Antwerp's calling

Well hello there! Did you mis me ;P

I know it’s been a while again, but after coming back home from my journey of SF and Paris – still have a hard time believing my gap-year is officially over!!! Something I looked forward to for YEARS! But, I enjoyed every single bit of it :D – I just wanted to take some time to see friends and family, and, on top of that … I started my studies in Hospitality Management at the end of August! So, as you might guess, that pretty much took all of my time as I was figuring out my way at the college, and trying to embrace the student life.

But now that I’ve gotten more used to it (plus the fact I’ve made some little trips ;) ) I’m back and ready to share my stories again! – I also got some more planned, so stay tuned and don’t go anywhere ;P.

Let’s start with my little adventure visiting Antwerp a couple of weeks ago:

It has been two weeks since I’ve had some days off of school, and my mom and I felt like going away just for one day. And, as my sister is now studying in Antwerp, we decided to go to ”‘t Stad”, to stroll around the city, and who knows, maybe discover someplace new. – I can assure you it was quite a surprising day, so just keep on reading ;P.

Thursday morning, my mom and I slowly woke up, had some breakfast, and started to get ourselves ready to leave, but before heading towards Antwerp, we first had to drop off the car at the garage… well, what can I say: duty calls. Anyway, it was about 11:30 when we could actually take off to the beautiful Antwerp.

I’ve got to be honest, it wasn’t my first time visiting the city – probably have been there 100 times or more – but, during all those visits, I don’t think I got much further than the station and the Meir (the big shopping street, for any of you new to Antwerp). And thus, this time we agreed on doing something different and taking on a bit of an adventure by going in another direction and truly discovering all the beauty Antwerp has to offer!

But, before actually arriving in Antwerp, we had some traffic issues on the way, which already shortened our time left in the city. On our way, my sister called me and my mum to see how much longer it would take us to arrive, because she had just finished her lecture at the university and wanted to know if she could maybe join us until her next class would start. At that very moment, we still had 40 minutes to go, so we said we would give her a call and pick her up as soon as we took an exit on the freeway. No sooner said than done, around 2 PM we finally arrived, picked up my sister and drove off to find a parking spot. – This is where it gets fun…. – Antwerp, as graciously under construction as can be, guided us with her wonderful infrastructure of detours, outside of the city just like that! One wrong turn and…OOPS, there we were, in the Waaslandtunnel, with no turning back! Well, of course, you could take a turn and go through the tunnel again, but considering the infinitively beautiful line of cars on the other side of the road, it would probably take you more than an hour. So, plan B: follow the ring again till the exit we took in the first place to come and get into Antwerp, problem solved – at least, that’s what we thought, but life ain’t a fairytale.

Traffic was horrible, and the road to ‘t Stad, took longer than desired. But, we are not going to let that bother us too much and the three of us made the best out of it!

Sightseeing tour of Antwerp it was! – I truly saw it all!

One hour later, back in the city center, and the car had been parked! – HALLELUJAH!

Now, our real visiting-day could start-off – well, day… let’s better say our 3 hours of visiting, as the clock had struck 3 in the afternoon. – Also, after spending 3 AND A HALF HOURS in the car, our stomachs started to growl, thus time for food!! Luckily, my lovely sister knew this small lunch café called “Le Red Fox”, that was nearby.

Walking in, I immediately fell in love with the place! – How much cuter can a place get! – the interior was SOOO sweet, due to all the pastel and light colors, and the vintage furniture really gave it this retro style I adore! Besides the oh-so-loved décor, the food was, in its turn, genuinely delicious! Even though, the dishes are all pretty simple, the taste was amazing – I am pretty sure that was one of the best couscous salads I’ve ever eaten! – My mom and sister both got the quiche, which looked equally as tasty. On top of that, the service was great! The girl running the café – all by herself :O – makes every day a new menu, and only works with fresh products, which means: GONE = GONE.

Honestly, whenever you are in Antwerp, be sure to check out “Le Red Fox”!

Le Red Fox

Cassiersstraat 38A, 2060 Antwerpen, België

https://www.facebook.com/LE-RED-FOX-524423630908393/

Well well, the reason we initially went to Antwerp could eventually take place:

Firstly, we walked from the Sint-Jansplein to the university from Antwerp, as my sister had to attend her last lecture. From there, my mom took me to see the Begijnhof (the Beguinage). I had never seen this part of the city before, and once you passed that gate, and entered the courtyard, silence hit. All the loud noises you usually hear roaming through the center just faded away. It was so quiet and peaceful, truly unbelievable! Also, the old and little houses were stunning. I love this architectural style, it brings back the history and authenticity of that period. You can surely add this place to the “must-visit-list”!

AND…..if that wasn’t enough, I even made a new friend there! Meet Bobke the cat – he seemed like a Bobke to me :D – Walking in, we immediately laid eyes on him as he was courteously laying in the middle of the street like he was the king of Antwerp.

Next, headed towards the university neighborhood. Some of the most historical buildings in Antwerp are owned by the university. Fortunately, you can still enter the court and take a look around in the yard. Honestly, yet again, it was gorgeous! Such an old building and still, so beautifully well-maintained!

Our tour went on to the big market squire, passing by the Hendrik Conscienceplein, following the little narrow roads. It was so nice to walk around Antwerp, just wandering and deciding which direction to go next. I have honestly seen a different side of Antwerp, and I am not done yet with discovering this amazing city! – Prepare yourselves for some more posts ;P

The begijnhof

The university neighborhood

Hendrik Conscienceplein

The Cathedral

The streets of Antwerp

( for more pictures check my gallery )

Time to return to the car and meet up again with my sister as it came closely to 6 PM.

I had a great 3 hours in the city, but now, we needed to head back home before the traffic jams would start, unless of course, we wanted to take once more a sightseeing tour of Antwerp and its surroundings ;D

That’s it for now, but keep in mind, there will be more to come soon!!

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