OK, let’s wrap this up. Not much more to talk about, anyway.

Belgium doesn’t really have its own culinary style. They’re too close to France. But they do have some “signature” dishes – not just waffles and frites – that are worth trying out.

Seems like every restaurant that wants tourists to stop in offers mussels. They come in a pot, in which they have been steamed or marinated. I can recommend the “Formule Léon”, the “house special” at Chez Léon. They’re done in celery, onions, and butter, and come with the omnipresent frites as well as a glass of the house pilsner.

Another “national dish” is Carbonnade Flamande (Flemish Beef and Beer Stew). I had mine (with a side salad that looked like stuff they just ripped out of the backyard (still tasty, though), and the usual frites) at Aux Armes de Bruxelles.

Now for the “old man yells at clouds” bit: Why can’t people dress up a little bit when going out on the town? Aux Armes de Bruxelles is a very high class place; the staff all wear ties, and the sommelier even had gold braid on his shoulders (he also really knew his business – I watched him very properly serve wine at another table). The décor is all elegant; everything screams “THIS IS HIGH CLASS ELEGANCE!!” So why do you go there wearing a t-shirt, shorts, and sandals? I know it’s summer and you’re probably a tourist, but can you at least were a polo / golf shirt, khakis, and sneakers (like I did)?

You can easily get some good Belgian beer anywhere, but I recommend a visit to Bier Central. They boast of having 30 beers on tap, and over 300 available in bottles.

I don’t know if they have it, but another place I visited had an actual, honest-to-god GREEN BEER. It’s Floris “Cactus”, and the green color comes naturally. Tastes of lime – real lime fruit, not fake candy lime.

Not my photo; not my hand.

One last thing about beer – a lot of beer glasses have volume indicators on the side, to help with portion control. This is not a new thing in Belgium.

L: Then. R: Now.

On our way to Dinant, our tour bus passed near the town of Celles. We drove by a restaurant that had a WWII German tank outside. Celles, to the military history buffs, is the farthest the Germans got in Operation Watch on the Rhine / the Von Rundstedt Offensive / the Battle of the Bulge. There’s a LOT of military history in the area; every major European war for at least the past two centuries had some major battles in the area. Couldn’t get a photo of the tank; I was on the wrong side of the bus…..

There are quite a few CBD shops in dowtown Brussels. Not the full on marijuana shops like in Amsterdam, but enough so you’re never that far from one. None of that characteristic aroma in the air….

There are also a few casinos in the area. They can’t be that large, but they seem to offer all the usual games. I have to say I NEVER saw anyone either coming out or going in to any of them.

The Grand-Place still the city’s main square, and is used for a lot of events, like this free “Intro to Ballet” class as part of the Brussels Dance Festival (which began while I was in town):

Of course they light up the Grand-Place at night. I have no idea why they did it in lavender / purple the week I was there.

Not once did I ever see Brussels sprouts.