A relaxing 24 hours in Brussels

'Not much to see but with a rather lovely square', this was the general response when I told people I had 24 hours in Brussels, so with restrained expectations we arrived.  Maybe it helped the sun was shining, or that we had arrived right in the centre by train, missing out all the often unloved suburbs that many a city has to offer.  But initial impressions were good.  We stayed in a very convenient hotel, right by the station.  In other cities this is often the more neglected part of the city but in Brussels it seemed more incorporated into the centre.  It was a short 20 minutes stroll up to the old streets and pedestrian part of the city. 

Our walk took us through what has to be the Moroccan area, lots of cafes with men sitting outside drinking mint tea, some deep in conversation, and fruit and veg stores with their wares spilling out on to the street. Huge water melons, artichokes and oranges complete with leaves.  Following this road the areas buildings became more intricate, great carved window frames and large closed double doors, occasionally opening to let cars through, but never enough to let you see inside into the space beyond.  Cafes lined the streets nearer to the centre, all with tables and chairs temptingly positioned to encourage you sit down, order a local beer and watch the world go by.

We resisted this temptation for the time being and headed to the promised square of lovely, and it didn't disappoint.  Despite one side being covered in scaffolding, the other 3 sides more than made up for it, with their building facades all leading to a point on their roofs.  Fussy carvings and windows seemed to be the style of the day.  The large open space of the square itself was complete with tourists taking photos, yet more eating and drinking establishments and people just hanging out.  A group of young people sat playing the guitar, trying to look cool, whilst next to them a pop up flower market had been set up drawing people in with its colour in contrast to the gray and brown of the buildings behind.  There was even someone wandering around dressed as Tintin, apparently created in Belgium, who knew.

Tempting chocolate

From here time was spent wandering around the pedestrian streets, a worthwhile pursuit to see what the city has on offer.  Fabulous displays of chocolate and meringues adorned shop windows, a rainbow of colour and tempting smells drawing people in.  And of course there were the beer shops, numerous varieties of locally brewed beverages on offer each with their own interesting labels hoping to drawn the eye away from the other offerings.  We even walked to see the infamous 'Manneken Pis' or 'little man pee', this small statue is apparently one of the most photographed things in Brussels, I didn't add to that number, drawn instead to the window of a much more interesting waffle shop across the road!

Pile of meringues!

We walked out of the main hub and towards the botanical gardens.  This walk took us through a more modern part of the city, where large modern glass fronted buildings sat together with some of the more traditional offerings.  In the gardens pretty box hedges, water features and terracing provided a great place to stop for a well earned rest.  It was just a pity that the interesting glass house had nothing special inside.

Botanical gardens

A busy afternoon of wandering meant we had earned a drink, the atmosphere in the square was a perfect place for this.  Dinner was taken at Le Cirio established in1886 this grand cafe is full of brass work and quirky features.  We sat outside enjoying a delicious dinner whilst indulging in more people watching.

Strange happenings in the square

So Brussels in 24 hours, we could have done more, but what we did was enough to get the flavour of this destination.  Is it a return destination? not sure, but it is a great gateway to other European destinations, so who knows one day I'll be back for another 24 hours.