all about that bass.

Time to blog about my Bangkok and Siem Reap trip!

Honestly I wasn't really into going to Bangkok again because 1. I've already been and done all the touristy things and 2. Sam is probably not as into shopping as I am. And that's saying a lot because I am not a shopaholic. While I do enjoy a fair bit of window shopping, I don't actually buy anything unless I think it's super worth the price or on a massive discount.

However since Thailand is apparently a must do for S.E.A the agreement was that Sam would let me go shopping with minimal whining from him. Haha.

DAY 1

Got into Don Mueang Airport in the evening and was planning to take a cab to the airbnb I booked but the queue for the taxi was super long. So after one of the airport personnel told us it would be easier to take the shuttle to Mo Chit BTS that's what we did. The rain did not make things any easier as it meant traffic was even worse than usual, and that's saying something for Bangkok. Getting to the nearest station to the airbnb was pretty easy and the skytrain was quite empty when we boarded so we got to sit down. Alighting at Saphan Taksin BTS and a quick cab ride later(bnb was actually walking distance but it was late) we finally arrived at the apartment.

The apartment was really nice and for only £24 a night a pretty good deal!

Link to the apartment. 

It started pouring soon after we got settled in so we just went to the restaurant at the bottom of the next block of apartments for dinner. It was Indian for our first meal in Thailand but it was pretty good Indian I must say.

Next morning we headed into the city because Sam had an interview to attend. Because you know, nothing is better than having to attend an interview while on holiday. So while that was happening, I went off to do a bit of shopping! At Platinum mall of course. For the uninitiated, Platinum mall is a wholesale mall where many blogshops buy their stock from. You can see many girls with massive suitcases stocking up on all these cheap and wonderful goodies. The main problem I faced is that you usually have to buy 2 or 3 items from the same shop to get the wholesale price but since I was shopping alone it meant I didn't buy some things I liked because it was probably the only item I did like. But I did get some savings like when I bought these two midi skirts which were 490 baht each but buying two brought the price down to 370 baht each.

After that I met back up with Sam for lunch where we had some tasty Korean fried chicken. Still no Thai food yet although I did get my mango and sticky rice fix in the Platinum mall food court when I had a break from shopping. I then convinced him to go back into Platinum mall because he needed some new shirts and probably a whole new wardrobe but unfortunately my powers of persuasion only managed to get him to buy two shirts and two tshirts.

A pretty long cab ride back to the apartment due to surprise surprise bad traffic.

Dinner was at Tawandang German Brewery at Rama III road. You definitely need to take a cab there as it is quite out of the city. I used the myteksi(also called Grabtaxi out of Malaysia) app to book the cab so I didn't have any issues with the taxi not using the meter or getting us lost.

The main attraction being of course the beer they make in house. So finally beer that wasn't Tiger, Heineken or Carlsberg.

Their pale ale.

Really hoppy so my favourite of all. 

The dark ale.

Pretty good as well. 

Typical Thai food.

The food was not bad but also slightly on the pricier side for Bangkok. The restaurant also has live music the whole night which makes the atmosphere in the restaurant nice and lively. Most tables there seem to be locals having a night out as you can order 3L beer towers. The most amusing thing that I found was that in the girls toilet was a sink that had a sign about it saying "For vomiting only". None of that in the men's toilet though. 

DAY 2

Late start the next day as someone coughsamcough wanted to wake up naturally without an alarm so that meant only waking up at 10am. After getting coffee in this hipster art cafe just up the road we made our way to this restaurant closer to the BTS for some lunch.

It's called Queen of Curry at 49 Charoenkrung, Soi 50. While they clearly cater to a lot of tourists where they had an option of either European or Thai level of spiciness for all their curries, the food was good. We ordered a bowl of chicken Tom Yam and some duck curry with both being delicious.

Next it was off to the main tourist attraction of Bangkok. The Grand Palace.Took the riverboat from the Saphan Taksin pier. Got onto one of the local ones which meant a ticket up to the Grand Palace was only 15baht as opposed to the 150baht for the tourist boat. 

And of course while walking from the pier to the gates of the Grand Palace there were plenty of people telling you that you had to buy their shawls or long pants or otherwise you won't be allowed into the Grand Palace. While it is true that Thailand is quite strict on their no shoulders and no knees dress code, the Thai government actually provides rental of suitable clothing where you just have to put down a fully returnable deposit of 200baht. So we just ignored those touts although I did see a few tourists cave in and buy some clothes. 

