Instead of dragging our friends all over Brussels to look at churches and other landmarks (like we did on our first trip), we took a train north to experience another small Belgian city, Antwerp. Immediately upon arriving, we were struck by the enormity and design of the Antwerp train station. According to many, this station is one of the world’s most impressive railway stations, originally designed by Bruges architect, L. Delacenserie, and completed in 1905. After staring in awe for several minutes, while Eric was busily snapping photos, we acquired a detailed city map from the tourist office and headed out.

the beautiful Antwerp central station

I think after two days in Brussels and after how much we enjoyed Bruges, Antwerp was a welcome destination. There were plenty of places to get lost wandering, lots of shops and the old next to new architecture was very interesting. As you can see, the weather was beautiful!

Steen Castle on the west side of the city

Antwerp cathedral at the end of a quiet alley

Grote Markt with a fountain you can walk right up to

We also had the best waffles of the trip in Antwerp. Little bits of crystallized sugar mixed in with the batter made the waffles both sweet and crunchy. No extra toppings needed!

Meg, Drew and I enjoying delicious waffles near the cathedral

Groenplaats with the cathedral

After shopping in a few of the many clothing stores in this fashionable city we ended our day in Antwerp with beers at Paters Vaetje followed by an hour train ride back to Brussels.