Arass Suite Inn Antwerp

... but stopped first at the supermarket close to Ann’s house to pick up some beer for the weekend. I only wanted to pick up the yummy cherry beer I like so much (Kriek) but I noticed that they also sold peach, lemon, apple and raspberry beer!! So I decided to get a few of each. Why not! The cherry beer is very good so I’m curious to see how these other beers will taste like.

... I don't know, I'd be more apt to get the Mickey Mouse pancake or toast maker myself! Antwerpen, or Antwerp (it seemed to be that you could call it either!) is the diamond capitol of the world. Some 90% of the world's diamonds come through here (a stat which I heard but did not verify). And, with that many diamonds, of course you can get them for cheap too. So take that 5k you were going to spend on a ring, and take a trip to Belgium, and use the ...

... out to the little nightlife area nearby. Chris was hungry again so we stopped for some food which was horrendous- we haven't really found good cuisine in Brussels so far aside from the waffles and Belgian beer. I think we have been eating in tourist traps though- the area looks kind of like Little Italy. After that we went back to our favorite Delirium bar from last time for some people watching before retiring somewhat early for our early train tomorrow.

... beautiful Central Station, only to find it under renovation (same as Brussels' Central Station, and as a whole host of other sites seemingly permanently covered in scaffolding... my theory is that it's to encourage postcard sales, but anyway...). Just outside the station, there's a line of fake elephants, which seem random except when you consider that the zoo is right behind the station. There are some really small ones in that line, and it ...

I took a night coach from london at 9:30pm, and i arrived in Brussels around 5; 6 am local time. Of course I dont have a room booked, and being that it's Saturday, most places dont open until later in the day. So i had some time to take a look around the city. I found a Bontanical garden with a perch overlooking most of it. Around 8 the sun came up behind me. That night i managed to find a room for the next few nights.

... that puts Amy's Ice Cream in Austin to shame, I'm sad to admit. There are about 20 different flavors of ice cream to choose from, which in and of itself is impressive, but its the presentation that was incredible. Scott and I chose to share the "American with Chocolate" (aptly named for it's size) which is nine scoops, yes NINE scoops of any flavors, doused in hot chocolate sauce, with a mountain of thick whipped cream on top. We had the ...

... around the quiet town, trying to make our way to the famous Antwerp Cathedral. We came to Grote Markt and the Town Hall. Where there are nicely decorated buildings. From here we could see the top of the cathedral. We walked around but did not have enough time to go in there today. We stopped at a chocolate shop. I got some mint chocolate- yes, finally I have been able to find something minty after 2 months!!! Cuaght the tram back to the hostel and ate minty chocolate.

... of Tangier, that I’ve often seen from the train window, which just so happens to be the biggest red-light area south of Amsterdam, not coincidentally in the Dutch northern area of town. *****s line the showroom windows just as if there were canals, smoking cigarettes and scratching their butts. The Muslim area sells the same Muslim accessories you’ ...

... know! Another thing that struck us different from back home was that the guy next to us was rolling a cigarette so he could have a smoke...and yes, while we were eating of course! By the way the guy was acting, we weren't sure it was a regular cigarette! They say that if the dish is unrecognizable, you may be eating a Flemish meal and I would say that what Ken ordered was definitely that. I think he received what was supposed to be a steak ...

... next morning we headed for breakfast, which was the typical spread with some really great hard rolls and Nutella...yummy! From there we grabbed the car and drove 2 minutes into town. It was as cute in the light as it looked under the cover of night. Just outside the parking lot was a tank left from the Battle of the Bulge (see Pic 2). We stopped into the tourist office to see what some of the attractions of the region are but didn't get much help. Most of the local attractions ...