Living as Rosa: Brussels

Maison-Noble, Brussels (Pt. V and Final!)

This is why those stairs were well worth climbing several times a day. I would highly recommend the Maison-Noble to anyone staying in Brussels.

It is a delightfully renovated row house that made a pleasant stay in Brussels. As I mentioned earlier, we had the duplex on the top floor which was absolutely delightful for a couple. Add kids? Well, the pull-out sofa in the living room (barely a double) was not quite sleepable--especially for two teenagers to share. I think the only one to sleep that first night was the hub. Being the mother hen I am, I worried about the kids being uncomfortable all night, which they were.

We purchased an inexpensive "futon" for the cuz to sleep on the very next day. It did the trick. We passed it on to Raphi when we left for him to use in his new condo. It's absolutely perfect for an unexpected guest, especially if they are young. lol

The dining area, along with the entire first floor, was gorgeous. Look at the stained glass.

It took the entire back wall which led into a sweet courtyard.

Beautiful.

The heaters had these lovely holders which I assumed were for water, a humidifier of sorts. Sweet!

The fireplace was transformed into the media center.

The parlour had the grand piano which was played each evening by an extremely talented young pianist, Evgeni Bozhanov from Bulgaria. Evgeni won the second prize at the Queen Elizabeth Competition 2010. He was absolultely brilliant. What a treat for all the guests.

The living area was cozy. I adored the ceiling! What beauty.

And speaking of beauty. . . the night before we were leaving for London, I contracted conjunctivitis. Loverly. It was a really nasty infection that came on quite quickly. Ew. Raphi says I touch too many things. ha! Thank goodness, Raphael's mother is an opthamologist, oh yes she is. So, our dear Raphi rang her up and got a prescription for me! How lucky was I? Pretty darn lucky. (Except for the fact that I had to go completely make-up free the rest of the TRIP! Argh!) Unsightly, to say the least!

It was Sunday, and we were, again, fortunate enough to find a pharmacy open, albeit only through a slot in the door. Gotta love Europe! While Raphi spoke to the pharmacist in French (thank you RAPHI!), I spied this Willie Nelson poster. Just missed him! Daig.

And another view of the lovely reflecting pool.

It was then time to bid adieu to our lovely rue Marco.

One last Belgian waffle shared with the cuz.

And then we were whisked off to London via the Euro Star bullet train through the chunnel! This was my first time going under the English Channel. Most excellent and another MUST!

Next stop, LONDON! Wooot wooooot! Over and out Brussels! Finally, right?

Grand Sablon-Grote Zavel, Brussels (IV)

This is one of my favorite places in Brussels, the Grand Sablon. This is where the weekend flea market appears and is also home to my favorite chocolatiers/patisserie, Wittamer's. Good reasons, huh.

Here are some of the many antique stalls selling their wares. In the background is the Eglise Notre Dame du Sablon (Church of Our Lady of Sablon), built between the 15th and 16th centuries.

Raphi was the only one brave enough to walk through the maze of stalls with me.

I loved this small box of old crosses, probably removed from crucifixes.

The others sat and waited at Wittamer's while we perused the stalls. I didn't find anything. I don't much like antiques that don't have a price on them and you have to ask how much. Especially in French.

People watching. I love it!

How wonderful this is while sipping a cup of coffee and having a little savory treat from the patisserie.

I love how each shop brings little extras with a cup. I think I still have these chocolates stashed somewhere.

Inside the patisserie is an overload to the senses. I wanted one of each.

But I saved my gut for the chocolates next door. The tiny shop was full of delightful chocolate pieces.

There were chocolate hats everywhere! I wish we were heading home, I would have purchased one. But, alas, this was still the very beginning of our travels. I stuck with the creme fraiche chocolates, for everybody! A delightful treat, indeed.

And then there were these Chinese soldiers. Yep, let's carry one of them home on the plane!

I loved the chocolate wedding cakes--perhaps more of a groom's cake with the looks of the bride chasing her man.

And this topper. Too cute.

Next door to Wittamer's is one of my all-time favorite shops, Comptoir de Famille. I stocked up on a few goodies, while again, the fam waited at the cafe.

The last time we were here, the same alley had the same "guard." Or so I thought.

Raphi and I went back and reviewed the 2006 pictures and decided, it is a different dog. Aw. How precious is this though? The new dog had more brown on his ears than the old one.

We stopped for frits and a hamburger. Don't ask. It was a disaster. Kookie Americans and French. The hub was the only one who warned us against it. lol

Back to the metro heading "home," I was delighted to find this cherry stand. Yum!

I liked this version of the Mannekin Pis at one of the cafes. Too cute.

Raphael explained what these little "holes" were by the front doors of many houses. Back in the day before paved streets and sidewalks, these were to enable people to scrape the mood off their boots before entering the house. How brilliant!

And then that bloody walk up all those stairs after we had been touring on foot all day. Ooooooof. Only three more flights to go peeps! Shoot me now.

Raphaël Arrive à Bruxelles (III)

Raphaël and I are always scheming. If we're together or not. So when I found out we were going to be in Brussels, I contacted Raphi and asked him to meet us there. It's not terribly far from Paris either by train or car. Of course, he agreed; but we had to make it fun. So we kept it a secret from the hub and my niece Jacq (the cuz) and worked on a way to surprise them. Raphi booked a room at the same B&B we were staying in, the room next to us, in fact; and he was to arrive Friday afternoon after a meeting in Paris.

Since I didn't know exactly where we'd be when he arrived, Raphi and I text each other and stayed in contact that afternoon. This was the same day the hub and kid went sightseeing and the cuz and I slept in. We decided to meet up with the boys at the Hotel Metropole's cafe, which is well known and easy to locate. A perfect place for Raphi to meet us.

We decided that he would walk by us and I would notice him and say to the hub "Doesn't that look like Raphaël?" It worked perfectly. HAHAHAHHA. Raphi walked by and eyed me. And I say "That looked just like Raphaël!" The hub looks and says "And it even walks like him!" At which time Raphi turns around and looks at us, and we all go "OMG, RAPHI!!!" lol We played for a moment like he was just as surprised to see us. We finally told them we had planned this meeting for months.

We can never do things like normal people. We love Raphi!

Later that night, we went to one of Bob's favorite little cafes near the Grand Place and had a feast! Bloody Americans order everything on the menu, no? Yes.

We ordered the mix grill with meat,

and a Paella.

And the kid ordered Moules Frits.

A feast fit for a king! Ooooooof.

With wine of course, for Raphi and the hub.

We finished it ALL and walked it off afterwards heading to the Grand Place where we had more drinks. (Raphi, the hub and I were a tad tipsy by then.) Here Raphi is teasing the Cuz, "And what is your name, little girl?" We were cracking up! (Excuse the photoshopped sunglasses!) You can still see daylight and it must have been after 11 p.m.!

Here, he was admiring her new camera. We finally wobbled home and got some sleep so we could hit the streets again in the morning. Raphi had never been to Brussels.

The next morning we started out towards the Metro. The hub had bought me some flowers for the room before we arrived from this little shoppe.

So pretty and sweet.

And speaking of sweet, more chocolate!

We then jumped on the metro and took it to where the open market was. (Again borrowed sunglasses on the kid.)

Don't smile Raphi!

Brussels is so pretty, as is all of Europe. The parks are gorgeous.

I love the avenues and the architecture. This last building reminds me of a smaller version of the Old Executive Office Building in DC. Makes me homesick.

An angel always calls to me.