Around Brussels with Jetlag

Around Brussels with Jetlag

We arrived at our hotel. It is situated right in the middle of Brussels, within walking distance of many of the city's landmarks. We checked into our hotel. We were tired, of course, but it was late morning, and we wanted to stay awake, at least until the early evening, so we could sleep during the Belgian night.

So, after refreshing ourselves, we went outside and strolled around, exploring. Brussels is picturesque. We walked down cobbled streets, between beautiful 18th century buildings. We window-shopped at countless artsy boutiques that sold souvenirs, toys, art, and of course, Belgian chocolate.

We were soon reminded that Belgium is the home of Tintin, the comic book character by Herge. Apparently Tintin enjoyed popularity in Europe and in Commonwealth countries, but is virtually unknown in the US. Thus, Lisa hadn't heard of Tintin before, from anyone but me.

We found a store that specializes in Tintin merchandise. In addition to all the regular comics, they sold additional books about Tintin. Prints of Tintin. Clothes about Tintin. Tintin Dolls. Stuffed toys. And so on and so forth.

We bought a Tintin comic, in French. Lisa is planning to try to read it to me. A good way for her to learn about Tintin and brush up on her French at the same time.

We enjoyed lunch at a Greek restaurant. After being in the US, we were unsure what tipping etiquette would be like in Europe. Should we tip at all? How much? We gave a relatively generous tip, but I later researched and found that tips are generally unnecessary, though one can leave them for good service. Restaurant servers actually make reasonable money from their employers in Europe though, not the pittance that is made in the US with reliance on tips.

The architecture at Grand Place is amazing. Huge, cathedral-like buildings are seen in all directions. We walked around, admiring things, until jetlag started to take its toll in the afternoon. We had hoped to make it up until 8 or so, but that wasn't to happen. We had noticed just how nice Belgian waffles smell, though. Buying one, covered with chocolate and strawberries, we retired to our hotel room to consume it. Then we slept. A couple of hours later, Lisa woke me. I was feeling very groggy. We managed to watch a movie together and eat room service before going back to bed.