Brussels in 24 hours

Brussels in 24 hours

During the Easter, a trip to visit a university friend in Paris turned into a short, whistle-stop holiday to Brussels. My friend and I travelled roughly 14 hours from Sheffield to meet our other friend, Alicia, in the capital of Beligum.

Functioning with very little sleep, we wasted no time in visiting all the famous and wonderful sights in Brussels. Our first stop was Atomium, which was amazing to look at but because of time shortage, we decided to not go up it and instead do an even quicker trip around Europe by going to Mini Europe, which was very fun especially when we found London!

Next on the list was Basilica of the Sacred Heart, which was a beauty. I had already been to the Sacre-Coeur in Paris so visiting the one in Brussels was a real must. We even took the opportunity to go to the very outer dome and look down on Brussels. Luckily we were blessed with great weather as the sky was clear and the view was break-taking.

After relaxing in the sun on the top of the Basilica of Sacred Heart, we found our way back into the Grand Place, the centre of Brussels. Having craved waffles ever since we decided to book this mini-trip away, my friends and I began to search for a waffle shop to satisfy our cravings. It actually proved a little harder than we expected, as most places were bars and restaurants. But eventually we found a little shop tucked away with some of the best waffles we've ever had.

Whilst walking through Brussels, I noticed so many bright and capturing graffitis, including this awesome one of Alice in Wonderland. 

One of Brussels' famous monuments is Manneken Pis fountain, otherwise known as 'The Peeing Boy', which is usually dressed up in different outfits during the year. After wondering the streets and following the crowd, we found the fountain and it was dressed in a musical green outfit.

I had also read about Jeanneken Pis, the female version of The Peeing Boy, however despite several attempts to find it, we could not pin point where it was.

In the evening, after dinner and drinks we headed to the Parc Du Cinquantenaire, translated as 'Park of Fiftieth Anniversary' which was lit up gorgeously by the setting sun. We wondered around and took several pictures of the amazing arch before heading back in the direction of the hotel.

Before we arrived back, we passed the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula and as it was night time, the lights had been switched on and made it glow in the darkness.

So our luck, it actually happened to by Earth Hour as well so when we walked back to the Grand Place, we made it just in time to watch all the darkness come alive with lights. The Brussels Town Hall looked so magical as it lit up from utter darkness.

The following morning, we had an early morning travelling to the bus stop to catch up relevant coaches back home. We left just enough time to visit a chip shop that seemed to be busy all the time with long queues and the Congress Column.

Although our time was short in Brussels, we got to see so many attractions and have our long-awaited waffles! We made good use of little time and on a very cheap budget. If I had the time, I'd definitely come back to visit on a sunny day to visit more parks and indulge in some more of Brussels' delicious cuisine.

Have you ever been to Brussels? or wanted to ever visit somewhere specific in Brussels?

Love Anna x