Brussels, Belgium...........day two

Saturday October 15, 2011

Since this hotel does not include a breakfast, I walked about 2 blocks to the train station and had a coffee and muffin at Starbucks.  It was good as usual, but cost almost twice the price it would be in the U.S.  After my breakfast, I walked over to see the “Bourse”, which is the building that houses the Brussels stock exchange.  It is quite an interesting building and was completed in 1873, after five years.  I have always heard about the Bourse, so it was exciting for me to finally see it.  Next my trek in Brussels took me back to see the Mannekin Pis statue and see if he had a new outfit on today.  Today he was dressed rather plainly, in a pair of blue jeans and a "golf" shirt.  As usual, there were huge crowds gathered round to see and photograph this little dude taking a leak.  All around this area are chocolate stores and waffle shops and every one of them was packed.  Today, being Saturday, I am sure was a factor as to why Brussels was so crowded with tourists.  Next, I just walked around and stumbled into this really long pedestrian shopping street, which was packed with Saturday shoppers.  I just walked along with all the crowds, doing some window-shopping and see what all the stores had to offer.  I always find the electronics, mobile phone, and sports equipment shops most interesting.  Overall, things are a lot more expensive here, and in Europe in general than they are in the U.S.  This is such a reversal from 25 plus years ago, when Europe was a bargain for the American.  I recall coming to Europe several times in the 1970s and 1980s and finding many items attractive to buy. Now, there is really nothing to buy in Europe that is not available in the U.S. for less money. I think a lot of this has to do with the advent of the Euro in 2000 and the poor exchange rate for the U.S. dollar.  After a lot of browsing and walking, I made my way back to the hotel for a bit of rest.  Along the way I picked up a sandwich and some great French fries.  Next, I was out the door again for some more walking and photo taking.  I had seen many of the “highlights” of the heart of the city, so I found a place to sit in the “Grand Place” and watched all the people and tour groups go by.  There were a lot of police out among the crowds today, many even in riot gear…………..obviously, this is in response to some of the demonstrations going on in New York and other cities around the world, and especially the violence in Rome (See NY Times article).  Upon completing my thoughts about dinner for tonight, I headed over to Chez Leon for a Belgian specialty, Moules, mussels as we call them.  I had read about Chez Leon in several travel books, so I thought I would give them a try.  There are so many restaurants in the downtown area to choose from, but this was an excellent decision.  I ordered a salad and Moules Provencale (mussels with butter, tomatoes, garlic and covered with melted cheese) and a bier.  (Check out Chez Leon’s menu).  This was truly an excellent dinner.  I sat outside, and chatted a bit with a few women from England, which made for a pleasant dinner.  Once I was done with dinner, I headed back to the hotel to pack for my final destination, Paris.  I have a reservation on a 12:15 PM train to Paris, which takes about 1-½ hours.  It is hard to believe,that I only have one more stop on this great journey and I return home on Thursday.