Brugge

Continuing on with the story of our European adventure... after discovering Düsseldorf and eating our way through Chimay, the husband and I made our way to Brugge, Belgium.

Maybe the prettiest city ever.  Legend has it that Brugge was spared the drab-ification of the Industrial Revolution thanks to the thriving lace-making industry in the area.  Or that's what I was told when I first traveled there in 2003.  On this trip I learned that the city's history is not so simplistic.  Brugge at one point was supposedly the commercial centre of the world, has a history of attracting great European artists, and was once actually a port city (silt deposits now place it a-ways inland).  These days it seems to have a reputation in Europe for being a big tourist trap.  But, like all good cliches, Brugge's reputation is rooted in truth - it's a great spot to visit!

We spent hours on end traipsing over the cobblestoned streets in the historic (UNESCO-historic) city centre.  The streets circle around the Markt and run parallel with the many canals of the city (hence the alias "Venice of the North").    We found tiny cafes, funny little homes, and some hole-in-the-wall-ground beer cafes.

Our lodgings were lovely to look at, though a bit damp in person (I guess that was to be expected in the bargain lodgings of "Venice of the North").

The food was excellent.  For an example, see our moules-et-frites, below.  On a few occasions we hit up the grocery stores for picnic fare and lunched near the windmills on the perimeter of the city.  Simple and romantic - fitting for our honeymoon.  We also ate delicious Belgian waffles but they didn't come close to lasting long enough to be photographed.  Luckily, they're safely stored away in my food memory.

I can't not mention the beer.  Belgium has so many beer styles, some only to be found in that country.  There's not really beer there - except the odd import - that would really be recognizable as beer to the Canadian mass market.  Many Belgian styles are sweet and/or have a high alcohol content, but really the styles run the gamut.  To generalize, it's the kind of beer you savour and relish.  You won't see a Belgian chugging.  You don't buy a 2-4 in Brugge.  In short, Belgian beer is an art form.  When's the last time you went to a Canadian pub, asked for the house beer and got this:

Served on it's own tray, in it's own glass, on a doily, with a side of specially selected local cheese.  Belgian beer.  That's what I'm talking about.

To me, Brugge is a wonderfully rich city and well worth a visit.  I've been there twice and I'd love to go again.

The next European stop will be in the Czech Republic.  So stay tuned...

Chimay... the food

I promised in my first post about Chimay that I'd be back with more about the food we discovered there.  Well, promise fulfilled.

If I recall correctly, the first food we had on arrival at the Auberge de Poteaupré was - dun da na na - the cheese.  Not only was it the first food we tried, but the first food we smelled.  On walking in the front door, the aroma of cheese rind was in the air.  Kinda fousty, but in a pleasant way.  Unless you don't like cheese.  In that case, you probably shouldn't read this post.  Anyway, I began salivating immediately.

After freshening up, we sauntered down to the restaurant.  First item of business:  selecting one of the Chimay Trappist beers.  I chose Chimay Red, a somewhat dark beer that was fruity, spicy, and served in a beautiful goblet.

While selecting a beer from the Auberge menu, I happily noted that each beer was paired with a cheese, also made by the Trappist monks across the road to my right.  Across the field to my left was a herd of dairy cows.  I knew this was going to be good cheese!

Our group was up for trying ALL the cheeses.  Luckily, samples were on the menu.

[clockwise from top left:  cheese board, Grand Cru, A la Biere, Vieux Chimay, Grand Classique, Le Poteaupré]

I'm not going to pretend that I can critique the cheese and beer pairing.  My palate is not that refined!  They all went well together, in my opinion.  The cheese was delicious.  It ranged from creamy and smooth (Classique and A la Biere) to mild and firm (Vieux Chimay) and finally (my favorites) to smoky and rich (Le Poteaupré and Grand Cru).  If there is a specialty cheese shop near you, I'd have a look for any of these cheeses the next time you're in.

When the cheese had vanished from the board, leaving nothing but a pile of toothpick-flags, we moved on to selecting our mains.  I couldn't resist the pan-fried local trout:

The trout was simple and fresh with a crispy skin and a perfectly-cooked, flaky-but-moist interior.  It reminded me of going fishing with ski poles with my dad when we were kids.  We'd take the fish home, flour, and pan-fry them.  Except we would usually behead the fish before cooking it...

Mike went for heavier fare.  Homemade meatballs.  All smothered in cheese.  Meatballs big enough to plant a flag in:

Oh, that cheese sauce... (I'm obviously drooling right now).  I dipped a few frites in it, not gonna lie.  Imagine a saltier, smokier, creamier Hollandaise sauce and you'd be close.  It also had bacon in it.  Yeah, it did.

Do you see why the food needed it's own post?  And this was just one evening!  We had an equally fabulous dinner the next night.  I'm telling you, this Auberge is the place to go in Belgium.

Until next time!

Chimay

Stop #2 on our European adventure was perhaps the most anticipated.  Because it was our goal to sample the fine foods and beer in this part of the world, Chimay was a prime destination.  Not only do the monks here create the famous Trappist beer of the same name, but they also craft an extensive line of cheeses.

The most fun part of this leg of the trip was that we spent it in the company of good friends.  Friends of ours from university days had since moved to the Netherlands (and recently had a little baby girl).  Along with Aaron (who we met up with in Düsseldorf), we made a nice little party of six (or maybe five-and-a-half!).

We fit (snugly!) into a European rent-a-car.  Which was essential, since Chimay is a bit off-the-beaten-track.

