Our first time in Europe!
July 11, 2018
Yesterday, we left Curaçao and caught an overnight flight to our new destination: Belgium!
Europe wasn’t originally at the top of our travel list, but the hours are ideal for our remote schedules, and we found an amazing deal on a flight (only around $100 per ticket!). We had originally planned to stay long-term in Mexico or somewhere in South America, but now we are SO excited to explore Europe!
Our journey started with a delay of several hours… while sitting on the tarmac! Several heavily drunk guys (unfortunately seated right behind me 🤦♀️) got booted off the plane when they refused to give up their opened alcohol bottles, but only after local police got involved.
Our flight went smoothly, but after MANY hours of sitting on that plane and on our approach to our destination, we had to stay up in the sky, doing loops, so that another plane could make an emergency landing.
We finally got off that plane and through the airport… only to discover that our phones were not working at all, despite having purchased a new SIM card and having international options on our home carriers. Ugh.
So we hailed a taxi. A very expensive taxi. Maybe I am wrong, but I am pretty sure the guy saw us as young, clearly inexperienced travelers and ripped us off, charging us 100 Euro for a 10-minute ride… And me being naive about tipping culture gave him an extra 20! 🤦♀️
But we started to feel a LOT better during the ride. We looked out the windows as we passed incredible European churches that must have been hundreds of years old, statues, beautiful parks, and just felt very immersed int his all-new scenery.
It was one of those moments where we couldn’t quite comprehend that we were in reality… it didn’t feel like we were there and we were completely in awe.
We then arrived at our Airbnb in Brussels. Getting the key with no cell service, no knowledge of the local language, and the key pickup being from the host’s friend several blocks away was a bit of a challenge. Alan waited with our bags while I searched for the cafe where the key was located – being extremely careful to note my directions and surroundings so I would not get lost. I’m pretty prone to that!!!
Luckily, it all worked out, and we settled into an incredible Airbnb. Seriously, INCREDIBLE! It’s the top floor of a building that is hundreds of years old. A massive and fully decked out artist’s loft. It had the tallest ceilings, artworks everywhere, a bed in a lofted area, and a huge tub in the roof with a cute little window looking out over the rooftops! Plus, it’s just a ten-minute walk from the iconic Grand Place!
So far, we’ve enjoyed what we’ve seen, but we are also ultra-jet-lagged, so more is to come! Here are a few photos from today!
Additional Photos:
