Lovely Leuven

Belgium started off with a bang... I arrived in Leuven at around 16h30, had a quick coffee and croissant at my "local" coffeeshop close to my old house before I met up with Eddy (of my old running club in Belgium which I joined 2 years ago when I stayed in Leuven - for those of you who don't know the history) for a run with my old running group.

(Video of the Leuven Grootte Markt on the day that I arrived with real nativity scene).

Although the starting place of the club changed, their friendliness did not. We had an hour's run and then we went off to the Goude Carolus brasserie (called Het Anker) where we had dinner and I told them all more about Cape Town and the Two Oceans Marathon as they are all very keen in going to Cape Town in 2008 to do the Two Oceans. The brasserie was very nice (and I learnt that it was one of the only Belgian breweries still in the hands of a family business and not Interbev) and everything there was made with the beer. We had beer-based apperitifs (beer with some sweet liquor mixed, I can't really describe it) and "Mechelse Koe-koe", which is chicken baked in a beer-based sauce.
(See the club's site for a their version of the events at Het Anker, here).

It was only at around 1am that morning when I finally got to meet up with Regi (my kot-baas / house-boss in Leuven in 2004).

The next day Regi and Kirsten (a friend of his which also visited Cape Town in November) took me out touring. We started with a trip to Gent which, despite all the rain, was a really nice city - basically as nice as Brugge in my opinion, just minus all the american and japanese tourists.

(Raining in Gent)

From Gent we drove to Brugge where Regi's dad lives. Here again I was very warmly received and entertained by Regi's dad. We started out with snacks and apperitifs in "Cookie's Bar" (Regi's dad's neigbour's bar) in Garrestraat, then had some dinner and then, after a walk around Brugge, ended back at the "De Garre" pub in Garrestraat. Regi's dad was very friendly and it was really nice to be taken around Brugge with somebody who knows the place.

(Drinks at Cookie's)

(Sights in Brugge)

We said our goodbyes to Regi's dad and stepmother and then headed off quite late that evening to Westende (Middelkerke) where Regi's dad has an apartment on the Belgian coast. It is not really the best time of the year probably to visit the coast but Regi and I was always speaking of going to the coast when I stayed in Belgium back in 2004, so this time round we just had to do it.

(View from promenade in front of the apartment)

One would have thought that after the busy weekend that the week would end up quite relaxing... It did not however and I also fitted the following things in:

- a few dinners / drinks with Regi after work during the week

- met with my insurance law prof in Leuven, whom took me on a day trip to Brussels

(Heinrich in front of the Belgian Royal Palace)

(View of square at the Museum of Musical Instruments where we had lunch)

(The said lunch)

- walked around Brussels

(Of course that includes the Manneken Pis)

(Niewstraat - the shopping street in Brussels)

- went for a day trip to Maastricht where I met a dutch friend of mine, Sophie for lunch.

- had another run with the club

- went to Kirsten's sister's birthday party where I had "real belgian food", other than frites and waffles (witloof en ham gebak in kaassous).

And with that my time in Belgium ran out, quite fast and it also felt too quick... It was onto the Eurostar and onto England...