Our train from Brussels to Antwerp must have seen better days, during the Cold War maybe.
Antwerp Central Station has won numerous awards for its train architecture.
As soon as you leave the train station you are tempted with purchases of diamonds (good thing Eric asked me to marry him or this could have been an uncomfortable stroll).
Antwerp has been the center of the diamond industry since the 1400s, when Lodewyk van Bercken invented a revolutionary diamond polishing wheel. To this day, 84% of all rough diamonds take a trip to Antwerp.
We don't have anything on the agenda for today but to walk around and see the architecture.
I wanted to go up the bell tower but it is only open on Mondays. Although it is connected to the church, the entrance is on the outside and only city hall holds the key. I asked a church employee if I should go ask the mayor if we can go up. He laughed and said their mayor is known for saying no to people.
It got pretty crowded in Antwerp by the afternoon (it looked like Disneyland on the weekend) so we headed back to Brussels, finding a delicious pizza place near our hotel.
We head to Berlin tomorrow!
You take me places, via your blog, that I would not probably get to. Antwerp is one such place. I love that.
ReplyDeleteTell me about the until art nestled until the bricks right on the sidewalk. Unique!
Great architecture and history. Wow. And YUM to that last photo.