By telling us your country of residence we are able to provide you with the most relevant travel insurance information.
Please note that not all content is translated or available to residents of all countries. Contact us for full details.
Shares
Travelling is almost as unexpected as outbreaks of viruses here and there. The latter are equally spot-dependant, targeted at "weak" people and hard to get over. "Weakness" according to Viral-travelling-dictionary is an absolute childish and open-mouth interest in the world. In every tiniest thing on the road. There is no need to innoculate me against this kind of viruses because the antidote will definitely not work. Unfortunately, this disease is terminal. Everything could go wrong Forearmed is forewarned, they say, meaning preparations are doomed to work out. That is what I was thinking about 4 months before the trip when I hastily bombarded my friends with screenshots of cheap January flights to Brussels. "Let's go?", I asked. "Sure", the response followed. Little did I know then that the dates we had chosen for the trip will turn into the dates when I will be moving to Paris for studying. Spotted On a bus from Paris to Brussels I could not set my eyes off windmills. They were so solemn under rain I almost felt sympathetic with them. Three girls accidentaly bumped into me. If it were not for a coincidence, it could have taken time for us to find each other as our telephones were off the Internet and this Bruxselles-Midi station off adequate Wi-Fi. They always were full of beans, even after the flight. Roaming is the only way out Not a single article was read on "what to discover in Brussels" because discovery is about accidentaly coming across sights and people, turning corners, taking pictures, taking time, slightly skinny-deeping into the cities. Random streets were taken, random toppings added to the waffles and so much timely rain to decorate the city with glossy surfaces. Local bars with local people, deprived of any touristic face, have been created to make you immerse into the city once and forever. Shabby walls, dim red and yellow lights, 3 euro cherry beers in highball glasses and no rush. THE NIGHT I was apathetic to go to Antwerp as I knew nothing about the city except for the name and diamonds. There was little expectation and little desire from all of us. Bless AirBnb for the flats it has on offer and my friend for always going for comfort. We turned out to live in a hipster flat with salmon-pink sofa, azulejo tiles with Christmas lights on the balcony and a mouth-watering in terms of looks kitchen table. I bet you never expect this kind of style when travelling cheaply. We thougth that was the end of our high quality in every meaning trip. We even were planning on staying at home and simply enjoy the flat. And some food we bought at the local supermarket. We met under the main Church of Antwerp. The city was medieval, I would say. It had so many tiny details and so much charm. The air was salty and wet because of the bay. The wind was penetrating without any consent! Our friend of a friend who lives in Antwerp was probably in the same mood as we did not know each other. He was asked to show us around the city but the moment we said "Hello" some silent calmness settled. we talked and went to bars and met friends of this friend of a friend. We were living minute after minute and it felt so alive. Ending up in an already empty bar at 3 am, dancing to the 80-s music with the bartenders and having little desire to it ever ending was so fulfilling. We knew such moments are depicted in movies with special effects, sounds and hundreds of dubbles or cuts. We lived the moment bare. Nothing you expect ever feels as right as living the moment and letting it fill you to its fullest. Beer is also a good idea. I fell in love with the guy, by the way, but we never met afterwards. Yet.