Truffles, Murals and All Things Belgian
We stayed in Brussels during our trip to Belgium. I’ve always had a certain impression of the Western European countries, and our wallets agree that they are more expensive than the rest of Europe. But we were a bit taken aback when we first arrived in Brussels. I couldn’t help but wonder if we had made a mistake in choosing to visit.
Our first impression of Brussels was our experience in metro, and it wasn’t great. Don’t get me wrong, the public transport was efficient and got us where we needed to go, but the stations felt ancient and a bit dirty. At one point, my fiancé and I exchanged that “hai?” look (a Hindi expression we use when we’re confused or surprised). But we decided to keep an open mind and give the city another chance in the next days—and I’m so glad we did!
While I’m still not a huge fan of Brussels, it certainly wasn’t as shady as we first thought. In fact, it reminded me a lot of Paris. The Market Square, though—wow! I could honestly spend forever there. The buildings, with their intricate gold carvings and stunning architecture, were an absolute feast for the eyes. We even had a bit of déjà vu, feeling like we were back in the historic city centers of Munich and Prague.
Would you believe me if I told you that one of Belgium’s most famous symbols is a statue of a baby peeing? Mannekin pis was the funniest stop of our trip, and seeing so many tourists gawking at the fountain was pretty amusing. I would totally add this to my list of Europe’s weirdest tourist spots. We next checked out Atomium, a gigantic monument shaped like an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times. Since it was a hot summer day, we chose to explore the gardens around the Atomium instead of buying an expensive ticket and spending hours inside, roasting in the heat.
Left to Right: Mannekin pis and Atomium
Since my fiancé is a huge fan of the Tintin comics, created by Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi (Hergé), we went mural hunting and explored a part of the comic book route. We came across tons of murals, but we could only recognize the ones of Le Scorpion and Tintin. Our final stop led us to the Asterix mural. It was gigantic, and very detailed! It was cute to see my fiancé get as excited as a kid with his first comic book. For the first time on our trip, he asked me to take his picture in front of the murals. Oh, how the tables have turned! :)
Left to Right: Murals of Le Scorpion and Tintin
Of course, our trip to Belgium was packed with plenty of waffle breaks, but we took things up a notch with a truffle-making class in Brussels! It was a fun group activity—we were there with three other couples, and it kind of felt like getting a sneak peek into our future! One couple had little kids who were loving every second of making (and munching on) chocolate. Then there was a middle-aged couple, who were energetic and even finished making their truffles first! And finally, there was an older couple, probably in their seventies, who were very enthusiastic and clearly still madly in love with each other. Aside from the yummy truffles we made and brought home, this experience was unique because it made us appreciate these small, sweet moments. Sometimes, when you travel far enough, you catch a glimpse of your future—and if you’re really lucky, you’ll get to live it!
Travel has taught me to listen, and be heard. It has given me the courage to be bold and stay unapologetically true to myself. With this post, my blog “Imprints on Time” hits a special milestone—50 posts across 4 different continents. I don’t like to dwell on numbers, because if I do, I start thinking about how I live 8616 km from my fiancé and 4470 km from home. But today feels different. It’s been a privilege to take you along with me on this journey, while staying true to my own way of traveling and writing. So, my dear readers —thank you for sticking with me. This is just the beginning, and I can’t wait to share what’s next on this journey!