Day 34 Brussels, Belgium - We Achieved Our Goal!

Joan's View

We slept in a little today because we had a shorter ride and it rained last night. The drier it is, the less gunk that gets on the bike. We are actually really fortunate that we had this window of no rain between last night and tonight. We did, however, have strong head winds, probably the strongest of our entire trip.

The streets of Antwerp were fairly quiet when we left. We rode along this ornate train bridge for almost a half mile. 

Most of the morning was on a long trail running parallel to a train track. At one point we rode onto an X bridge for bicycles. We have seen Y bridges, but this one had 4 corners that you could get on or off with a big median in the middle, so we named it an X bridge. 

At one point along our ride, we were impressed by this billboard just for the bike trail. We realized after we rode a little farther that a train station was nearby with another full bicycle parking lot. Makes sense from looking at all of those hundreds of bikes in the parking lot why they put the billboard on the trail.

This next picture is a view of a newer section of the bicycle trail. It looks like a road lined for automobiles, but it really was just for bikes.

We took a few breaks. One was at a yummy bakery closer to Brussels. 

While eating our fresh bakery treats, Tony spotted two Crown trucks. It's such a small world!

Riding into Brussels, the route took us along a somewhat creepy warehouse district along the water. You know, the kind you see in the movies. We were the only bike on that route. We knew that we had to turn right up ahead to get to the other side of the river, but when we got to the bridge, it was no more. Tony searched for an alternate route while I watched the metal junkyard cranes. 

 

We rode along a busier street for several miles. The interesting part is how many trucks and trailers were parked along the highway. Some seemed like they were there for months. You can see our bike lane next to the parked vehicles.

As we got closer to the center of the city, it became probably the trickiest steering adventure yet. Navigating people walking in all directions, cyclists turning every which way, scooters cutting in and out, construction detours, and figuring out where to go because the bike path turned from street to sidewalk and back and forth. It kept us both on high alert. 

We were both relieved when we got to our Airbnb. Pascal, our host, met us and invited us into his house for drinks. He gave us an overview and recommendations of Brussels. We also covered what steps he has been doing with Belgium customs to get our luggage. He had to pay the 220 Euros on Friday to get them released so we are just praying that we will have our suitcases before we leave on Thursday. 

Tony started to disassemble the tandem and we were both getting hungry. We decided on one of the authentic Belgian restaurants recommended by Pascal, Nuet Nigenough. Turns out they were celebrating their 15th anniversary, so we got free pork croquettes and a stout beer aged in wine from Italy. Truly unique!

Our Airbnb is close to the famous Manneken Pis (Peeing Boy Statue) so we got a picture on our way back for your enjoyment.

Over 1,200 miles and we made it!

Tony's Extras

We made it. Too bad our luggage isn't here yet. We will see if it shows up tomorrow or Wednesday. If not, planning will start and will happen fast. Just seems to be part of our Europe Saga of getting our bags delivered. The ride into Brussels was by far the most intense route we have ever had. Starting with the out of service lift bridge and a completely different detour out in the traffic. We then ended up in a pretty rough part of town. I am pretty sure we went through North Brussels Red Light District. It was intimidating. Here is what I found on the internet about this area. Street walkers are around this whole area. But BE CAREFUL: This part of town is not clean and feels not safe. It is full of graffiti and street people. I can verify that, and I was dodging broken glass all over the place. 

My dinner was ham and it showed up as a ham on a bone. It was delicious and I never had ham this way. Hoping for luggage tomorrow and out to see Brussels.