I spent about a week in Belgium, but most of my time was at Tomorrowland festival, which is covered in a different post. I quickly stopped in Brussels and then spent 5 nights in Antwerp. Belgium was my introduction to mainland Europe as I came from the UK by train. The train ride through the French countryside was absolutely beautiful. In Brussels, I hung out with people I met online through the Yes Theory community and reconnected with an old friend I met over 10 years ago in Los Angeles. It was great to see him. Then I spent some time in Antwerp, which had a breathtaking train station as well as the best beer I ever had in my life, called the Bourgogne des Flandres or the Flanders Red.
Brussels
On my first night in Brussels, I met up with three friends from the Yes Theory community. Yes Theory is one of my favorite YouTube channels, which aims to get people out of their comfort zone and say Yes! to life. We had dinner and drinks at a beautiful food court with options from all over the world. Then we walked around the city and I had my private tour guides. The left photo is me in the city center. We also went to the Manneken Pis fountain, a famous statue of a little boy peeing.
I’ve been communicating with Antoine over Snapchat for over 10 years since I met him in Los Angeles at a hotel. I was at a travel baseball tournament, and he was visiting America. He always said to come to Belgium, and we would hang out. So I made it happen! Antoine even came over to Amsterdam to hang out for a day when I was there two weeks later because it was only a short train ride for him. It was a super fulfilling experience to meet up with a long-lost friend halfway across the world after not seeing each other for so long. I hope to have this same experience in the future with people I met along the way on this trip, either when I return to Europe or when they come to the US.
My one and only full day in Brussels was jam-packed with fun. It started with getting a haircut at a barber shop next to my accommodation, where the barbers spoke little to no English. However, it had good reviews, and I needed a haircut before the festival I was going to in a few days. Later, I went to a famous rooftop in the early afternoon to enjoy the view, appetizers, and drinks. Brussels is truly a beautiful city from above. I’ve found that most big cities, just like San Francisco, are beautiful from a bird’s eye view, yet kind of a dumpster fire down on the street. After the rooftop, I met some other French people and hung out with them for the rest of the night. One guy in fashion named Ken was friends with the famous designer Virgil Abloh, who tragically passed away. Ken was electric, and I hope to hang out with him again someday. I also met three people from the Bay Area in line for food who were going to Tomorrowland. I ended up hanging out with them at the festival and later in Amsterdam. Many people in Brussels at that time were there for the Tomorrowland festival, just like I was. There was a famous bar called Delirium that had something like 400 beers on the menu, and that’s where most of the action happened that night.
Antwerp Train Station
This train station was gorgeous both inside and out. It had over 25 platforms, so it was like a maze. I arrived and departed Antwerp through this station, and I used it to get to and from Tomorrowland every day. This station will always have a special place in my heart.
Overall
Belgium was a diverse place. For example, in Brussels, they spoke French, and in Antwerp, they spoke Dutch. On all the trains, they announced everything in both languages. I liked that aspect of the country. The people were super kind, and everything was easygoing and casual. I would go back to Belgium, even if it's just for the beer, specifically the Flanders Red. Ken, the French guy I met, made me try Ricard, a French licorice liquor. He said it’s a staple in French culture. I hated it - never getting it again.