This past Wednesday, I had the pleasure of taking a day trip from Paris to Ghent. I know what you’re thinking: where is that? I also did not know this town existed until about two weeks ago, when one of the lovely RAs here recommended that if I was going to go to any city in Belgium, it had to be Ghent. So, of course, I thought it would be best to do it all in a day. I never thought I would say that mid-school week I went to a different country, but I guess that is just studying abroad.
When we arrived at Ghent, it was about 12 pm, so I was starving. One thing about me is that I am CHEAP, so I of course did not want to take public transport. But after a short 40-minute walk from the train station, we finally arrived at the Belgian delicacy: waffles. When I tell you they take it seriously there, I mean it and as they should. It was tasty and good. I got a Brussels waffle, which is apparently the larger rectangular one, as opposed to a Liege waffle, which is smaller and circular with a sugar coating. Anyhow, I got this beautiful waffle with tons of strawberries and whipped cream. It was light and airy, and on top of that we ate it right next to the canal that runs through Ghent—10/10 experience.
After I was satiated, we walked around the town a little bit. We went into some stores; I got my obligatory magnet, of course, and cards for one of my friends. The shops were super cute, and the people were lovely. They had a billion Jellycats, but they were all out of budget; otherwise, I would have gotten one for my sister. The people were also so lovely; I mean, my expectation from French people, who are, you know, not going to smile at you as you walk by. But everyone in Belgium was so happy; I mean, it was also a lovely day outside, which of course added to the jolly of it all.
One of the things my RA recommended was to take a canal tour boat, so of course we did; Lucy does know best after all. It was super great and cheap. 11 euros for 45 minutes was not bad at all. Luckily, the boat we were on wasn’t crowded either, so it was really just a nice midday rest and a great way to learn about such an interesting city. They used to get all their drinking water from the canal we were on, and because the quality wasn’t great, anyone who wasn’t a child would drink beer instead of water, since it was not only better but also filling. After all, they had no food. The more you know!
After the canal tour, I walked around solo for about an hour. I got myself a latte because I was, and still am, craving some American coffee. I went into a few shops looking for jewelry because I wanted to get a piece from every country I went to, but it was all too expensive or too ugly, so it was a hard pass. My other mission was to get chocolate, since you know that is what they’re known for. I went to this great chocolate place called Daskalides. It was very, very yummy chocolate and put me in the best mood.
I met back up with my friend, and we headed to dinner about an hour and a half before we had to leave. My last mission of the day was to get myself some fries because that is what Belgians are known for. My friend wanted to go to a sit-down restaurant, but there were no Belgian restaurants, so we ended up at an Irish pub. I still got my fries, but I don’t think they were the ones they are famous for. Not bad, just not great. Then we headed back to Paris on a FlixBus, and with my phone at 6%, I was very sad to see that the only charging available on the bus was USB, and I only had my USB-C charger. So, lesson learned for next week’s bus.
Overall, I would 10/10 recommend doing a day trip to another country if you can while you’re abroad. It was way cheaper than a weekend trip because the transportation was the only major cost, which for me was 45 dollars. It was a great way to get out of my host country and see another place; I didn’t need to spend so much time in it to feel like I had seen it. Belgium as a place was lovely, but I have to say I felt crazy bloated after the lineup of waffles, chocolate, and fries for my meals that day.