United Kingdom 🇬🇧 - London A Wicked Experience

Why oh why did we leave Europe and go to London?!? Especially when we had visited here two years ago? Well, someone miscounted our days traveling through Europe by ONE day.  Under the Schengen visa-free allowance, it limits stays to 90 days within any rolling 180-day period across the Schengen Area. The UK is outside the Schengen Zone, so time spent there doesn’t count against our Schengen limit. 

Our visit this time unfolded like a perfectly paced play in three acts:  a brush with royalty, a West End spectacle, and a boutique hotel stay. 

What did we do?

A Royal Encounter at Buckingham Palace. We were unable to tour our last visit and this visit we scored tickets for the magnificent State Rooms. It's a shame that photos 📸  are not allowed.

Our brush with Royalty 

London’s West End is a world unto itself, and Wicked is its emerald crown jewel. The Apollo Victoria Theatre buzzed with anticipation as the lights dimmed and the show began.  

Land of Oz

I scored us great seats - center stage eighth row. The performance was amazing, the costumes spectacular, and Elphaba and Glinda's voices were outstanding. Even Rob enjoyed it. lol Highly recommend! 

Maybe one of these other shows will be in our future.

Hamilton

Harry Potter

The Devil Wears Prada

We wanted to visit Borough Market on this trip but they were closed so we decided to check out Camden Lock Market.

Where did we eat?

We went in search of a pub that had soup (my tummy was feeling a little off) and the first place we stopped was very unwelcoming. We moved on and found The Albert. Such a difference from the first place. We were welcomed in, found us a table and told us to place our order at the bar. 

Beef & Raclette Pie with fries and a 
side order of mashed potatoes 

Bucks Head

Emilia's Crafted Pasta delicious make a reservation.

We had Chef Counter Seats. Amazing
watching how well the 3 worked together.

Making it snow on our Pasta

Carbonara pancetta with
Bucatini 

Bolognese Pappardelle 

Grafton Arms

Side salad

St Ermine's Breakfast

Freshly ground
peanut butter

Wagamama I still wasn't 100% so Pho was for lunch.

Where did we stay? St. Ermin's Hotel, Autograph Collection, our boutique hotel.

Lobby

Our Hallway 

Our key didn't work
Me waiting (I just wanted to go
to bed)

Good thing we had two beds,
since I wasn't feeling great.

How did we get there?

From Brussels Midi Train Station we took The Chunnel. While waiting for our train Rob thought we had access to the Eurostar Lounge. Turns out we did not. The employees working the desk must have felt sorry for me and let us come in.

The Chunnel or Channel Tunnel connects London to Paris via the Eurostar train to London's St Pancras International Train Station.

It was awful riding backwards with
another couple sitting across from us
even though it was first class.

 

We were served lunch 😋 which I barely touched.

We arrived at London's St Pancras International Train Station where we then took the Tube to St James Park. At this point I was really done and ready to crawl into bed.

When did we visit? 27 - 30 September, 2025

"Are people born wicked? Or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?"

Belgium 🇧🇪 - Brussels: A Grand Stay in the Heart of Europe

Brussels, at first, underwhelmed us. Everything we saw on our Uber ride from the train station to our hotel looked sketchy. Rob thought we had gotten on the wrong train and ended up in a third world country. But after the first day it grew on us and we never felt unsafe.  

🏛️ What We Loved About Brussels

Black Tower is one of the best preserved remains of the first fortifications of Brussels, built at the start of the 13th century. It is quite the juxtaposition surrounded by modern buildings.

The Church of Our Lady of the Chapel built between the 12th & 13 century & Statue Pieter Bruegel 

And we'll put a happy little 
Rob back here

The Church of Our Lady of Victories at the Sablon Built in the 15th century.

Comic Culture from Victor Horta’s architectural gems to the cheeky murals of Tintin and Lucky Luke, Brussels celebrates creativity in every alley.

Kinky & Cosy

Neron

Rik Ringers

Asterix en Obelix 

Lucky Luke

The Pipes
Hmm 😒 🤔 overlooking
a small playground

The Grand Place (Grote Markt): This UNESCO-listed square has ornate guildhalls and a gothic Town Hall. Visit at dusk when the façades glow gold.

Grande Roue Place Poelaert the Ferris Wheel

We did a 3.2 mile death march one-way to see Rob's 80s and 90s idol, Jean Claude Van Damme statue located in the middle of 2 roads. (Sorry for all the pics).

 

I can only imagine the reaction of the passing vehicles watching Rob perform his moves, lol. We had a lot of laughs and got a lot of steps that day. 

Pis Statues starting with Manneken Pis Dutch for 'Little Pissing Man'  "Depicts a naked little boy urinating into the fountain's basin. It's existence is attested as early as the mid-15th century,"

There was even music for the celebration

No costume today!

Jeanneke Pis Dutch for 'Little Pissing Joan' "Erected in 1986 depicting a naked little girl with pigtails squatting and urinating."

"Cheerful, pensive, cheeky and cynical...'m the most mischievous litle girl in Brussels"

Zinneke Pis erected in 1999

Saint Catherine Catholic Church

Saint Antoine de Padoue

Saint Catherine raised
to heaven

Anciet Bell Tower next to Saint Catherine Church

Statue of Gabrielle Petit

Architecture around town 

🍽️ Where did we eat?

Le Bonn Chere - was a Gault&Millau rated restaurant recommended by a restaurant and wine reveiwer friend of ours. It was incredibly god and creative.

We did the grand tasting menu with wine pairing

.

Shrimp & Oysters 

The tables were decorated with fresh herbs 🌿. 

Pizza 

Pizza with a yellow
tomato ketchup

Remember the fresh 
herbs 🌿 decoration>
The water is now in
my bowl.

Bite, sip, bite, sip.
Creative and delicious!

Hamachi paired with a Mise du Printemps Le Pinot Blanc white wine from Alsace, France.

Hamachi with a Horseradish
emulsion and Caviar lemon 🍋 

Porcini paired with Tantaka white wine from Spain.

Porcini mushroom with 
celery & fir

Yes eat the mushrooms 🍄 

To get the last drops

Red Mullet paired with a 2022 Rose` from France.

Red mullet, carrot & hops

Partridge two ways paired with a Philippe Alliet red wine from Chinon France.

Partridge Legs
I tried one bite

Partridge with beetroot & plum

Goat and Herve Cheesecake paired a white wine from Belgium

Goat cheese foam

Poached Pear paired with Atelier Brumont Hopjopper. A cider that we did not prefer but went well the pears.

Wait there is still more because we did not have enough.

Rob had to roll me home, but it was so good. Highly recommend 👌.

Marriot Lounge

When in Belgium, you must eat a waffle.

We discovered Poechenellekelder on our walk to the Manneken Pis statue and thought it looked like an interesting place and it did not disappoint.

 Nice little chartreuterie platter

🏨 Where did we stay?  Marriott Hotel Grand Place -- if location is everything, the Marriott delivers. Situated just around the corner from the Grand Place, this hotel offers instant access to Brussels’ most photogenic square, plus easy walking distance to chocolate shops, beer bars, and a metro station (that we never used).

Amenities: A sleek fitness center, cozy bar, and breakfast buffet that featured Belgian waffles hot off the iron.

How did we get here? Train from Bruges to Brussells MIDI followed by an Uber ride to the hotel.

When did we visit?  23-26 September 2025

“We travel for romance, we travel for architecture, and we travel to be lost.”