A TRIP SOUTH

after being in the netherlands for close to two months, it was time to take a trip out of country. natasha, hanna, laura and i decided on belgium which is a short train ride away. we had heard amazing things about the city of brugge and antwerp is even closer. so on wednesday morning we met at the train station and headed to brugge.

there was so much to see in brugge! we had heard from many that it was a very romantic city, and you immediately got that sense. however, even for four girls the city had a lot to offer. a tower with 366 steps (stairway to heaven) allows you a view of the city of brugge. the church of the holy blood has a cylinder on display apparently containing a few drops of jesus' blood. a country known for chocolate and fries holds a museum for each in the city of brugge, not to mention the dozens of chocolate shops that line the streets. and most importantly: belgian waffels. brugge is definitely a city not intended for dieters ;). we also spent quite a bit of time eating cheap greek food, playing dutch blitz and discussing various controversial topics :). thursday evening we were introduced to various belgian beers by ky, a new yorker who works at the hostel in which we were staying.

on friday morning we took the train to antwerp. my first impression? largest and nicest train station ever! i wish i had taken a picture! it was absolutely beautiful! and surrounding the train station? numerous restaurants and pubs, a zoo and the diamond museum. you barely need to leave the station in order to keep yourself busy. however, we needed to find our hostel. while we thought it was close to the centre, it turns out they recently moved and thus the hostel reviews were useless. we were a 15 minute walk from the city centre. normally, this would not be a problem; however, it wasn't the greatest area of the city and there were some shady characters lurking the streets. one the whole, antwerp was a disappointment to me. it didn't help than many of its attractions were closed (i.e. the fashion museum, the castle). we did go to the diamond museum, but it was a bit too much information and not enough diamonds. hanna and laura left the next morning and natasha and i headed to the shopping streets which proved to be another very nice area of antwerp. while there were numerous shops, all i came out buying was q-tips and mascara :). i did have the best bagel in the world there!

one other thing to mention is that antwerp was a big shock to me. i haven't been in a metropolitan city like that since leaving edmonton. it worries me because i didn't like it. i think i've grown accustomed to the smaller cities. biking everywhere, feeling safe. hopefully these feelings won't come back with me when i get back home!