Twas a cold weekend after New Year's 2020 when we decided to take a quick weekend trip to Belgium. We drove to Bastogne Friday evening (link here), then made a pit stop in Dinant followed by our final destination in Brussels.
Dinant was a cute little town halfway between Bastonge and Brussels, and after some twists and turns in the forest, this was the first view of the town we saw:
Not bad for your first welcome to be driving through the knife's edge of a cliff!
Dinant was small yet beautiful and full of history. The creator of the Saxophone was apparently born in Dinant, but there was also a gorgeous 9th Century Cathedral right at the base of the Citadel...which survived two German invasions!
Inside the cathedral was some beautiful stained glass windows and stunning carvings.
Right behind the cathedral is the entrance to the Citadel...or rather, the option to take a cable car or make the 408-step climb. We opted for the climb.
Unfortunately we didn't take a ton of photos while at the top, but the Citadel consisted of a large open stone courtyard with several tunnels and outcroppings designed for defense. Signs throughout the interior explained how German forces had invaded Dinant twice, as well as a slew of other historical armed forces had rolled through the city.
A view from a window in the Citadel
Interestingly enough, the highest point hosted a restaurant and playground...which we couldn't resist!
Back down in the city, we searched for some food and found ourselves meandering through side streets with the cathedral looming overhead. We also got a sweet 20-Euro parking ticket because we forgot to put the entrance paper in our windshield. Oh well!
An hour and a half later, we were in Brussels! This was the last weekend of Christmas markets in the city. In most cities, the Christmas markets are well-contained and in a single location. A major city may have multiple markets, but they're defined by two or three entrances and advertized well. In Brussells, stalls were scattered throughout the city in random locations, so you had to go searching for the market stalls.
Christmas markets sell food, trinkets, drinks, cheeses, scarves....you never really know what will be offered.
At this location, the face of a church was used for a (very artsy) light show, and one of the stalls sold gluwein (glue-vine, mulled wine) with a fiery sugar cube on top. Plus a cute barrel-designed mug!
The main market in Brussels hosted a ferris wheel along with a myriad of other treats. Throughout the night, we ate dumplings, gluwein, sausage, waffles...and I'm sure lots of other food I'm forgetting.
I didn't get a wonderful photo of the main square lit up, so this is the closest I'm willing to publish!
During the day, we took a walking tour of the city and saw the Mannequin Pis (a small boy statue peeing in a fountain), learned the history of the buildings in town, some history about previous kings, and how Brussels helped in previous wars.
We of course also ate some Belgium Fries and Belgium Waffles...the waffles are my favorite because they put chunks of sugar in the batter which crystallize when heated. So when you bite into a deliciously warm waffle, you also get a nice sweet crunch!
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