Okay, it's not really getting mugged, but it's one of the very bizarre charms of Brussels. I've had days off here on a number of occasions, so yesterday, Princess Tam Tam, who has never been to Brussels, and I stepped out to see the sights. All she knew was Belgian waffle. So on the walk to the center square, we stopped at a little stand and had a waffle. I got mine covered in chocolate (I think I can hear Nicole's mouth watering).
We then walked around a bit before getting to the square which was unfortunately (or fortunately) turned into a open air concert area. Turns out this past weekend was, not a jazz music festival, but rather a jazz music marathon. At least that's what all the advertising called it. Don't get me wrong, I like most jazz music, but there are times when I'm listening to it and all I can hear are 5 musicians plays 5 different songs all at the same time. I guess that's the point. Anyway, I found it funny that it was called a "marathon", like it's a hard endurance event to listen to live jazz every night for 3 nights. But I digress...
After we took some pictures of the square, we walked over to the only other landmark I know in Brussels, the statue of the pissing boy. I'm sure there's some really great monuments around this city, but for some reason the tourists flock to take a picture of this very tiny statue. It's not very big, only about 2 feet tall. But the gag is, it has over 10,000 outfits that it has worn. So every time you come to Brussels, you can go look and see what different outfit the pissing boy has on. The last time I was here, it was in December, so of course, he was wearing a Santa outfit. But this time, we were slightly disappointed, he was standing there in the buff. I guess it was bath day on Sunday.
From there we went to my favorite tourist attraction, getting mugged by waiters. Near the center square is a cross roads of cobblestone walkways that are lined with restaurants. All of them have tables inside and tables outside. The outside tables, are in the walkway on both sides so the once 10 foot path is squeezed down into about 4 feet. So people passing each other have to turn sideways and do their best not to bump the seated diners. Every restaurant has a waiter who basically stands in the 4 foot walkway and, well, mugs you. "Sir please, come eat in my restaurant, I have mussels, seafood, steak! You come eat here, I give you your first drink for free! Sir? Sir? I can tell you are hungry, my food is the best!"
They stand in your way, they force menus into your hand, They grab you by the crook of your arm, they sing, the dance, they are ruthless! And you have to walk this gauntlet whether you intend to eat or not.
Seeing as Princess Tam Tam had never been here before, I walked behind her and let her "choose" the restaurant. We entered, and muggers rained down on her. "Ma'am? Ma'am? You want to eat? I have the best mussels! Don't go! Wait! I give you first and last drink free! You come in, you sit here, come sit! I pull out the chair for you. Ma'am? Ma'am?"
About halfway through I could tell she was getting flustered and was on the verge of having a meltdown. It really takes a strong constitution, or better yet, a savvy negotiation process to be get all the way through. I stepped ahead of her and acted like a bulldozer and plowed our way to the end. After a moment to collect ourselves we dove back into the gauntlet and chose a restaurant. And why did we choose the restaurant we did? Because there was no waiter out front to mug us, and there was only one other person inside, and he was a local.
The food was great, the company was better. We lingered over salmon and steak. I had a Belgian beer, she, a glass of red wine. The bill came, it was a bit pricey (again, considering the exchange rate) but we paid it and headed back out into the gauntlet, where we learned something we didn't think of before! When the waiters came to mug us, we simply said, "Thanks but we've already eaten," and they left us alone. Now you too, know the secret of mugging prevention. "Thanks I've already eaten," or walk through eating a sandwich.
I like Brussels, I really do. It's the seat of power for the EU (European Union), so there are lots of people here who are business oriented and better yet, speak English. People are definitely much friendlier here than in Paris, and everything is centralized and in walking distance. The food is awesome, and if you like seafood (which I don't) the mussels are fresh from the Belgian and Dutch coasts. In this little country there are 100 of different beer brewers, so the selection is not only huge, but very very tasty.
Granted there's no Eiffel Tower, no Louvre. But a few days of wandering the streets of Brussels is good for the soul.
...
2 comments:
I encountered a waiter-mugging street like that in Paris! Must be a european thing.
How many outfits have you seen naked statue boy wear? Who is responsible for changing him?
Post a Comment