The first time I went to Europe, I wore spike-heel boots. Seriously, spiky heels. And we were in Rome. On cobblestone streets. By the end of the first day, I was in tears. Late that night, we found ourselves at a shoe shop buying flat, supportive riding boots. I still have those boots and often think about the painful experience that required their purchase.
Ah, the lessons learned from going to a foreign country. This latest trip was no exception. Graham and I celebrated our ten year anniversary in Brussels and it was absolutely charming, and wonderful, and romantic. Do I wish I had brushed up on my French before we left? Yes. Did I hope to see more museums, pack in more sights? Of course, especially Flanders Field on the Centennial anniversary of WWI. Would I have done the trip any differently? Not a chance.
In looking through pictures and processing our time away, Graham and I are both in agreement on a few suggestions to follow when traveling to Europe:
1. Eat like a local.
If the restaurant is too Americanized, skip it. If the food is too familiar, scratch it. Find yourself at a local pub in the afternoon or a restaurant late at night and make sure you're the only ones speaking English. That's when you know you're on the right track.
On our trip, instead of getting ketchup on our Belgian Frites, we opted for the traditional mayonnaise. Mind you, this was no Hellman's. Belgian mayo is homemade and absolutely divine. Instead of eating our Belgian waffles with powdered sugar and syrup like we might in the states, we chose to eat it plain and got a true taste of perfection, complete with crunchy caramelized edges.
One of my favorite food experiences was heading a few blocks up the street from our hotel in southern Brussels (away from town) to a place called Les Clans des Belge. We showed up at 9 o'clock for dinner and the place was hopping with locals. We ate our most authentic meal that night as Graham chose the canard and I had mussels vin blanc. Another real treat was finding a little Greek restaurant while dining solo one afternoon. The very kind owner walked me through the menu start to finish. I ate octopus there for the first time and it was mild and tender and delicious.
2. Find a church and sit for a spell.
The Catholic churches in Europe are positively breathtaking and you don't have to visit the most famous ones to have a full experience. We walked into a little church just outside of downtown Brussels that had been built in 1635, and marveled. The musky smell of candles burning, the craftsmanship in the artwork, and the simple wooden benches on which to sit were mesmerizing. We rested there for a spell and whispered back and forth about what the four walls of this church must have borne witness to throughout the generations. Plagues and epidemics in the 17th century, the rise and fall of rulers and kingdoms, and world wars abroad, then at home, this little church stands as a place of comfort amidst the fear and loss.
The art of getting lost in a European city can make for the most enduring memories of the trip. Giving yourself permission to have just a bit of wanderlust allows you to truly experience the location you are visiting. Had we not stepped off the beaten path in Bruges, for instance, we wouldn't have found these charming sites:
4. Bring hair tools that work.
A voltage adapter doesn't help anybody when the curling iron prong doesn't fit the shape. This makes for bad hair days. I speak from experience. Without the use of my curling iron or flat iron, I wore lots of up-do's and thankfully, found a fabulous hat along the way to mask the hair issues. Seriously though, make sure your hair products will work. You can go ahead and thank me in advance.
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