Beguiling Brussels

Belgium - home of Hercule Poirot; Herves Adventures of Tin Tin; the European Parliament; and beer to name just a few associations, not least of which is chocolate.  Travelling to Brussels on business has given me some long overdue blog inspiration.  Never having been to the Belgian capital city before I took an earlier Eurostar than necessary to have a few hours exploring, although being a Monday all museums were closed.  Consequently my experiences were centred on the impressive Grand Place, one of Europe's finest historical squares surrounded by ornately decorated guild houses.  Not far from the central square the famous Manneken Pis is synonymous with Brussels and quite a small, jaunty little fellow in reality.  Dating back to 1451 the current statue has been in place since 1619.  I wouldn't usually make a detour to go and see a model of a young boy relieving himself into a small pool, but have to say this attraction is better in reality than the commercial exploitation does justice to.

Apart from indulging in some serious chocolate purchases at the wonderful boutiques, a highlight of my day was to go to Maison Dandoy on the aptly named Rue au Beurre, which has been making delicious 'spectaculoos speculoos' biscuits and serving waffles made from a traditional family recipe since 1829. I chose the Liege waffle which is oval in shape, as opposed to the Belgian waffle which is rectangular and more crunchy.  The walls of the upstairs tea room are decorated with old wooden moulds and the menu quotes:  "Life is for surprise kisses, full moon swims and Dandoy biscuits".  Even if the first two are in short supply, I can attest to the delights of the Dandoy baking.

When I arrived at the tea room I was the only person there but within moments 18 Japanese ladies had filled the tables.  Starting of so sedately with subdued chatter it only took a matter of minutes before they were buoyed by such a sugar high, their loud talking across the floor, girlish giggling and excitement was joyous to witness.  Such simple pleasures as eating wonderful waffles with chocolate sauce and ice cream gave huge enjoyment.  I couldn't understand a word apart from repeated 'hi' or yes, but they were having genuine fun and it was delightful.  I'm sure Brussels has many cultural sights to see, but this for me was a charming encounter.  I highly recommend a visit to Maison Dandoy, (of which there are other branches in the city) whether with or without a party of Japanese tourists.