Why do all the statues look so grumpy?

A rooster man. 

This is what Sam looks like when he's hungry. 

EAT ALL THE FOOD!!

That pink crop top is in most of my tourist pictures cause I just keep it in my bag and throw it on when there is a dress code. And the hat was an excellent buy from Platinum mall the day before. 

We spent about 3 hours there and although I have been there before, it was still a fun time as the compound really is quite massive so there's always more to look at. 

That night we went to checkout Asiatique which is the newly opened night market. They provide free boat rides from the Saphan Taksin pier which meant there was a massive queue in the evening. But it was nice to get a free night boat ride. Had dinner in this fusion place as I was craving pasta for some reason. After that I wanted to get a massage as all that walking during the day gave me sore feet. And well, it's Bangkok so cheap massages are aplenty. I got a one hour foot massage for 390baht I think while Sam had a few more beers in one of the bars. Day 2 done!

DAY 3

I had planned the Bangkok trip to cover the weekend so that I could go to Chatuchak market. Sam was a bit grumpy about waking up early to go but since I wanted to avoid the crowds we left the apartment at 9am. Which is actually not early enough as the crowds were already coming in when we got there. After half an hour of wandering around, Sam had a funny tummy so he went back to the apartment first while I wandered around a bit more. Didn't actually buy that much since I had already had my fill of shopping from Platinum mall. I did enjoy just looking at all the things they had for sale as you can pretty much buy anything and everything in the market. I also stopped by this stall for some duck noodles which was served with coagulated duck blood. Overall it was quite yummy and I did enjoy the creamy texture of the blood though I'm not sure whether it's something that I would seek out if it didn't already come with. Stall food is not something that many people want to try for fear of food poisoning but to me as long as it's piping hot or there are lots of locals eating there, it should a-okay to consume. 

The rain started getting heavier so I decided to head back to the apartment. We then went to the nearby mall to grab a snack before yet another massage! I just love massages. This time it was a full body massage and it was to be Sam's first time having a massage. And he liked it. Thai massages may not be everyone's cup of tea and it can be painful if not done properly but the place we went to was good and the masseuses managed to press all the soreness out of us. We had our massage at this place right next to Wat Yannawa. It was less of a massage parlour as they also provided traditional chinese medicine services such as cupping and it was filled with locals so I'd say it was a wellness centre. 

Dinner was at 25 Degrees at Pullman hotel. Supposedly one of the better burger joints in Bangkok, I am sad to say that it was remarkably average. 

That wraps up my Bangkok trip. This has turned into quite a wordy post haha.  

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fixer upper.

Normally I would blog about my trip to Denmark(went with my mum) but really in terms of sightseeing we didn't really do that much. And also my hands were too cold to want to take any photos. We did go and see The Little Mermaid statue(because Hans Christian Anderson was from Copenhagen) which is quite some way out of town and not quite worth the effort since you can't get close to it because it's out in the water. Also went to see Tivoli gardens which is one of the oldest amusement parks around. It was really nice and pretty but it is still an amusement park where the main attraction are the rides and we all know I am no a fan of roller coasters and such so it was just a nice stroll round. We did do a day trip out to Elsinore Castle because the lit student in me insisted on it. For those who don't know, that's Hamlet's castle. Hamlet may be most famous from Shakespeare's play but he is based on a real individual and walking round the castle had me imagining all the scenes playing out.

That takes care of the sights. The difference with this trip and all my other Euro trips is the food. Got to eat in some really good places this time round because I wasn't on a student budget. Mainly I got to experience my first ever Michelin starred restaurant, in fact it was just awarded it's second star just before we ate there.

Geranium
Per Henrik Lings Alle 4
Kobenhavn, Denmark

It's actually located in an office building which is right next to a football pitch which is slightly strange. The chef Rasmus Kofoed has won bronze, silver and gold medals at the Bocuse d'Or which is considered one of the important culinary competitions.

On to the menu!

Branches of sea salted cheese.

The black stuff on it was ash from some vegetable.

Carrot and sea buckthorn.

It was like a candied carrot shell. 

Jerusalem artichoke and walnut.

Wild pea sprouts and gooseberries.

This was really nice and fresh. 

Dried flowers and dried apple.

By far the strangest thing I ate that day. Honestly it felt like I was eating potpourri. 

Cep soup and pickled egg yolk.

A nice shot of mushroom-y soup.

