chocolates Archives | Trip Experiences

Brussels, the place for beers, waffles and chocolate

When I hear Brussels, all that comes to my mind is beers, waffles and chocolates. I've been in Brussels seven times (all of them for business) most of the times visiting the European Commission. The first time I visited Brussels was in 201,0 and since then I go there every year. It’s the capital of the European Union which hosts the European Commission (my previous job was related to the EC), Council and Union. Getting to Brussels The city has two airports, Brussels Airport and Charleroi Airport (flights at this airport tend to be cheaper since it’s not in the centre of Brussels). From Brussels Airport, you can take the train to the city centre; the journey takes about 30 minutes and costs 8.50. If you get off at Charleroi, there’s a shuttle bus (10 euros) that takes about an hour to the Midi station. From there, you can get the metro to anywhere you wish within the city. Please don’t get a taxi from Charleroi to the Brussels city centre, it will cost you around 150 Euros. If you are reading this and you are from Cyprus, then you might know that Ryanair has cheap and direct flights to Brussels from Larnaca airport. I’ve stayed at five hotel,s including: HOTEL Bloom Pantone Chelton Alma Theatre My top choice is, of course, Hotel Bloom! Excellent rooms, very near the shops, and they provide you with a coffee machine in the room. Loved it and stayed there twice. Pantone and Chelton are my next two top choices compared to Alma (centrally located, but you cannot control the central heating yourself, you have to call reception all the time) and Theatre (in a rough area near the Red Light District, so avoid it, although it’s relatively cheap and friendly). Beers, Chocolates and Waffles Brussels is about beers, chocolates and waffles. Many stores sell a variety of chocolates, each with its own distinctive taste. Marcolini is renowned for its chocolates and is located at the Grand Place. Delirium is my favourite bar, offering more than 2,000 beers from around the world. They even have beer from Cyprus. Here, you can enjoy [...]

2 hour Express Trip to Bruges, Belgium

Bruges is a beautiful small town in the northern part of Belgium, in an area called Flanders. It's one of the best preserved cities in Europe and it's like a postcard. It's one of those cities that you can easily get around by foot and see the basic sights within a few hours. Have you heard of the movie In Bruges? If yes, this is the town the movie was filmed at. Getting to Bruges I was in Brussels and had a few hours free in the afternoon to get the train there. The train leaves every half an hour and it's around 1 hour journey from the central station. When I reached Bruges it took us around 15 minutes to walk to the city center. I visited on a cold rainy day however I managed to walk around and see the town within 2 hours. Things not to miss Markt is the Center of Bruges, the heart of the town. The historic part is beautiful. The square is nice with 'gothic' impressive buildings. This represents the identity of Bruges and if you search for Bruges most of the images that come up are from this square. Belfry is a bell tower in the square which is one of the city's prominent symbols. It used to host municipal archives and it was served as an observation point for spotting fires and danger within the city. Anyone can go on the top of Belfry with an entry fee of XX. Have in mind that there are 366 steps and the height its 83m. If you are in Bruges and want to take some nice panoramic photos then Belfry is the most suitable spot! Church of Lady is the tallest structure (tower) the city (122m). It illustrates Michelangelo's famous art, Madonna and Child and a lot of paintings. Buy some chocolate since the here are many chocolate shops with a high standard - what I mean? They are a bit pricey. Eat fites with mayonnaise, mussels or fricadellen (meatballs). Avoid having food near [...]