So, just for the part of me that loves accuracy, let me explain what I mean by "Chimay".  I'm using the name a bit loosely to describe the area we visited.  Chimay is a small village in Wallonia, the southern region of Belgium.  About 10 km away, out in the countryside, you can find the Abbey of Notre Dame de Scourmont.  The Abbey is home to the Trappist monks who brew and cheese-make (the profits of their enterprise go to running the monastery and helping the poor).  Their product brand is also Chimay.  We did spend a few hours in the town of Chimay (photos to follow), but we stayed at the Auberge de Poteaupré, the inn loosely associated with the monastery and just a short walk from the grounds.

Whew.  Hope that explains it for you.  Now for the pictures!

[Auberge de Poteaupré]

[walk through the woods]

[grounds of the Abbey]

[inside the Abbey church]

[ancient church in Chimay (town)]

[Chimay]

I think it's quite evident from the pictures, but the area was beautiful.  Quiet, pastoral and green.  The weather was perfect - temperatures in the mid-twenties, sunshine, and not a cloud in the sky.  The Inn was in fabulous shape with crisp linens on the bed and friendly service in the restaurant.  The monastery was utterly peaceful and beautifully kept by the monks.  The town was just ancient - stone buildings and cobblestone streets in need of repair - but charming none-the-less.  Language-wise, we got along fine (Mike was a French immersion kid, and quite a few locals spoke basic English).  Chimay and the surrounding area made for a great long weekend and would be the perfect spot to go if you wanted to get away from it all.

Apparently, writing about the locale alone makes a full post!  I think I'll give you a breather.  You can read all about the food (including cheese!) in my next entry.

Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf was our first real stop on our European holiday.  But it took a little while to actually get there.

St. John's to Toronto was about a three hour flight.  Five hour stopover in Toronto.  Nine hour flight (overnight - and now I know why they call it a red-eye) to Munich.  Shuttle to the hoptbanhof (main train station) was forty-five minutes.  Then we caught the train to Düsseldorf.  Everything was going smoothly until the train ground to a halt about a half-hour outside of Munich.  We learned that someone had unfortunately (and intentionally) met their demise on the tracks ahead of us!  This understandably caused a major disruption in train schedules for the day.  So we spent a few more hours than anticipated riding the rails.

But, finally, after 30 hours of travel, we arrived in Düsseldorf (red eyes and all).  And despite the distance we had travelled, a familiar face from home was there to greet us!

Our good friend Aaron was in this part of Germany for a work trip, and added on a few days of vacation when he found out our schedules would coincide.  

It was such a treat to have a tour guide (Aaron had had time to get his bearings in the city already) at this point, because we were slightly bleary, yet determined to get the most out of our first day evening in Europe.  So after a quick freshening up, we hit the streets.

I hadn't really researched the city before arrival - we considered it more of a stop-over/meeting place than an official destination on our itinerary.  For some reason, I had an image of Düsseldorf as a gritty, industrial town.  Not the case!

The city was just beautiful.  Gorgeous.  And it didn't hurt that it was 20+ degrees outside (any of my Atlantic Canadian readers know what a treat that was in early May!).  It had a modern feel with a whimsical undercurrent evidenced by numerous statues, monuments, and interesting building features:

As I mentioned in my intro post, our motivation to travel to this part of the world was to sample the food and the beer.  I'm about to get to the food.  But the very reason we chose Düsseldorf as a meeting point was its unique beer style.  The Altbier, or "old beer" (old in style, not in chronological age!) of Düsseldorf isn't found anywhere else, and is actually the grounds for a rivalry with neighbouring Köln.  I won't give too much of a description here since my husband will be featuring the beer of our trip on his blog.  Suffice it to say, if you are a beer connoisseur, the Altbier alone made it worth the trip.  

But on to the food!  We ate at one of the Altbier breweries (Frankenheim) and the entire menu looked tempting!  

I settled on a traditional German pickled herring dish (very similar flavour to the Solomon Gundy of Atlantic Canada), with bacon-potatoes.  The herring was served chilled in a sour cream sauce and topped with a boiled egg and black olive.  The potatoes were served warm alongside.  It was a lovely dish.  Considering the similar flavour, if I were preparing this at home I might forego the cream component, but it was great as a treat. 

Mike, relishing his first night in Germany, decided to go with a large helping of sausages (four, to be exact) with a side of sauerkraut and horseradish whipped potatoes.  As is tradition in our little family of two, we routinely sample the other person's meal so I can tell you that this dish was super flavourful and everything you'd expect from a plateful of German sausage.

The meals hit the spot and set the bar high for the rest of our trip.  Which I will tell you a little more about, next time!

European Adventure

Hello!  Anybody out there?  It's been a long - gasp! - six weeks since my last post!  I mentioned last time that I was going on a bit of an adventure.  Well, that I did.  My husband and I went on a two-week tour of Europe (a honeymoon of sorts - two years after the wedding!).  We explored the cities and countryside and sampled the best beer and food in the land.  And now I'm here to share it with you.

(If you did the math and can't figure out why a two-week trip caused a six-week blog hiatus, I also had a few other things on the go such as graduating, moving, buying our first house and preparing for a new job.  No big deal. )

There are lots of posts to come from the trip, but I'd like to start with a brief overview.

We travelled to Wallonia (in Belgium):

Bohemia (Czech Republic):

And Bavaria (Germany):

We sampled fine food:

and fine beverages:

We spent a lot of time in train stations:

And on trains:

And through the whole trip, we kept a journal (the old fashioned way - pen and paper)...

...so we'd remember all the things we wanted to blog about once back home!  There's lots more to come...