Jim enjoys attending wine tasting events with Pasquale, our friend who owns our favorite restaurant in Lucca. They attend several in Italy each year, and this is the second time visiting ProWein in Düsseldorf, Germany. I decided to come along this year, not for the wine tasting but for the travel and adventure.
The plan started out simple… Jim and I would stay in Cologne, Germany while Pasquale stayed with friends in Düsseldorf. Cologne is less expensive during ProWein and far more interesting. Then the plan grew a bit… why not go someplace else before or afterwards? We looked at the map and quickly picked Brussels. Hotels are expensive there so we decided to use some of my remaining Marriott points (leftover from all the business travel). Reserve 4 nights, stay the 5th for free. What a deal! We now had time for a day trip to Bruges and one to Ghent.
Brussels is the capital of Belgium and the administrative center of the European Union, giving the town two distinct flavors – historic/traditional versus international/modern. I liked the mix of the two…
My favorite in Brussels was the Grand-Place (their main piazza/square) at night. Magical! This large square is surrounded by beautiful buildings decorated with gold paint. The combination of the architecture, decor, gold, and lighting make it truly unique. The square was filled with people enjoying this special site. We returned during the day when we could see the buildings’ details and statues better, but the nighttime view couldn’t be beaten. The buildings were built, rebuilt, and restored several times, but are generally in the Baroque style. They were mostly built by the different guilds as well as the Town Hall and the King’s house (although he never lived there). One explanation for the highly decorated facades is that the guilds wanted to remind the King and the Town government that they were equally wealthy and needed to stay in line! The only thing better would be a visit at Christmastime for the Christmas market and beautiful festive decorations. Check out this blog post by our friends Ilene and Gary.
Here are a bunch of pictures – be sure to read the captions for a bit of context.
Enjoying our first Belgium waffle as we enter Parc du Cinquantenaire 
Parc du Cinquantenaire, was built in 1880 for the 50th anniversary of Belgian independence. Today there are museums and lots of green space. We arrived to one of the early Springish days, so lots of people were simply enjoying the warmth of the sun. 
Parc du Cinquantenaire, required touristy selfie! 
Parc du Cinquantenaire is the home to a group of parakeets. I know that I shouldn’t be pleased to be seeing an invasive species, but I did enjoy watching these brightly colored birds soaring through the skies and trees. 
Parc du Cinquantenaire with early spring daffodils and other wildflowers. 
The Grand-Place of Brussels 
The Grand-Place of Brussels 
Mussels in Brussels is a must! Along with the ubiquitous French Fries, which Belgium claims they created. 
The Manneken Pis, the most visited (and small) tourist site in Brussels. Many legends regarding why they built the statue of the little boy peeing… 
New and modern buildings in the European Union quarter. We visited an EU museum and learned a lot about the history and purpose of the EU.
We took a 30-minute train through the Belgian countryside to the smallish city of Ghent, with one main objective – to see the Ghent Altarpiece. Many consider it one of the most important pieces of art in the world and was the first major oil painting. It represents the transition between Medieval art and the Renaissance in Belgium and the Netherlands. It was painted by Hubert and Jan van Eyck and was finished in 1432. It is also known as the most frequently stolen piece of art in the world, so there are lots of fascinating stories that go with the altarpiece. But the stories don’t compare to the beauty of the artwork – vivid colors, detailed faces, symbols, and depicted stories. I didn’t take a bunch of pictures because there are many high-quality pictures online that my phone’s camera can’t capture.
Oh, and we really liked Ghent. Parts of it are a bit seedy, industrial, and not beautiful – but the other parts have beautiful architecture. I especially liked one of its main squares that was filled with locals on this early Spring day. Check out this video I posted on YouTube.
Here I am contemplating (ok… perhaps gawking at) this great work of art. 
Ghent Altarpiece, closer view of the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb panel 
I saw lots of sarcophagus’ with the guy in this position. Just chillin… In Italy, they are usually laying all of the way down. 
The stained glass windows in both Belgium and Germany were gorgeous. We don’t have a lot of windows like this in our Romanesque churches. 
Italian churches usually have marble pulpits, but the ones in Belgium and Germany were mostly made of beautifully carved wood. So beautiful! 
OK, this pulpit is a combination of wood and marble and looks like they were going for some prize in the fanciest pulpit! 
I loved the architecture in Ghent! 