Jellied ham and tomato water.

Quite nice and light but full of ham flavour at the same time.

Razor clams.

Really liked this as the 'shell' was wafer like. 

Mackerel in burned juniper, frozen horseradish and pickled cucumber.

Sashimi Danish style. 

Bread with emmer and spelt.

Sourdough bread is my fav so having these fresh out of the oven bite sized ones were really good.

Onions, chamomile and melted hay cheese.

Salted beef, milky cheese and juice from fermented carrots.

Enjoyed the salted beef but the milky cheese and fermented carrots not so much.

Charred potatoes, smoked lard and unripe berries.

My favourite of the meal because how can potatoes cooked in pork lard be anything but delicious. 

Also despite it looking burnt on the outside, the insides were nice and fluffy.

Tea from vegetables, beech leaves and pine.

Had this while getting to go inside the kitchen and watch the chefs at work. 

Well mainly just the plating side of the kitchen but you could see just how much time and effort were being put in to plating each dish so delicately. 

Flora danica rhubarb and crystallised thyme.

Green egg.

Only the eggs were edible and were actually made out of chocolate.

No photos of the accompanying juices but the ones we had were

Algae, cucumber and apple.
Bio plum.
Elderberries.
Blackcurrent.
Rhubarb and roses.

Overall you could see a lot of thought and effort had been put into the preparation of each dish and although I felt like I was eating a garden at some points it quite an experience. I can see why they were awarded two Michelin stars. I think there was also only like 10 tables in the whole restaurant so the tables were quite spread out which I liked because some times restaurants tables can be too close to each other that you can just hear everyone's conversation. But due to that fact and also the fact that there is almost no turnover as the tasting menu takes 2-3 hours, I can see why it costs more. But worth every penny I think.

So for my first Michelin star experience I'd say it has set the bar high.

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erase everything.

Continuation of my Portugal trip.

Day 4

Next day we set off for a day trip to Sintra. From what I read online it is meant to look like it came straight out of a fairytale. It was quite simple getting there as we just had to get a train and then a bus. All in all just follow the tourists.

No photos from Sintra as it was pretty. But just very green in general. So taking photos using my phone wouldn't have done it any justice.

After that we decided to head towards to westernmost point of Europe. Just one bus ride away  (bus 403) from Sintra. They only run once every hour so we just sat in a cafe opposite the bus stop to kill time as we were too tired to do any more exploring. I swear that's when you know you're growing old.

Beautiful scenery. The weather on the other hand. So windy. We were totally not prepared for it.

Also saw this couple taking their wedding photos there. From Hong Kong I'm guessing as their photographer was speaking in Cantonese. Honestly I pitied the bride as she just had to grin and bear the biting wind. The moment a picture was done the groom would pass her a jacket. All that suffering for some photos. Beautiful things always come at a cost.

Nothing to actually do there so we took the next bus out to Cascais. Did some snack shopping there for out long train ride the next day to Faro. There was also this other group of Singaporea/Malaysians there who we didn't really speak to at all. The funny thing is that the 'kepoh' in us really wanted to and we could sort of tell that they wanted to talk to us as well as we took the same train back to Lisbon. Even walked the same way after we got to Lisbon, but none of us did. So our nosiness isn't that strong. Haha.

Day 5

Leaving Lisbon to Faro. Got to the train station quite early so we played this new card game called Fluxx which was quite fun but ended too early. And then we just went back to Famajoe cause we are all that competitive that we wanted to be the overall winner.

The weather in Faro was not what we signed up for as we wanted to get some sun and sea. What we got instead was really strong wind. The others wanted to do some sort of water activity and while I was at first reluctant, I got peer pressured into going kayaking with them the next day.

Kayaking was sort of fun. Easy for me to say cause I didn't actually have to pull my full weight in kayaking anywhere as my partner is an experienced kayaker who knew what he was doing. Thanks Justy! (If you're reading this). Andrew and Sonia fared quite well as well. Ashley and Cassie as two girls on the other, found it more difficult. So the lesson learnt is that always have a guy in the kayak. Got to lay about in an abandoned beach for a while which was good. However, we all got SUNBURNT! Basically the area between our knee and our ankle cause that was most exposed to the sun and also the salt water which did not make things any better. All our showers later that day were a painful affair.

That pretty much sums up the Portugal trip. Came back to tanned that my foundation didn't match me any more. And neither did the BB cream that is suppose to be two shades too dark.

