Wandering around Brussels Again

Today I decided to give wandering around Brussels another shot. It's been a few weeks since I last wandered semi-aimlessly around the city. Above you see one of my "discoveries": the Porte de Hal or Hallepoort. This is the remnant of one of the gates of medieval Brussels. To make Lori happy I also took a picture of myself in front of said gate.
Wandering was hampered today by typically schizophrenic Belgian weather. It alternated between dark/cloudy, thunderstorms, and brightly sunny/hot. During one of the windy phases, I stumbled upon this bizarre statue:
One thing that I've been disappointed with in Brussels are the much-hyped fries. Virtually all places selling frites are using frozen potatoes of questionable provenance. So I decided to do some advance planning for this venture. Perusing the web, I discovered a strong consensus that Maison Antoine is the best fritur in the city. The hype is much deserved...these fries are properly cooked in beef tallow!!! Sorry vegetarians. This makeshift stand that has gradually metamorphasized into a permanent installation is so popular that I had to stand in line for almost an hour. The frites were fantastic with a meaty essence from the tallow and exellent crunch. I'm not entirely sure they were worth waiting an hour behind an annoying German 6-year old but I couldn't leave Brussels without having the real thing (pictured below with sauce andalouse, a tomato-mayo conconction):
There was a massive outdoor market on the Jourdanplace where Maison Antoine is located. I was really excited because there were all kinds of cheeses, breads, and sausages to try. However, unbeknownst to me, the market began shutting down while I was in line for frites. So I did not get to buy anything afterall. Here you see the vendors taking apart their stalls:
On the walk home through Park Leopold, I spotted some wildlife: cute baby ducks!
And thousands of snails:
Maybe sea turtles are an endangered species because naked Belgian children have been strangling them all?

Namur

Today I visited the city of Namur, which is also the regional capital of the Walloon Community of Belgium (these are the crazies who are considering declaring independence from the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium). The most important site in Namur is the large citadel overlooking the confluence of the Meuse and Sambre Rivers. As you can tell from the picture, this hill is pretty much a textbook spot to place a fortress. Which makes the history of Namur somewhat confusing. Few European cities have been besieged and conquered as often as Namur, despite its supposedly invulnerable defenses. Virtually every major power in European history has succesfully captured this citadel, sometimes more than once! The most recently successful besiegers were the Germans in 1914. Below is a picture of the most famous besieger: Louis XIV.

Note the citadel in the background and also note how undeveloped the countryside was in 1692.

Now compare Louis' portrait to the scenic shot above.

Above is a monument dedicated to Belgians who resisted German invasions in WWI and WWII.

By chance, Namur was having a massive street festival today. Too bad most of the tents were selling cheap sandals and other worthless crap. There was very little street food either, which to me is the most important part of any outdoor festival.

As always, churches figure heavily in the sights of any European town.

Here is the town hall.

Some sort of convent building

Finally, the mushroom omelette I had for lunch. It was completely mediocre as I've come to expect here. French-style cuisine must be in serious danger on its home turf. I'll take Lori's scrambled eggs ANY DAY over this overcooked undersalted disc.

Crepe!

I found a place that serves savory crepes! This one has ham, cheese, and a fried egg inside. A perfect lunch.