basically, ensure you know when you’re scheduled to eat. Cafes and restaurants tend to not serve entrées between 2pm to 5pm, or even to 6pm, so think twice about that “late lunch” or “early dinner.” Otherwise, you might end up desperately hungry in the middle of the afternoon and find nowhere that serves meals.
In short, make sure you eat when it’s lunchtime, and if you’re used to early dinners, snack on a waffle or Belgian fries in the afternoon to tide you over. Or hang out at a cafe—a drink, ice-cream and the view from the top of the Museum of Musical Instruments is always an option.
Also, this goes for no matter what country or city you’re in: drink plenty of water and juices! The last thing you want to do is get dehydrated, sunstroke, a sore throat, or general lethargy when you’re on vacation.
5. Fire in the hole
Good luck on finding strictly non-smoking areas, because there are few clearly enounced zones stating the like. Unless you happen to be inside a museum or government building, you run the chances of someone lighting up at the table next to you. For those of you who are asthmatic or severely allergic to cigarette smoke, be warned. This is not restricted to Belgium, either; even the airport in Amsterdam, while specifying a smoking area, doesn’t actually contain that area in any sort of room. It’s as if one is supposed to assume the smoke won’t travel through the air to the rest of the terminal.
While this isn’t meant to discourage you, to be forewarned is to be forearmed. Depending on your health and level of tolerance, bring along your inhaler, be prepared to flee to more hallowed ground (and fresher air), or take it in as another aspect of social behavior.
6. Dog’s best friend
Brussels is unabashedly a dog-friendly city. You won’t go five minutes without seeing someone walking his or her dog, and why would you? I even saw a couple bring their dog into a fast-food restaurant. I doubt this is a typical case, as pets aren’t commonly allowed into public places where food is served, but they weren’t told to leave, either. It’s definitely good for dog-lovers. However, if you have allergies, you might want to check ahead to make sure your accommodations don’t have dogs (or at least have dog-free sections), and pack your medicine just in case.
7. Bring that brolly!
We were fortunate to be graced with bright sun and fine weather for almost our entire trip, but Belgium is known for rain, rain, and rain. Bring that compactible umbrella with you, or have a raincoat (a fashionable one, of course) handy. Tonje and I were spoiled by the oodles of sunshine we had in Brussels, so we didn’t realize our good fortune until we made a little side-trip to Bruges and were greeted by a veritable downpour. Bruges is a gorgeous town graced with countryside and canals, and we would’ve loved to have been able to see more of it if we hadn’t been soaked to the skin.
The ironic thing is that I had packed an umbrella—I’d just failed to bring it when we took the train to Bruges. A scattering of rain made its way to Brussels in time for our return, but we managed to get home to dry off and munch on our take-away dinner. So no matter where you go or how spoiled you get, bring that brolly!
Hopefully the above will prepare you should you decide to visit Brussels in future. But regardless of what you like or don’t like, see or don’t get to see—whether you know what you want to see (again bringing to mind that lady at the train station)—just remember to have fun and not take yourself too seriously. That’s the key to get you through whatever mishaps you may encounter, and to double the enjoyment you do gain when everything goes right.
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