The Taco sign caught my attention – so out of place. But check out those sculptures at the top of the building! Apparently this is the Masons Guild House on Sint-Niklaasstraat and those are dancing figures leaping through the air. And O’Tacos is a French fast food chain! 
Korenmarkt (Wheat Market), one of the main squares of Ghent. Again, I love the architecture and the tangle of bicycles! 
Belgium is serious about their beer. Lots of different kinds AND each one has their own glass. This was a fun stop for lunch, which did include a beer! 
Selfie in front of Gravensteen Castle from around 1180. Right in the middle of Ghent! 
Every castle needs a moat and we spotted this European Coot on a nest. Soon the male came up with a fresh fish lunch for mama. Fun to spot a bit of nature in the middle of this city!
Bruges is home to the Bruges Madonna, a beautiful sculpture of Mary and Jesus created by Michelangelo. It was his only sculpture to leave Italy during his lifetime and I was eager to see it. It did not disappoint…
Both the Bruges Madonna and the Ghent Altarpiece are highlighted in the movie The Monuments Men. If you’ve never seen the movie or read the book, I highly recommend doing so. It’s a great story about how some art scholars were recruited into the Army near the end of WWII to find and return stolen art. And it’s based on a true story.
In addition to being the home of the Bruges Madonna, Bruges is a very cute town, but a bit touristy. The architecture is beautiful, lots of canals and waterways with bridges with cute squares. The one-hour train ride from Brussels was well worth it.
And our final stop was in Germany…
Jim’s wine event was in Düsseldorf but it is very expensive to stay there during the event and there is very little for me to do or see there. So, we decided to stay in Cologne (Köln), a 30 minute train trip from Dusseldorf. Jim would go back and forth each day and I would enjoy the sights of Cologne. I had heard that it was a beautiful city… quaint, fun, and the home to the most gorgeous Cathedral. We stepped out of the train station and there it was! We splurged on a hotel that was just a few minutes from the Cathedral and the train station. I was really looking forward to exploring this city. I had a list of things I wanted to see and do, but I also made time for wandering the city.
Our first morning I attended the church service at the Cathedral but couldn’t understand a word. But I enjoyed the beauty of the cathedral, watched the procession of priests and others with their candles, incense (lots of incense), staffs, etc. There was a choir made of young boys and men; they made beautiful music – a cappella, so I did not get to hear the church organs. Afterwards I crossed a bridge over the River Rhine and enjoyed the Sunday afternoon with many locals and tourists. It was delightful start for my time in Cologne.
Then it started to rain and frankly my visit went downhill from there… I tried and failed two times to go on a English-language tour of the Cathedral. I went inside one other time, but much of it was inaccessible due to another service. A bathroom attendant tricked me out of some money… I confronted him, but he denied it. It was just a few euros, but it was so annoying… I wandered up and down the main shopping street while getting slightly soggy despite having bought an umbrella.
Then we learned about the train strike planned for the last day of the wine event – Jim planned to take the train to and from Dusseldorf, and then we would both take a train to the Frankfurt airport for our early morning flight the next day. Some trains continued to run, so Jim made it to Dusseldorf but then decided to take a bus to Frankfurt instead of trying to get a train. I went to the train station early and planned to get on the next available train. One was supposed to come at 1:55, but was delayed 30 minutes, but then never came??? So, I got on one about an hour later.
Oh, I forgot to mention that Lufthansa was also striking and we had bought tickets through Lufthansa. Thankfully, the flight itself was provided by Air Dolomiti so we were fine.
Postscript… German precision was in play after the train strike. We returned to Lucca on Wednesday morning and I requested a refund from unused train tickets on Thursday. The money was in our bank account on Friday.
Overall, I really enjoyed Belgium, struggled in Cologne and was glad to get home to Lucca after 10 days of travel. So how do they compare – a simple (over simple, for sure) chart:
| Brussels | Cologne | Lucca | |
| Languages spoken | French, Flemish and everything else | German and English for the tourists | Italian and English for the tourists |
| General attitude | Neat and tidy. Near EU: confident, busy, important | Compliant by day, boisterous in the evening | Relaxed |
| Foods | Chocolate, waffles, French fries | Pub food | Tordelli pasta |
| Drinks | Bottled Belgium Beer with matching glass | Local beer on tap | Italian wine |
I hope that you enjoyed reading my blog post and looking through my pictures. Have you ever been to Brussels, Bruges, Ghent, or Cologne? How were your experiences similar or different? Leave a comment!
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