Belgium – the la la chocolate land !

   

Architectural excellence- that's Brussels

Belgium was the last country of our trip. There are many facts that come into mind while we spell – BELGIUM. A vibrant country meant for football, cycle race, glass work, chocolates and many more. We were assigned a one day trip. In this hectic schedule our tour guide managed to show us the top attraction that makes this country a special one. This beautiful city suffered terrorist attacks in recent past. We observed tight security everywhere.

              

Atomium

Our first halt was the Atomium, avenue de L’atommium. This huge structure was constructed in 1958 , engineered by Andre Waterkyn and architect Jean Poland ; this 102 meters tall structure huge atoms made from iron and huge escalates join them; this makes the city unique from others. We had enough time to do some photography session in front of the iconic building.

          

Inside atomium

 A trip inside atomium will cost 6 Euros per child and 12 Euros per adult. It’s enjoyable but visitor’s comments were like – the trip not worth the time taken to explore the entire structure. I managed to get some pictures form co-travelers who went inside atomium and sharing for my readers. The entry tickets could be purchased online as well.

    

Manekann Piss- lots of stories 

Next we were taken to the famous place- Manekann piss. It’s a 24 inch long bronze made structure of a little boy that’s urinating to a fountain basin. There are various stories regarding this famous structure. One the story goes like- this little boy saved the city by diffusing a bomb by peeing on it. So that statue made in 1619, sculptured by Hieronimus Duquesnoy was actually a tribute in memory of the boy. There are various other beliefs on other stories regarding this statue but this is the most popular one. The stories are interesting enough!

   

Chocolates in retails outlets

We were taken to retail outlets who are dealing into chocolates. It was just fantastic to see so many varieties of chocolates under the same roof. In fact we had a mini breakfast with chocolates bars sold in terms of weight. But too many chocolates curbs down one’s sweet tooth. My children had lunch with chocolate waffles.

          

Belgium chocolates- that's why chocolate land!

We were taken on a walking tour to Galerie de la Reine which is must stop for chocolate lovers in Brussels. The shops that luxuriously displayed chocolates across transparent windows will surely provoke you to make a handsome purchase of the top flavors like- milk crème, cocoa, mint and chili. Before visiting Brussels I had no idea that chocolate could be combined with other flavors to suit various taste buds.  It was like an exciting chocolate tour.

      

Gallerie de la Reine- the 19th century shopping mall 

  

Floral carpet- beautiful event at Grand Place

There are various other places of interest that we could not make due to lack of time.

The Grand Place, a UNESCO world heritage center is the main attraction of Belgium. During mid August, the place is decorated with almost 750,000 begonias which make the world’s largest floral carpet. The place was once the main market place of medieval history.

        

Comic strip 

Comic strip situated at Waucquez warehouse is a collection of over 5,000 original cartoon masterpieces. Belgium is famous for conceiving the famous comic character ‘Tintin’. Famous cartoonist Herge and creator of Tintin has left his foot marks here and has presented the most memorable characters like- Captain Haddock and Professor Calculus.

There were various other places of interest like- Palais du justice , Royal museum of Fine arts and musical instrument museum in Brussels which I could not cover due to lack of time but I will suggest others to visit. Belgium, known for hand -made glass works is one of the top notch places of interest. In case you have interest to look at the process of glass making then a guided visit to one of those is a must. That might cost you 30 Euros extra but without that tour the trip is almost incomplete.

This was my finishing trip. I hired some photos from my traveler friends who visited the place.

  

Commercial buildings in Brussels.

 My next destination was Paris and from there we will be packing for our final destination. The day was excellent for me- breakfast at Amsterdam, lunch in Brussels and had dinner in Paris. There is nothing more exciting than exploring unknown places and experiencing unknown culture. I wish I could earn a lot, eat a little and fulfill my destination to travel around the world before I die. With some cherished golden memories I was eagerly waiting for the next trip and quench my thirst of being a global traveler.