They showed up a few minutes after I arrived. We decide to start our day off with the Museum of Chocolate. It was only a few euros to get in, and the ticket included a self guided tour through the museum as well as a chocolate making demonstration. We walked through the small building, looking at chocolate sculptures, learning interesting chocolate facts, reading about the history of chocolate, and viewing chocolate cups and pots used by kings and queens when the drink was first introduced to Europeans five hundred years ago.
We then ventured downstairs, where we were given a sample of melted chocolate on a speculoos cookie. Yum! Then we were brought back for the demonstration. We were told the temperature at which chocolate is ready to work with (31-32 degrees Celsius), shown how their praline chocolates are made, and given a sample of the finished product. It was really neat, informative, and tasty :)
We spent maybe a minute viewing Mannekin Pis. Then we were off to explore more of the city.
We walked away from the Grand Place and older part of town and came to a collection of elegant, old buildings. They were situated on a hill, so we climbed up the many steps and came to a spot that was great for taking pictures of both the buildings and the city. Walking around the buildings we soon found signs that informed us that they were a part of the Royal Palace. Cool. :)
We made our way back down the stairs and back into the old town, where we visited an old church, looked around at the street market, and bought some Belgian Fries (They're not called French fries here, the Belgians created them and the French stole their glory). We took our lunch and began to walk in the direction of "zaabar chocolatiers".
The one thing we did have planned today was a chocolate making class. It was €20 and totally worth it. When we arrived at Zaabar we "checked in" and paid, and then had a look around the shop while waiting for our 2:30pm time slot. The shop was a small, cozy place that smelled of exotic spices and displayed chocolate works of art. They had samples of every kind of chocolate they made, some of which (pepper) all of us were unwilling to try. We also received free samples of their hot chocolate while waiting. When it came time for the class to begin we all put up our hair, put on our "lovely" hair net and apron, and entered into a front room with about twenty other people.
The man told us about the chocolate making process: from bean, to powder and butter, to chocolate. He showed us how they cool their chocolate to make it ready to handle, by pouring it on a marble countertop and stirring and folding it over until it no longer felt hot to the touch. He spoke in French and another employee translated for those of us who didn't understand. But it was still very cool. Next we divided into two groups, English speakers following the employee who had translated into another room to begin making our chocolate.
After a quick set of directions we were good to go. There were two tables in the room and each was working on a different type of chocolate. Our table started with truffles. We each took a piece of what would be the center of the truffle and dropped it into a big bowl of melted chocolate. With one utensil we took it out and placed it in whatever topping we wanted: crispies, nuts, or meringue pieces. Then with another utensil we picked it up once more placed the truffle on the tray.
When we'd all made five or six truffles the tables switched. Our group now worked on chocolate bars and chocolate pieces with fruit and/or nuts. When we were finished the truffles were brought back out, and we were given bags to puts ours in. We did the same with the chocolate bar and the other chocolates. All of our creations went in a bag to take home. They looked great. The place did an awesome job with the workshop and the staff was really great. It was a very fun experience!
Happy with our chocolate making efforts we walked back towards the Grand Place. It was quite a ways, but it was nice that we were able to see a different, more modern side of Brussels on the way. Once back at the main square we began searching for souvenir chocolates from the various shops. I didn't buy any, partly because I wasn't leaving until Monday, but also partly because I was a bit chocolated out. I'll make sure to purchase some to bring home tomorrow :)
We stopped by a grocery store and bought some food for dinner. The restaurants around here are so expensive and I really didn't need a full meal after all the chocolate sampling if done. With just chocolate and fries all day, the apple I bought tasted wonderful.
By then it was already dark. We'd done and seen a lot and were all pretty tired. Caron bought a waffle (she hadn't tried one yet) and then we parted ways. They went back to there hostel, while I walked around the Grand Place a little longer. The buildings in the square were lit up like last night, but tonight the colors kept changing. The tree that had been in the center yesterday was no longer bare: though not lit, it was decorated with large silvery-blue ornaments that sparkled with the lights from the buildings . I can definitely see why it's called the most beautiful square in Europe.
By 8:00pm I was ready to call it a night. I went back to the hostel to relax and do some research for tomorrow. I'm not sure what I'm doing yet. I have ideas, but no plans. We'll see... :)
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