Tag Archives: Beer

Brussels Visit to Horta House Museums and St Feuillian Abbey Beer DAY 176

176 days of continuous trekking through Europe’s wineries, breweries, and distilleries finds Wayward Wine in Brussels. Antwerp brought a brilliant brewery and Rubens, in our last post (reread here). But for the next three days, we stay in a loft … Continue reading

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Ghent Day Trip Visits a Castle, Brewery Gruut, and an Abbey

Between Antwerp and Brussels, we make a day trip to Ghent. Why? Our worn out travel guide mentioned a fantastic castle, monastery, and a brewery. Done.

Ghent feels very medieval, sleepy, and just about to sink into its canals.

The narrow streets and minute bridges give this town of stone a cosines. We find Ghent castle: Gravensteen. Immediately, Monty Python quotes and songs bubble about our heads. Continue reading

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Antwerp Belgium Pakhuis Brewery Rubens House

Day 174. After merely a week in Holland, the beer of Belgium calls us. Last post (read here) we toured Rotterdam’s modern core, Delft factory, and enjoyed various beers. This EU Austerity Drinking Tour post, we take train to Antwerp.

We loved Holland. Yet Antwerp, this border town, decidedly looks south to Italy, France, and the extravagance of the Renaissance. We stow our luggage in its monumental opera house…I mean train station: Continue reading

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Pilgrims, Delft Tile, Modernity and Leffe and Chouffe Beer in Rotterdam Holland

171 days of our EU Austerity Drinking Tour find us leaving Amsterdam’s fantastic beer, canals, and a windmill city for Rotterdam.

With the end of our trip a month out and 12 countries under our belt, we city hop more efficiently now. I do not draw or photograph as much. My wife barely keeps a journal of each day. We just hit the ground running, see, drink, and eat cheaply but with great diversity. Winter and public transport also limit the amount we cram in.

So, Rotterdam: a sleek, gray city of international trade and business. Amsterdam it is not. In honor of modern Rotterdam, we stay in a hostel made of Orwellian Rubix Cubes. Continue reading

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Dutch Beer and Windmills at Zaanse Schans and Amsterdam

After Amsterdam and its bicycle, canal packed turmoil (see last post here), we require a direct injection of Dutch kitsch. So we day trip to Zaanse Schans: one of Europe’s oldest industrial centers: aka the Disneyland of Windmills, wooden shoes, tulips, and cheese. Continue reading

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