Burkarskis do Europe 2023 - La Trappe and Brussels
Overview
| Rating |
🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋 |
|---|---|
| Year Traveled |
2023 |
| Length of Trip |
2 Weeks |
| Locations Visited |
Tilburg, NL and Brussels, BE |
We wake up early to clean up and check out of our camper in the Vakantie Park. We board the public bus from the castle side of the road to begin the next leg of our journey.
We hop on a train to Tilburg, NL. What’s in Tilburg, you ask? Both the Bierbrouwerij de Koningshoeven and Proeflokaal La Trappe. It’s an abbey where monks brew their own beer (and make bread, cheese, honey, jam, soaps… etc) while still active as a monastery. Our goal was to make the first tour of the day at 12:30 which is the only English language tour.
When our train is pulling into a station where we’re supposed to transfer, I hear the announcer say that the train to Tilburg is already on the opposite side of the platform so I rush out to catch it with Michael following. That announcement was in Dutch, btw, so please give me the pat on the back I deserve. Once back on the move, Michael got nervous that we’d made a mistake. This wasn’t the train we were supposed to be on. That was true… We made an earlier train! Now I’m thinking we’ll definitely make that tour.
Upon arriving in Tilburg, Michael finds us a Brunchcafe. It’s a Monday morning, but we’re on vacation so we order mimosas. I get a waffle with avocado and egg called the Goedemorgen and Michael got an avocado toast called the Bravocado. Our coffees came with a little caramel fudge.
We return to the train station to catch a local bus out to the brewery. While we’re waiting we make friends with a local.
Getting closer to the time the bus should depart from the terminal, we head down to our platform. About 4 minutes before the scheduled time, a bus with correct number blasts past us with a single horn honk to the station doors. The passengers disembark and the sign switches to out of service. And the bus we’re waiting for disappears from the signs. RIP. These buses only run once per hour but our backup choice runs 10 minutes later so we hang around and catch it. The backup choice leaves us with a 20 minute walk still. And it’s really sunny and getting hot again. When we get off the bus we attempt a rideshare app for the 1st time abroad. The transaction never goes through. We’re not sure if it’s because no drivers accepted the ride (late morning on a Monday) or if our US banking/credit cards won’t go through. We start walking and soon pass a shared motor scooter. So Michael downloads that app and starts the setup. But gets stuck at the text message verification step. He has the option to enter his US number. But the text message with the verification code never comes.
As we walk we pass a sign for the best goat cheese vending machine. De lekkerste geitenkaas! Boerderijautomaat! We plan to stop here on the way out.
We arrive at the monastery too late for the English tour. Oh well. The tasting room will do just fine. Michael stops for a bathroom break right away so I’m alone when our waitress first stops by. I’m trying to use my Dutch but I’ve been getting a lot of foreign language performance anxiety. She asks if I’m alone and I try to say that I’m waiting for my husband but I can’t remember if I want to say echtegenoot or echtegenote. I get praise when I place my order in Dutch nevertheless.
Back when we were hanging out at the bus terminal with that butterfly, I started getting a little tummy ache. I’m worried that I’ve over done it eating fatty foods and my genetically weak gall bladder has decided to no longer support digestion. But I find out from the menu at the Proeflokaal that they’re serving the monastary’s homemade cheese and bread as well. I gotta get that cheese sandwich. Michael and I split one. That cheese was so yummy it was worth it.
New vocabulary of the day:
Proefglaas - tasting glass
Proefplank - tasting board (flight)
After our lunch, we take a walk around the public parts of the abbey grounds. And we stop at the boerderijautomaat on the way out to select one nice cheese.
We return to the train station one last time to board a train to Belgium. The train ride goes smoothly and soon we’re in Brussels! I used my credit card reward points to book our hotel which is very close to the city center. But our reading of how easy the walk to the streetcar would be was very wrong. We’re suddenly in a town with hills and at one point I’ve got to drag my luggage up a huge stone outdoor staircase. Did I mention it’s really hot out and I have a tummy ache?
Our reward points hotel is lovely, though. The entire 1st week of our trip we were basically without any air conditioning. Amsterdam airport, our hostel in Amsterdam, our camper, the castle, every bar or restaurant… none of them had AC! When we were in the hostel we had bunk beds. At the camper we got the only double but I would describe the size as double cots. Additionally, we’d been stuck sharing a bathroom with 4 other people all week. The shower in the trailer was the size of a phone booth. At my first opportunity to book my own lodging, I went nuts. A real queen sized bed. A giant bathroom. An elevator. And air conditioning. We take a brief siesta and shower before we venture out for Michael’s dream dinner: mussels in Brussels.
We find a restaurant that’s been around since the 1882 and is famous for their mussels: Au Vieux Bruxelles. Michael orders their signature sauce which has bacon, chicory and cream. I order fish because I’m attempting to eat a bit lighter. My fish was huge but Michael’s pot of mussels was bigger! We’re enjoying our feast so much we spring for dessert. I order a creme brulee that was described as mini. It was full-sized. Michael got a chocolate mousse.
We enjoy our evening stroll through Brussels back to our cool, air conditioned hotel.
Late at night I’m watching some show in French on tv that I become very invented in. I want to be able to find it later so I try to photograph the lead actress with Google Lens. NG. It matches with a photo of a raggedy barbie. I may never know.