Last Minute Trip to Antwerp

Myself and herself decided to have one last hurrah before I leave this week and headed down to Antwerp for the day. At 32EUR return it's an absolute bargain for a train ticket but keep in mind it will take 2 1/2 hours to get there. What better way to celebrate a sixth month trip abroad than going to Belgium for the day?

We got there about 13.00 in the afternoon and the first thing herself decided to do is step in dog poop. I couldn't even look at her for about ten minutes I felt so queasy but she cleaned herself up and we persevered.

I won't be able to tell you much about the city itself or the history. Our intention was to go somewhere neither of us had been before and soak up the feel of the place. Antwerp has a beautiful old town centre. It has elaborate building facades and tall city houses. It wasn't as medieval as we thought it might be but it;s a fabulous place for a day trip.

So, what did we do all day...?

• ate Belgian chocolate (obviously) 
• drank Belgian beer (see above)
• got a tour on a horse and cart (I felt bad for the horses)
• walked for hours through windy city streets
• ate in a Mexican restaurant and were served by a Cork man (as you do)

If I were to go back I'd get a walking tour of the place and spend a couple of hours at the zoo. It's right outside the central stations front door and it's reported to have amazing gardens. Then again, same as with the horses above, I'd probably only feel bad for the animals.

We rounded off the day waiting in the station for our train. I found a cycle station where I could pedal to charge my iPad. It was a bit of hassle though, ten minutes cycling only got me from 5% power to 7%, I thought I'd get a super charge for my efforts. Mentioning the train station, Antwerp Centraal is a beautiful station, one of the nicest I've ever seen. We were walking with our faces towards the ceiling taking it all in when what happens only herself walks into dog poop again. And I had to sit beside her the whole way back to Amsterdam. Grand.