Brussels and Losing One's Beer Virginity

Ah, the beautiful capital of Belgium and the seat of many European Union institutions. My friend Gemma and I chose it as the start of our March holidays and Joshua, a fellow english assistant and partner in crime and travels met us there. Like me, he was very excited about having some Belgian brews and it's hard to remember if we even drank water while we were there. Don't judge, in France, we've been subject to impossibly shitty beer since October. I'd like to think that our enthusiasm persuaded Gemma to try her very first beer! Granted, it was a fruity one but I see it as a milestone in the girl's life. The trip only lasted two nights and a day but we managed to walk around quite a bit and squeeze in a visit to the Magritte museum, the Grand Place, the European Parliament, and Delirium Cafe. We couch-surfed in a cozy student house and our host showed us her neighbourhood so we also managed to see a bit of Brussels through a local's eye.

Do you drink beer? What's your favourite? I love strong dark brews with coffee or chocolate-y undertones

I recommend you....

• Drink plenty of beer everywhere but do stop by Delirium Cafe
• Eat plenty of waffles. We recommend the street… try to find the best one!
• Eat fries "Chez Antoine" – look for a little kiosk in Place Jourdan
• Stop by the Poechenellekelder bar for a dark beer while visiting the old town

Photos: 

Grand Place

Grand Place (Photo credit: GPD)

European Parliament

Magritte museum - downstairs

Bistrot À la mort subite - good atmosphere and cute but overpriced

Dark beer time at Poechenellekelder

Delirium Cafe

Delirium Cafe

Delirium Cafe (photo credit: GPD)

Gemma's first fruity beer at a random cafeteria

Manneken Pis

March adventures in Belgium, Poland, and Hungary

At the beginning of March, I embarked on a fantastic two-week holiday with my good friend Gemma. The ongoing deterioration of our bodies that ensued was well worth the amount of fun, food, culture, history and alcohol we consumed. We survived but mostly enjoyed Brussels, Krakow, Warsaw with tightly packed suitcases and even tighter budgets. Check out our recommendations below and click on the links for more photos and a juicier account of our adventures!

Brussels - Click here for more!

• Drink plenty of beer everywhere but do stop by Delirium Cafe
• Eat plenty of waffles. We recommend the street… try to find the best one!
• Eat fries "Chez Antoine" – look for a little kiosk in Place Jourdan

Krakow - Click here for more 

• Take the Krakow Free Walking tour! Our tourguide Ella was awesome, check out their website here
• Go out in Kazimierz, the old jewish district
• Go to Plaza Nowy in Kazimierz where you can check out the market on weekend mornings or go for a drink at a nearby bar. Definitely don’t forget to eat a Zapiekanka!
•  Try polish soup, our favourite was the mushroom soup served in a bread bowl
• Eat some 24hr Pierogis at Zapiecek (only 12 PLN)
• Hang out at Rynek Główny (Main Market Square)
• Go to the Wawel Castle
• Get drunk on Zubrowka Vodka with apple juice
• Visit St. Francis of Assisi's Church; it was Pope John Paul II’s favourite church

Warsaw 

• Eat some incredibly cheap and delicious food at "Bar Mleczny Familijny", a polish milk bar. The staff does not speak english but they keep an english menu near the cash register. All you need to do is write down what you want and hand it over. Don't be discouraged by this, it's definitely worth a try! More about this place here.

Budapest 

• Indulge yourself and spend an afternoon (or a few) at one Budapest's Turkish baths; I went to and had a great time
• Try to catch a show at the opera, tickets are mad cheap and the building is gorgeous 
• Grab a bite of delicious hungarian food at Menza 

Packing for March Adventures

If I had to choose one thing right now I love about my job, it would be the holidays. I'm serious, we get so many! I doubt I will ever have as much free time as I do now. Please note I wrote one thing right now and not the one thing. I enjoy teaching but my french kids have been particularly difficult this week... Yo, I would be too if I was 10 years old and had a 9-5 school schedule.

French educators take their holidays very seriously. A few weeks ago, it was proposed to cut down summer holidays. Most teachers at the schools I work at were opposed to these cuts and went on strike  (as did many teachers throughout France). I don't think it's such a bad idea to make the school year longer as long as that means shortening their ridiculously long schooldays, but that's just me.

I have time off until March 18th and I am embarking on my second mini-european tour. This time, I will be exploring Brussels, Krakow, Warsaw and Budapest. I am most excited about Belgian beer, Polish vodka, tram parties in Krakow, and Turkish baths in Budapest. I will definitely update via instagram @rearaniva and twitter @rearaniva as much as I can.

At a few hours away from my departure, I am trying to cram my suitcase with both warm and cool outfits. I've chosen a black, white and gold palette so that hopefully I will look at least half-decent throughout the trip. Since I am in a permanent state of semi-brokenness, the only choice was to fly Ryanair. The plus side? 8 euro flights to Budapest from Krakow. The downside? strict hand luggage regulations i.e. a microscopic suitcase where I might be able to fit a couple of t-shirts.

This is what I'm hoping will fit in my suitcase:

I also got a lot of tiny toiletries; for once in my life I'm going to embrace cleanliness while travelling #Newlife.