My family and I try to take a big trip together at least once a year. Sometimes, unfortunately, that doesnāt happen. Our last big trip was in late 2017 when we traveled to Greece and France. In July 2018, we actually did kind of travel together. We went to Los Angeles to visit my brother, who currently lives there with his girlfriend, Cynthia. It was a fun trip, but it wasnāt one of the big abroad trips we like to do as a family. So, just a few weeks ago in mid-April, the Phan family traversed across parts of Europe, including Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, and the Netherlands. Youāll see some of the photos and stories below. You can also check out my brotherās blog: www.withabackpackandcamera.tumblr.comĀ
Day 1
After an incredibly long trip from Denver flying Icelandair from Denver International to Keflavik and then to Brussels, I got my baggage from the carousel and awaited my family to pick me up. After about 30 minutes of them tracking me down, I was united with everyone! I think the first thing my mom said was,Ā āAre you hungry? You should eat. Hereās some yogurt and a croissant we got from Lidl.ā Thatās my mom, always making sure Iām fed :)
My brother was driving, so we headed out of Brussels towards the town of Dinant. Itās only about a 90 km or so south of Brussels so about an hourās drive. With a population just under 15,000, itās a small town but itās charm and vibrance was spectacular. We parked our car and started strolling around town a bit (which is what we literally do every time we get to a new place. What better way to see a town than just to wander, am I right?) We ended up stopping at La Gourmandine, a little fast food cafe along the Meuse River. We ordered a burger for each person and shared a helping of french fries. Our burgers were really... interesting. Iām still trying to figure out if it was actual beef or like a beef substitute. The consistency was a bit spongy, and Iām wishing I took a photo of the burgers. I thought I did, woops. So anyway, I forget that in Europe, they really like eating fries with mayonnaise. I also forgot that I love mayo, so I was very much so about that life. ALSO, you think everyone can speak English in Europe (which is such an American thing to think), but thatās not always the case. Luckily, many Belgians speak French, so I was able to order the food for our family in French. And I was pretty damn proud, even if all we ordered wereĀ āhamburgersā and fries. Je voudrais un hamburger sāil vous plait!
After a quick dinner, we walked around the riverfront and took in the sights and sounds of Dinant. We had to make it over to the AirBnB in the town of Haillot north of Dinant by 5, so we didnāt have too much time to explore. But visually, this was a really picturesque place with a beautiful waterfront area. The Notre Dame de Dinant was really unique and unlike most churches Iāve visited. The original church was built in the 10th century but was destroyed by falling rocks from a large cliff behind the church in 1228.Ā
We then hopped back in the car and headed over to Haillot to our AirBnB. This place was kind of the boonies, which is again, a theme of our trip. The hosts were very sweet and showed us to our room, which was all upstairs these steep steps. We had the upstairs all to ourselves. It was a really nice and renovated space, and it was really tranquil, seeing that we were seemingly staying near a bunch of farmlands.Ā
We then headed to a Lidl grocery store to pick up some snacks and food to hold us over between meals. And we stopped in the town of Huy, which is hilarious because thatās my brotherās name. We walked around the city and marveled at the town that shares his name. We ended up stopping at a Chinese restaurant for dinner. Originally, we wanted to get takeout and bring it back home to eat, but because the restaurant was so busy, they would only serve us if we sat down. We ordered a few rice dishes and a chicken dish I think. It was some of the greasiest Chinese food Iāve ever had. It was really underwhelming, and what pissed me off the most was the 1 liter of water that they charged 10 euros for. Seriously. $14 for a liter of water. It wasnāt even all that, really. Again, a common theme of our trip... being charged an exorbitant amount of money for water that we should honestly just get from the tap.Ā
Anyway, stay tuned for more fun lovely stories :)
