A Belgian Waffle healed my heart!
This is a story of a half-day in Bruges and my first bite of a Belgian waffle, after a long difficult night in Brussels.
I don’t have much of a sweet tooth but occasionally love a sweet breakfast. A good waffle with just the right amount of sweetness and crunch is a great option to start off the day. Note that I’m not talking from the perspective of health here! Just pure pleasure!
When two nights in Belgium were planned out for a Euro trip last year, I had to add the famous Belgian waffles to the “highlight” column of the itinerary spreadsheet. Yes! I love spreadsheets! And I make one for anything and everything (especially travel plans) and am in awe of people who make it even better than me!
One of the most enjoyable nights took a dark turn!
You cannot come to Belgium and not taste the variety of beers in one of its pubs! Taste is an understatement, of course, but we were responsible while having a lot of fun!
The vibe was better than expected! The beers were much better than imagined! The people were nice, including the cops and bartenders.
And then the most obvious thing happened that you were always warned about. One of us got robbed!
It was the most typical story of being approached in a friendly way and in split seconds the phone was gone! And I had a brief panic attack in the middle of Brussels' most vibrant areas. We of course did the obvious of going to the cops with the wonderful cab driver helping us out (God bless him!)
In the end, our only solace was - “Thank God! It’s just the phone.”
After a long night, we finished all the security measures in the morning, sat down with our gloomy moods, cracked some dark jokes and decided to not let a lost phone ruin our vacation!
It was already noon, but still as planned we decided to take the train to Bruges.
A day trip worth all the hype - Bruges and Belgian waffles! 💕
Bruges was love at first sight!
I feel bad for not having a more indulgent story about this beautiful place. This was the first time I saw such medieval architecture and was transported to another world altogether.
As the previous night’s incident slowly faded, I remembered the waffles in my “highlights” column! With all the chaos that came by, we haven't had the chance to try one till now.
So, we sat down at a restaurant in the Markt Square just opposite the Belfort or Belfry - a historic bell tower and one of the top attractions of Bruges. Now, when the order came, my friend noticed me and laughed! “Your face sparkled with excitement, seeing the waffle!”
After a few quick clicks, I dug into it and it was love at first bite!
I can’t speak for my friends, but at that moment I was completely back to vacation mode! My heart was healed completely from what happened the previous night and I relished every bite of that perfectly warm, soft, and crunchy waffle, like there’s no tomorrow! I was totally “present” in those moments when I devoured it, with the soothing sound of the medieval bells in the background!
I’m still someone who is a bit averse to “touristy” things! But some things deserve popularity and being on the “must-do/must-have” lists.
Fresh and gorgeous Belgian waffles are definitely worth it! I still miss it!
Being a slow traveller, I can surely say that a day trip was not enough to experience Bruges!
Reaching its fairytale lanes, after the long night in Brussels, I wished I had at least one more day - for more strolls, more sweet indulgence, more stories from this gorgeous place!
Somebody, feel free to invite me back! 🥹♥️
The last day of vacation:
We ended this trip in Prague. (story coming up soon). And on the last day, I decided to have waffles for breakfast to relive my memory in Bruges. And yes it was delicious too! But I'll always have an extra soft corner for my first ever Belgian waffle in Belgium on my first ever Euro-trip!
I am Namrata Gohain, a designer-turned-storyteller, writer and content producer. I document stories on responsible travel, crafts, cuisine, slow living and my creative journey.
I just had lunch an hour back and I am hungry again. The photos were so good!
Ooh Namrata this is yummy!!! Reminded me of my own love for Belgian waffles and those beautiful European streets 🥰🥰🥰