Jess and I decided to head to Antwerp for the day, yesterday,so we invited a couple of friends along for the fun. Brandon has been involved in a summer camp at KB, so Jess and I have been left to entertain ourselves for the last two weeks. (We were pretty good at it, if I do say so myself.) To add to the adventure, we took the train. I love this train station. It's very pretty, and the employees are extremely kind and helpful with "unseasoned" travelers like us. With tickets in hand, we were off. 
This is the Antwerp Central train station, and it was amazing. We hadn't even gone out into the city yet, and we were in awe of the architecture. If you get the chance to take a train anywhere in Europe, do so through this station. Wow. 
The double doors in the center lead to the inside part of the station. 
The details were so pretty.
Once you enter the doors... wow, again! I hadn't realized it at first, but this is where one of those surprise dance numbers was filmed that you see on YouTube. (I'd love to see one of those live. They look like so much fun.) Anyhoo, if you go down the stairs, though the doors, and take a right, you will be at the front gate of the Antwerp Zoo. We didn't have time for that adventure today, but we will certainly be back for it some time soon. Instead, we were on a mission. We went down these stairs and back into the train area. That's where all of the shops are...
This is what we were looking for, but more about that later. First, it was time to explore the city before we had to head home again. The Boy wasn't going to stay at camp forever, so we were on a time crunch. We only had 3 hours to explore!
There were lots of things to see here. There were amazing buildings and statutes everywhere you looked.
This view is back toward the train station. You can just see the
The details were so pretty.
Once you enter the doors... wow, again! I hadn't realized it at first, but this is where one of those surprise dance numbers was filmed that you see on YouTube. (I'd love to see one of those live. They look like so much fun.) Anyhoo, if you go down the stairs, though the doors, and take a right, you will be at the front gate of the Antwerp Zoo. We didn't have time for that adventure today, but we will certainly be back for it some time soon. Instead, we were on a mission. We went down these stairs and back into the train area. That's where all of the shops are...
This is what we were looking for, but more about that later. First, it was time to explore the city before we had to head home again. The Boy wasn't going to stay at camp forever, so we were on a time crunch. We only had 3 hours to explore!
There were lots of things to see here. There were amazing buildings and statutes everywhere you looked.
This view is back toward the train station. You can just see the dome of it's roof in the distance. 
Is it just me, or does every statute in the city bear a striking resemblance to William Shakespeare?
It's hard to tell from this picture, but this lightening bolt statute was covered in gold leaf, and very pretty.
This is one of the things that we came to see. It's the Cathedral of Our Lady. Even though she was having a little work done, she was still beautiful! She is also the tallest building in the entire city. 
I know what you are thinking. Is that another Shakespearean statute? Why, yes. Yes, it is.
All too soon, it was time to head back to the train. We didn't get a chance to check out the Grote Market, Het Steen, or the famous statute of Brabo and the giant's hand. That's OK. I will most definitely return to this lovely city and explore some more.
Central Station was quiet when we returned to board our train. Apparently others had more time to explore than we did.
I did happen to score a lovely souvenir of our trip. This was the main reason for our quick jaunt to Antwerp. I have started to collect the Starbucks collectors mugs of cities. (My friend Erika got me hooked on them, so feel free to blame her for my latest insanity.) 
She's lovely, isn't she. Quite stylish, as well. Ahhhhh, I wonder what the common folk are doing today. Sitting in a train station, admiring their coffee mug, of course.
Is it just me, or does every statute in the city bear a striking resemblance to William Shakespeare?
It's hard to tell from this picture, but this lightening bolt statute was covered in gold leaf, and very pretty.This is one of the things that we came to see. It's the Cathedral of Our Lady. Even though she was having a little work done, she was still beautiful! She is also the tallest building in the entire city. I know what you are thinking. Is that another Shakespearean statute? Why, yes. Yes, it is.
All too soon, it was time to head back to the train. We didn't get a chance to check out the Grote Market, Het Steen, or the famous statute of Brabo and the giant's hand. That's OK. I will most definitely return to this lovely city and explore some more.
Central Station was quiet when we returned to board our train. Apparently others had more time to explore than we did.
I did happen to score a lovely souvenir of our trip. This was the main reason for our quick jaunt to Antwerp. I have started to collect the Starbucks collectors mugs of cities. (My friend Erika got me hooked on them, so feel free to blame her for my latest insanity.) 
She's lovely, isn't she. Quite stylish, as well. Ahhhhh, I wonder what the common folk are doing today. Sitting in a train station, admiring their coffee mug, of course. 
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