This is the continuation of a story about my trip to Belgium some eleven years ago…

My first full day in Bruges was the first snowfall of the season.

When I arrived at the hostel, no one was in the six person room, so I dropped my bags and headed out on my own to explore.

Bicycles are a huge part of the way of life in Belgium and a little snow didn’t stop the locals from riding their bikes through Bruges.

As I walked through the countryside, near the windmills high on the hills, I saw children and parents alike sledding down from the windmill starting point.

When I returned to the hostel later in the day, I went to the room to see if anyone was there that I could hang out with for the night. Funny enough, there were a brother and a sister. And they were from New Jersey. More specifically, from the town next to the town where a good friend of mine had grown up. Small world. Two Canadians soon joined and the five of us headed out into the snowy evening to sample Bruges finest beers.

In December 2000, I was working in a small legal publishing office in London. I had only started the beginning of the month and was still getting to know everyone.

As December had progressed, we had holiday drinks, holiday lunches and a holiday party. If you are curious for the number of parties we had to celebrate, this was in 2000 and the start of economic troubles were not going to surface for a few more months.

In random conversations, officemates were asking one another what they were doing for the holidays. I simply assumed we had a long weekend. The day before the office closed, I found out it would be closed until the New Year.

Sidenote: Do you hear that US-based companies? Giving your employees the week off between Christmas and New Year’s is totally the way to do it.

I wasn’t expecting a visitor from the States for another week and most of my flatmates had gone home for the holidays. So, what’s a girl to do but get out of town for a few days!

After work that day, I promptly visited the closest student travel agency (my university ID did not have dates attended and since I had just graduated, I still looked just the same). I met with a lovely woman who was tending to my last minute travel needs and I told her that I had never been anywhere on the Continent except a long weekend in Paris with a friend just a few weeks before.

I was open to anywhere. I had three (or four), I can’t remember, days, I’d be traveling alone and anywhere would do.

She suggested Belgium via the Eurostar, and I said let’s book it! My early morning departure was booked for Boxing Day, the 26th of December and I only knew I needed to pack warm clothes.

I spent Christmas in my flat making a scrapbook of my time already spent in London from October til December. We did not have television and the internet was a commodity onlyy found at internet cafes, so I amused myself with the radio and my own creativity. Imagine that!

On Boxing Day, I left on my first solo trip to a place where I knew no one and I didn’t really know much about my destination except Belgian beer and Belgian chocolate…and already I was sold!

Today is Boxing Day across the pond…and throughout the Commonwealth.

When I lived in London over Christmas of 2000, Boxing Day was like Christmas Day. Everything was closed. Which would be great if you had no plans.

Except that I had booked an early morning Eurostar train to Brussels, Belgium. At the time I lived in Battersea (just south of the Thames, and also where Prince Harry just visited the police department after a friend’s recent robbery).

I had to book a taxi and pay whatever Boxing Day holiday surcharge because the tube (subway) and trains were closed. The only way across the river would be to take a taxi or swim. I clearly chose the former.

And let’s be honest, had the tube or trains been running, my departure was so early that I probably would have paid the taxi anyway – remember, everything was closed, so no traffic, and I could sleep a little bit longer!

Once on the Eurostar, you would have never known it was a holiday. It was packed with people! I remember speaking with a fellow American who was en route to visit her boyfriend’s family. I had told her that after Brussels I was headed towards Luxembourg or Bruges, I did not know which. She had told me she had visited both and she highly recommended Bruges over Luxembourg.

I kept that info in my back pocket and did act on her advice.

After a day in Brussels, I bought a train ticket to Bruges for the following day.

Note: Bruges was AWESOME and ultimately became one of my favorite cities that I have discovered in Europe. Will elaborate about my experience in the wonderful city in future posts.