10 Hours in Brussels
 

Though my entire stay in Belgium's pretty capital was 2.5 days in total, most of my time was spent cheering on our son's varsity basketball team in the tournament at ISB, but I was able to sneak some peeks of the medieval streets around Grand Place in between games.

One of my favorite perks of being an ex-pat is traveling to cheer on both of our students in their sports tournaments across Europe; I try to take advantage of the getaways whenever possible. Last weekend the sun was shining and the temperatures near 15°C each day. Not bad for early March.

I used points to stay at the Crowne Plaza Le Palace. "Meh" is my opinion of the hotel; good perhaps for the business traveler, but lackluster for a holiday. I used miles to fly from Vienna on Brussels Airlines. I understand that Brussels Airlines is a budget carrier; not offering so much as a glass of water without a charge was fine for a 90+ minute flight, but I would think twice before using the carrier for anything longer.

No report otherwise; just photos of chocolate stores dressed for Easter, Manneken and Jeanneke Pis, and other sights that caught my eye. And, no mussels in Brussels for me! My one and only sit-down meal was a Belgian version of my beloved French rotisserie chicken, at a sunny table on Grand Place in the waning hours of my final day. Dare I write that the Belgians seem to prepare rotisserie chicken better than the French? ;)

I hope you enjoy this brief peek of Brussels as much as I did!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fourfor...7642245869414/

Looks like you had a good 10 hrs! J Dandoy is reason enough to visit Brussels. You must have a good reason to skip Belgian mussels for rotisserie chicken though. The mussels are better in Belgium than in France too!

Thank you for sharing your pictures. They are beautiful, and I am compelled to add Belgium to my bucket list!

Ah the smell of horse-fat fried chips hanging in the air.

DAX, I don't know if it's a good reason, but I opted for the chicken because I have had mussels in Normandy and in Brugge, and, as it turned out, I found the only restaurant on Grand Place not offering them!