"Brussels, the first place I ever... " a Brussels Travel Page by crunkeemcghee

This is the city that ensured my desire to work towards an international career and try to find a way to be paid to see the world! I was awed and inspired by the European Union and NATO, amazed at the world languages spoken on every corner, and enthralled with the mix of foods and cultural pride shown everywhere. I know that London normally gets the reputation of being an international city, but Brussels is some definite competition.

One of my favorite stories to tell is the day we were all walking along and I smelled the most amazing and scrumptious scent wafting our way. I led the way and finally came upon a tiny hole in the wall (literally) serving up the yummiest waffles. I opted for a plain one, and that ended up being the best flavor of them all.

Apparently, Belgium boasts two waffle styles, named after their two largest cities. The Liege waffle (my personal favorite) has an irregular circular shape with a ragged edge, while the Brussels waffle is rectangular.

We all ended up going back several more times, and as word spread amongst our group, I was happy to lead the way (totally not self-serving in any way, although I MAY have opted to "test" another waffle). That smell is still with me to this day.

Of all of our nights in Brussels, the day of the World Cup Finals, where Brazil won first place and Turkey in third was eye-opening. I point out these two countries because, as I did not know, there is a heavy population of people from both of these countries and they were absolutely keen to celebrate their wins! I was lucky enough to find a great view from O'Reillys second floor balcony to watch the revelers dance, sing, wave flags, block traffic, and party well into the night. I especially enjoyed seeing everyone take to the steps of the La Bourse (Stock Exchange) and climb all over the lion statues (approx. 6 ft. high - like Trafalgar Square's lions).

It still stands out in my mind as an experience I never expected to have!

**Picture to come once I fix my scanner***