L'albergo e la strada

Some fun things found whilst wandering...

So to begin the recounting of my Belgian tale, I think it's best to start with our general wanderings. Some of the best finds are the ones that you stumble across, not the ones you go looking for.

First, our hotel. It had The Shining written all over it. I was waiting for two little girls to appear at the end of the hallway and ask me to come play with them. There weren't any lights in the stairwell, and our window faced a covered courtyard - if you could call it that. It was just big enough to fit a fire escape, and probably a few heroin addicts if you looked hard enough. Usually they're too emaciated to see in such dim lighting. The icing on the cake was the trap door on the ceiling of our bathroom, which probably kept the dead bodies from falling out of the ceiling. The hotel itself was in a fantastic neighborhood, surrounded by strip joints and x-rated movie houses/bookstores. Classy in a very esoteric sense. If I ever have children, I will definitely bring them back to this family-friendly hotel. After all, everyone needs to learn how to shower in a tub that doesn't have a curtain or a shower-head affixed to the wall. It's just like washing your dog in a metal tub in the backyard with a hose, only you're the dog.

Needless to say, we wandered away from the hotel for most of our time in Brussels. The pictures above are mostly from a park we found and the surrounding streets. There was a restaurant in the middle of the park that had everything that I want in my restaurant that I plan on opening when I "retire." My plan is to own a restaurant in my old age to give me something to do between writing my books (and a place to get a nice roasted goat cheese sandwich and cup of coffee while I write!) They took this old garden building/shed and renovated the inside into a chic, modern café. Outside there were tables and chairs where attractive, well-dressed Belgian couples and their equally dapper children were eating/playing. There were dogs, Peter Pan sculptures, and grandmas. Everything I could ask for. I may just plan a forceful takeover of that restaurant to save me time. The bottom two pictures are from a sign that was outside the restaurant. I wanted to go back for brunch the next morning, but my travel companions weren't in the mood; it was 25 euro... but all you can eat - which for me is a lot - and included fruit, yogurt, parfaits, nutella, cheeses, crêpes, eggs, salads, lox and other select seafood, baguettes and pastries, the works. Next time I'm in Brussels I'm going if it means I have to go by myself.

Ciao Bella!

Matteo "Belgian-Brunching" Yazge