Belgian Waffles--a little piece of Heaven!

29 August 2006:

I had the evening on my own in Brussels. I never felt unsafe on my trip, but venturing out for the first time in a city at night is a little scary. I am never quite sure that I'm going the right direction, never quite sure that I am sticking to the "good" neighborhoods, and never quite sure if I'll be able to get back to my hostel! However, I had limited time in Brussels and had heard that the light show at the Grand Palace was incredible. So I headed downtown.

Arriving before the 10:30 show, I went to see the pint-sized and irreverent Mannekin Pis. If you say it phonetically, that's what it basically is: a small statue of a naked, chubby boy, peeing until the end of time. And the Belgians are proud of it! There are all sorts of tacky souvenir shops displaying kitschy plates and key chains with the gleefully impertinent Mannekin Pis forever relieving himself. It's been said that locals will make costumes for the "fountain" to dress him up, but I saw him in all his "nekkid" glory. Right next door, I had the most incredible waffle!!! Fresh, hot, with chocolate chip ice cream and chocolate sauce melting drippily all over my sleeve and my bag...my fingers completely sticky from the sugary mess!!! Heaven!!!

I got a great seat for the light show and was getting ready to write about my day when two guys came and sat a couple of feet from me. I was bugged when one started to smoke, the breeze catching the smoke and sending it directly into my face. The other guy asked me the time and thus began my conversation with Victor and Joseph.

Victor is an Algerian/Italian who had been living in Belgium for a couple of months and has lived all over Europe. He's a henna tattoo artist and offered me a free one. Riiiiiight....Joseph the Smoker is French (should've guessed) and had lived in Spain and Italy for a while. We spoke a conglomerate of French, Italian, Spanish and English. It was a mess.

The light show, however, was spectacular. The main square in Brussels is flanked on four sides by gorgeous buildings. The Town Hall looks like an incredible ornate church! At 10:30, the lights go out in the square and the sounds of someone climbing up creaky steps of a clock tower, unlocking doors, and cranking the clock are heard over the loud speaker. The light show begins by bathing the cathedral in purples implying darkness before dawn. The music and lights continue representing the passing of the day from dawn through the afternoon until dusk and night falls again. The show closes with the sound of someone locking a door and climbing back down the creaky wooden steps. The square is left in darkness for a few moments and then returns to normal activity. It was great! I thanked my companions for the company and left, making sure they weren't planning on following me back to the hostel.