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airplanes.

Day 3.

Mini day trip time. Well it's a mini day trip because technically Belem is still considered part of Lisbon but it is a 15 minute tram journey out from the city centre. Some of the trams in Lisbon are still the old ones which were small and open aired so thankfully we managed to catch a newer tram which had more space as well as the all important air-cond.

Exterior of Jeronimos Monastery.

Sometimes I wonder who really appreciates all the figures carved out. Some of them are so high up that you'd need a crane or super zoomed camera to even try and figure out who it is. 

Really like these inner courtyards that European places seem to have.

Tomb of Vasco da Gama. 

Woohoo for remembering parts of Sejarah. 

After wandering around a little inside the monastery it was time for the highlight of the trip! Well sort of. Portuguese egg tarts are also known as Pasteis de Belem as the recipe was created by the monks of the Jeronimos Monastery. The recipe used today in the store is the one that the monks made years ago, though unfortunately the monks no longer make it. Can't remember who asked me this, but someone (my mum I think) asked me whether I could see the monks in their robes using wood ovens to make the egg tarts. Haha. I wish it was that authentic. The egg tarts are now made in a shop just down the road from the monastery which opens from 8am till 12am because they are just that popular. 

The one and only. 

Usually packed as a box of six. 

Pretty good. The shell was crispy while the insides were soft and not too sweet.

Though for 1.20euro I did expect something a little bigger. 

Also they give you little packets of cinnamon and icing sugar which you sprinkle on top. It does make a subtle taste difference. 

We also went to check out the Belem Tower which was use to protect the sea front. It was just okay, nothing too special in my opinion. 

After that we were off to the No 1. rated attraction of Lisbon. The Ocenarium. The concept is like an aquarium where you see sea life all around but the difference is that the habitat is built on top of the ocean and so the structure inside is meant to simulate the ocean where species are not really separated. There are different sections for different species but all the tanks link back to the central tank.

There really is a lot to see in there if you are interested in sea life. However, I am not much of a nature fan so here are just a few of the things I liked about it. 

Penguins! Cute furry animals are always a plus. 

Otters. Did you know that otters hold hands when they sleep so that they won't float away from each other? It's true! Cause we spent a good 15 minutes just watching this pair of otters sleep. And when they started floating apart, one would wake up and 'roll' back to hold hands. 

We saw that. And you could just hear everyone watching go awwww. 

Glow in the dark jellyfish. So prettyyy. 

On the way to the exit, there was a video playing about the maintenance of the oceanarium. The amount of work and effort that goes into maintaining it is just more than you could imagine. Every hour they have to check the ph and oxygen levels of the water. That's every hour for 24 hours a day. Also the staff pretty much hand feed a lot of the animals so each animal has a routine of knowing exactly which section to go to for good. Interestingly sharks don't get fed every day, just twice a week. 

And that was all for day 3. 

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fallout.

Time to catch up!

Portugal trip! Overall the timing of the trip was sort of good and not so good at the same time. Good in the sense that it wasn't peak tourist time yet so it was not as crowded. Bad that we had planned for the second half of the trip to be beach time but when we did get to the beach, it was cold and windy. Whereas when we were in the city it was soooo hot.

Day 1.

Got into Lisbon early enough that we had to make our way out of the airport and have lunch before being able to collect the keys to our apartment. Since there was 6 of us it worked out to be the same price as staying in a hostel, about 17euros a night. Found the apartment on homeaway and it was really nice. Fully air-conditioned which was a major plus point and everything in it was new. However, the area that it was in was not exactly where all the touristy things were so some traveling out was required, also since it was more locals in the area we did at times feel out of place.

*Link to the apartment* if anyone should be interested.

Lunch was at a restaurant called Portvgalia on Caroline's recommendation for the best cheesecake. The restaurant is actually a chain but the original was just down the road from where we were staying so that was convenient.

Traditional Portuguese dish.

Made of salted cod fish, onions and eggs.

Overall not bad but a lot oilier than I would have liked.

The cheesecake was indeed very good.

Super light, it felt like it was made of whipped cream. 

Didn't do any sightseeing on the first day cause we were too tired and it was to hot. So we decided that making dinner in would be better since we could enjoy the air-cond. Haha. 

And as we went grocery shopping, we discovered that wine is unbelievably cheap. Like you can get a bottle of wine for ONE euro. How can a bottle of wine cost so little!

Our dinner for the night.

