Brussels, Belgium. Friday, 5th May, 2023
The weather forecast for the next three days including today is not encouraging! Sure enough, dark clouds are gathering in the Belgian sky as I write this, at 07:50. Will eat breakfast and then decide the agenda for the day.
I resume the entry now at 16:37. We visited Antwerp. Finished breakfast by 08:45 or so and then strolled towards the Bruxelles-Midi railway station, under a cloudy sky. Purchased the return tickets (Euros 33,60) for Antwerp. Boarded a train at approximately 09:20 and sped through the green Belgian countryside. Reached our destination at 10:15.
The railway station at Antwerp - Antwerpen Centraal in the local language - is known for its beautiful façade; and rightly so. On our previous visit to Belgium five years ago, we had hurriedly transitted through this station on way to Bruges. Now we had all the time in the world to admire the robust, aesthetically appealing building; and click pictures. This was very satisfying. Exited the building, which was equally impressive on its exterior. Wanted to visit the City Hall, hence consulted Google. It showed that two ‘trams’ were available, numbers 9 and 15. The boarding stop was shown as ‘Diamant Markt’, just outside Antwerpen Railway Station. However, in spite of patrolling up and down the road outside the station, we just could not locate the tram stop! Asking a few locals did not help, either. Suddenly, we spotted the ticket office of ‘Lijn’, the internal transport operator, the same one who operates at Ghent. The problem of the ‘trams’ and their stop was solved immediately! The numbers 9 and 15 did not refer to trams, but to metro lines! They existed deep down in the bowels of the earth and we would have to negotiate a jigsaw puzzle to locate them, judging by the instructions given by the lady at the ticketing counter in the ‘Lijn’ office.
The search for the metro platforms began after we had exited the office and entered the station building. The first landmark mentioned by the lady was the waffle shop. This was easy enough. Next to it was the first escalator, going down. We were down one level. Turned left, following the directions for lines numbered 9 and 15. Spotted an arrow pointing diagonally downwards; and were soon on the second escalator! Great going, so far! We had sunk farther into the earth. Walked on a few feet, to locate the third escalator! Sank down farther to finally find ourselves on the right platform! Wow! We had done it! The train arrived soon enough and after two stops, we alighted at a station called ‘Groenplaats Metro’. Took one escalator up. Then a level walk, till we reached the second one, that would take us to the surface. Stepped onto it and immediately regretted doing so, as it had started raining! Got wet as we went up but immediately returned to the safety of the underground station, by the neighbouring escalator. Explored a market (Carrefour) just to kill time, waiting for the rain gods to relent. Ended up purchasing a bar of Lindt-Crème Brulee flavour, which we had tasted on our earlier trips to Europe and which we knew was delicious. Walked back to the escalator in trepidation but were relieved to find that the rain had almost stopped! A few drops did not really matter.
Stepped on to a cobbled surface that was part of a square – familiar territory – bordered by exquisite constructions. Guided by Google, we walked in the direction of the City Hall, taking care not to step into puddles! The area was simply mind-blowing! Typical Europe! At one side was a huge church – a monstrous beauty! The place was a crisscross of cobbled lanes and by-lanes, each bordered by attractive shops and restaurants. The buildings stood out – many in brick red, with architecture close to that seen on buildings in Germany – what is known as half-timbered. The City Hall was impressive too. We continued strolling in the direction of the river. The river front was not very impressive- it looked neglected and lacked much activity, the opposite bank looked deserted. It resembled the scene at Dusseldorf visited by us the last year; and quite unlike the scenes at Prague or Budapest. The rivers at these two places have a lot of character and have blended into their respective cities, have become a part of their residents’ lives. The river here seemed detached and aloof, largely ignored by crowds.
Dark clouds started gathering in the sky again! Halted for lunch at a Thai restaurant and enjoyed the meal. Then strolled around a bit, with one eye on the sky; and made our way to the Groenplaats metro station. Very soon we were back at Antwerpen Railway station. Followed directions to reach platform no. 24, for the train back to Bruxelles-Midi. It was 13:45 then and the train was scheduled to depart at 14:06. At 13:50 there arrived a train on the adjacent track, platform no. 23. Seeing that it was bound for Charleroi via Bruxelles-Midi, we lost no time boarding it.
An enjoyable ride in a clean, virtually empty train saw us back at Bruxelles-Midi, in 40 minutes. Used bus no. 49 from ‘Gare du Midi’ to the bus stop of Orban, the same stop we had alighted at on Tuesday afternoon, on arrival from the airport. As we were walking to our hotel, the sky decided to shed its liquid content. Were forced to take shelter for 6-7 minutes before the pitter-patter had stopped. A blue sky once again! Reached the hotel, collected sachets of tea, milk, sugar; back in our room. It is now 17:26 and we plan to play chess in the lobby, at 19:30.
Well, we did go down, a little after 19:30. As expected, the lobby was empty with the chessboard inviting us. It was bright and sunny outside. Sat down to match wits! The first game was very engrossing and I won rather easily. Ordered J&B whiskey for myself and cappuccino for Urmila. The receptionist, very friendly, poured out a real stiff one for me (half a glass) and would have continued pouring had I not asked him to stop! Enjoyed our individual drinks, accompanied by ‘Haldiram’s Poha Chiwda’. Offered it to the friendly receptionist and he liked it! The second game, ‘under the influence of alcohol’, proved tough for me as Urmila held out for a draw! It was great fun!
Retired to our room by 21:20. Finished off the remaining Lindt plus a little bit of Ritter Sport praline flavour. Now watching (or rather, ‘hearing’) music on ‘Maghreb TV’, an Arabic channel.
Will call it a night, in a while.