Petar had a scheduled business trip to Brussels and in the light of the following 4th –of-July- weekend, we spent a lot of miles and decided to prolong the trip for a week. The flight we took from San Jose to Atlanta was very entertaining - with satellite TV and trivia games, so we were able to follow the soccer games and compete with the rest of the passengers on the trivia questions. Then, after a long and tiresome flight from ATL to Belgium, we finally arrived at Brussels airport. It sucks that you have to pay for drinks on US airlines and Petar took it very personally. Fortunately, it was our anniversary and he was able to schmuck the flight attendants to give him free stuff J Anyhow, we both agreed that flying to Europe on European airlines is more fun!
Another thing we agreed upon is that Brussels Airport is the most horrible we’ve ever experienced – passport control takes forever and they make you walk half an hour from the gates to baggage claim. We don’t mind the exercise but setting the expectations straight will be nicer –“Estimated arrival in the baggage claim area – 40 minutes”
After checking in at our hotel, we went to the city for a couple of hours. We were definitely not prepared for the weather – the temperature was less than 15C. Nevertheless, walking around the city was great. Even though we were a bit tired and Petar was getting more and more grumpy, we enjoyed the crowd, the Belgium waffles, and the ambience in general.
If you’ve never seen Grand Place you have definitely missed a chance to see one of the most beautiful squares in Europe. The Belgians say it’s the most beautiful in the world, but you know how nations get when they talk about the local things. We followed the green signs to see a number of sightseeings - Belgium’s most famous citizen – Manneken Pis, Grand Place, Saint Catherine Cathercal, The Castle, etc. We couldn’t hide our disappointment from Manneken Pis’ size – only 52 cm. Rumor has it, that there are more than 380 different dress suits that the little guy wears. There are a number of legends that surround the statue – that a little boy helped put off a fire that was going to destroy the city, that an evil witch turned him into a monument, after catching him doing his thing in front of her porch, etc.
During the next couple of days, Petar was busy with work and socializing with his European colleagues, and I filled my days with exploring the city. It is noticeable that Brussels is an international “harbor “of minds, being the capital of the EU. Moreover, one can see people from all over the world with different cultures and colors. The dirt and the “aromas” on the streets make a negative impression that stays with you for some time. Maybe it’ll go away after the summer sales in the shops are over 
. It is visible that the city is changing its appearance and new modern structures are being built to satisfy the needs of the EU administration apparatus. Pictures follow …