Cooking really is the best way to save money on a holiday.

All that food plus what we got for breakfast only cost each person 5 euros. 

Then we spent the rest of the night finishing up the bottle of wine while playing this new card game. Which is super super fun. Much thanks to Andrew for teaching it to us. The downside of the game is that it must be played with a specific deck of cards that originate from Austria. But the game is soooo addicting that we wound up playing it every night and even on the floor while waiting for our train. 

The name of the game is Farmajo and the best skill to have in the game is the skill of reading people. Not that easy to explain out in words but the basic concept is that before each round you have to make a prediction of how many hands you will win. If you make the prediction you get a bonus of 10points. The cards are evenly divided up between the people playing so if each person has 10 cards then there are 10 hands to play. Biggest card wins the hand. So sometimes it's possible to win more hands that your prediction in which case you lose out. 

We all got so addicted that when we did get back of Portugal, we all went online in search for a set of cards. And finally found a site selling them at http://tarock.net/store.htm . About 15 US dollars for a pack of cards so not exactly cheap but considering it's so hard to find. 

Day 2.

Went for the Lisbon Chillout Free Tour the next day. While it was good, I have to say that if you go to a city that runs Sandeman's New Europe tours then do those instead. Their tour guides are usually young people who are guides as a supplement to their 'day job' like they're students or something. So for some reason they are more passionate and enthusiastic. Whereas I've found that tour guides that do tours as their fulltime job sometime lose their steam and while they may be entertaining and informative you do get a tired vibe from them. 

One place that we passed in our tour that I would definitely have liked to visit should I return to Lisbon is this place,

The Jose Saramago musuem. 

I didn't even know he was Portuguese but the tour guide did bring us past the museum because a) That's his favourite author and b) He's one of the few Portuguese Nobel Prize in Literature winners.

I've only read one of his books. Blindness. One of his most famous works which is about a modern day society that is suddenly struck down by a contagious case of blindness. Interesting look on how society breaks down and how those who remaining who do have sight treat those who don't.

Ended the tour somewhere near St. George's Castle which had a great view. 

It was quite a climb up though. Lisbon is very very very hilly. 

Went to St George's Castle after that. Saw that there was a free tour in an hour from when we got there so we decided to just chill out and have an ice cream under the trees. It was just too hot to want to feel rushed so it was a very chillax time. Considering it was a free tour it was pretty good as the woman who gave a tour is an archaeologist herself so you could hear her interest in the things she was talking about. Did learn that the castle use to belong to the Moors (basically Muslims) and that the castle was built in a very tactical manner. The main entrance was made a sort of maze whereby the right path would have required the attacking troops to have their shields on the outside making them susceptible to arrows or hot oil coming down from above. 

Remains of the dwellings within the castle.

Seeing as it was too early for dinner, we decided to have a little snack! Portuguese egg tarts. Which most of us would have eaten before if you've been to Macau. But of course it was the Portuguese who ruled Macau so it's their recipe and not something the Chinese came up with. 

Good but a bit too sweet. 

Just from a random pastry shop we came across as we wanted to have something to compare with when we went to taste the original one from Belem. 

Had that while sitting on the steps near the sea where loads of other people were just sitting around enjoying the sun and sea breeze. Ah the chillout-ness that can only be found in Europe. I swear these kind of things would never happen in Asia. 

Dinner at some random restaurant and that was the end of our second day out. Of course it just meant we were done walking around and went back to play Farmajo again. 

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fast car.

Day 3

Sort of the last day as the next day was just us buying some chocolates and then going to the airport.

Day trip time! 

A return ticket to Bruges costs 14.40euros on a weekend but 24.50euros on a weekday. Not quite sure why a weekend ticket would be cheaper. Shouldn't they be charging more on weekends cause people travel more then?

Anyways, we only got in to Bruges around 12 cause obviously we did not leave early enough. Haha. Bruges is like a quaint little town though most of the people there were clearly tourists.

Fluffly swans near the canal. 

One thing I made sure to put on my list of must-dos in Belgium was to go for a brewery tour. And since we didn't go for any in Brussels, decided to go for one in Bruges which had really good reviews. It was 6.50euros which included a free beer. Super duper worth the money in my opinion.

Halve Maan brewery. The last brewery standing in Bruges. 

View from the roof of the brewery. 

No filter no photoshop and it still looks gorgeous.

#7 Their local beer. Nice and refreshing.

Our tour guide was really funny and had a great sense of humour. Some things I learnt from the tour:

1. Sparkling water is great for curing a hangover.

2. You do indeed get drunk faster on beer/wine (fermented alcohol) when compared to vodka and such (distilled alcohol).

3. The shape of the glass in which you drink your beer from makes a difference.

Getting to learn about the whole process of making beer makes me appreciate it much more because it is really quite an effort. 

Most of the places that were open for lunch pretty much served the same menu so we just settled for one that looked nice. It was 20euros for a starter (I had celery soup which was actually quite yummy), a main (1/2 roast chicken which I couldn't finish) and a dessert (peach melba). 

#8 Kasteel Blonde. Standard blonde really. 

One main attraction of Bruges is that they have Michelangelo's "Madonna and child" statue. However when we went to the church it's suppose to be in, it was closed. Boo. But I suppose seeing as it was 5pm and everything in Europe closes early it's understandable. Oh well.

We had been in Bruges for five hours now and we hadn't even reached the city centre. Talk about walking at a leisurely pace. It could also be due to the fact that we walked into almost every chocolate store we passed, which is practically every store on the road. Finally made it to Market square which is sort of like the city centre but not quite the city centre. 

Really liked the way the lights gave the 'yellow' tinge to the buildings. 

Market square is next to the actual city centre where the town hall is. However, since market square is surrounded by restaurants, it was more lively whereas the city centre was empty.

Town hall.

All the gold detailing. 

Since there wasn't much else in Bruges, we took the train back to Brussels and chilled while trying a little something we bought from the brewery earlier.

#9 Their new quadruple beer.

11% beer is no joke.

More like stout I'd say but it tasted nice. 

And that's about all there is to talk about my Belgium trip. 

A good break from the ho-hum of Manchester. 

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normalcy.

Onwards to

Day 2.

As much as I would like to start all my holiday mornings at 9am, I know realistically I have to allow for a one hour delay. Sure enough we only left the hotel at 10am.

The walls of the metro stations in Brussels are really quite interesting. Only snapped the walls of the stop Heyzel cause that's where we stopped off to see the Atomium. There was one particular station that had statues in the station instead which was creepy to say the least. 

Pretty metro stops. 

 I read somewhere that the government hoped that the Atomium would be to Brussels what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris. Where the moment you see the structure you immediately know where it comes from. Don't really think it's going to work with the Atomium as it is about half an hour away from the city centre by metro so unless you make the trip out, there is no way you'd be able to see it.

Really wanted to go in but the queue for tickets was just ridiculously long and we couldn't be bothered to wait an hour or so for it.

It's really massive.

As there was no straight metro to the next place we wanted to visit (Grand Sablon), we opted to just walk from the closest stop possible. Stumbled onto the Palais du Justice and spent a good half hour inside cause it was just so pretty and impressive. 

There was actually a lot of scaffolding but once you walked passed it this was the entrance. 

Would totally do my studying here.

Made our way to Grand Sablon but the antique market there wasn't open, most likely cause it was only a Friday. Boo. We did make a stop in Pierre Marcolini which was one of the more expensive chocolate makers to take a look. Didn't end up buying anything though. Had lunch is this restaurant which was 'cosy' to say the least but seemed to be frequented by locals so we knew to expect some decent food. 

#6 Hoegaarden. My favourite ever! A lot fruiter than I would like though. 

Shared the mussels with Audrey and even though we kept eating and eating, there always seemed to be more mussels at the bottom of the pot. A bit like magic. 

The sign says Fireworks. What kind of establishment it is, I can only guess. 

Walked to one of the major tourist attractions in Brussels which is the Mannekan Pis. The pissing boy. Considering it is a major attraction and that there were also so many people taking pictures in front of it, I expected something more than a tiny little statue with a fence surrounding the fountain. Too much hoo-ha for nothing. 

This was taken with a zoom and me sticking my arms through the fence. 

Back to Grand Place after that as the day view is different from the night view. I have to say I much prefer the day view cause you can see the detailing on the buildings. 

Rain rain go away. 

Best waffles at the tea room of Maison Dandoy. 

Super nice and fluffly. Bit on the pricey side though.

Also practically every table had a Brussels guidebook with them. Tourist central!

Went back to the hotel and just chilled watching tv while eating chips and chocolates (holidays are fattening days) cause the rain was really off-putting. Early night cause next day we were day-tripping the next day to Brugges and wanted to get an early start. 

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