24 Hours in… Brussels – The Holidays in a Town Famous for a Peeing Boy

The holiday season in Europe is unlike the holidays in the States.  People in Europe love Christmas.  Each town has a different festival to celebrate the season and it puts the people in a town in a great mood.  I think my favorite city for Christmas in Europe was Brussels, Belgium.

I mean it when I say 24 hours in Brussels is all you need.  Even during the holidays, though your time will be gloriously jam-packed, when you leave, you won’t have missed a thing.  What you will have done is enjoyed Winter Pret, the winter festival here.

We certainly enjoyed Winter Pret!

In Brussels, everything starts and ends at the Grand Place.  This is the most popular square in all the city.  It’s where you’ll find Town Hall, and most importantly, during the holidays, this is where you’ll find the city’s light show: Les Nuits Electrabel (Electrabel Nights).

The Grand Place is packed with people during any time of the year, but especially during the winter holidays.  Even from blocks away, you can see the action going on at this square.

A look at Grand Place from our hotel a few
blocks away

To see the most notable landmark in all of Brussels, take Rue de l’Etuve to Manneken Pis.  What is Manneken Pis you ask?

This is an approximately two-foot tall statue of a peeing boy

This statue has been around since the 1600s and there are several legends surrounding this very unusual landmark.  Did it come about after a little boy relieved himself on an invading army’s gunpowder, thereby making the explosives useless?  Maybe it was from a man who could not find his son and when he did, he gifted this statue to the city.  Whatever the story, Manneken Pis loves the holidays.

In fact, Manneken Pis loves lots of days, and has different outfits to prove it that you can see by clicking here (Personally, I’m a little sad that I didn’t see him dressed up as Santa Claus).  In fact, he has about 800 outfits, sent from embassies, tourist offices, and people around the world.  You can see them all at the Musèe de la Ville de Bruxelles, also known as the Museum of theCity of Brussels.  It costs €4 to enter the museum (which I did not go to). But I digress, I was talking about the holidays in Belgium, not little peeing boys.

Laughing at how little it is.  The statue,
people!  Get your minds out of the
gutters!

The Winter Pret continues throughout the city, but you’ll find the most to do in the area known as the Fish Market.

There you’ll find merry-go-rounds…

I didn't see one horse on this merry-go-round.
I did see rockets, boats, and tigers though,
which is so much cooler!

A ferris wheel…

And an ice skating rink.  Which Frank was dead-set on going to.  Luckily, it was pretty economical at only €5 to skate.

It was really fun for a few laps!

Then we remembered we weren’t much of ice skaters and our ankles hurt.  So we did what any normal person would do and found a bar.

And we didn't even have to take off our skates!

We had to convince a lady at a nearby stand to bring us the beer to the actual ice, but she was down.

There, much better!

This part of the Winter Pret also has about a mile worth of booths in what is called the Christmas Market.  You could find shirts and candles for sale, as well as food.

This is why I love Europe!  I ordered fried calamari and sparkling
wine from a fair stand!  It cost less than €20!

As you walk the streets through the Winter Pret, you’ll see some cool features unrelated to the holidays.  For example, a comic strip on a wall:

This is just one of the 50 comic strip scenes
painted on the walls of buildings in Brussels

In the “things I didn’t know until I got here” file: Brussels is home to many famous comic strips.  The one Americans are most familiar with is The Smurfs!

According to Wikipedia, there are more than 100
Smurfs based on different adjectives.  Here,
I am "Freezing Cold Smurf."

Brussels also has awesome bars like Le Cirio, complete with a gilded age-esque interior.

For two beers, our tab was €7.90 and we got a little dish of snacks.

Winter festival or not, Brussels is a great place to spend a day.  If you have more time, do yourself a favor and go to Bruges as well (about an hour away) for a complete taste of the Belgian experience.

Ice skating: €10 for two people

Drinks at ice skating rink: €8 for two

Food from the booths: €18 for calamari and champagne, €10 for sausage sandwich and beer

Drinks at Le Cirio: €7.90

Total Cost: €53.90 (that’s about $72 for drinks and entertainment)
Best Deal: Getting a drink on the ice!

Last Minute Holiday Presents - Best Booze Deal in Town

With Christmas lurking just around the corner, you might be looking for last-minute gifts.  Okay, maybe it’s just me looking for last-minute gifts… anyways, here to save the day, the very first guest columnist on Economical Explorer.  It’s our best man, who jumped off a bridge into the Intracoastal to show his love for Frank and me on our wedding night… Joseph Schulz!  And he’s speaking on a subject he knows all too well – alcohol at Total Wine and More!

You know he's the best man because he's wearing a shirt that
says "Best Man!"  This is also right about the time he said
"masturbation" in front of all of our family and friends ;)

To those of the lucky ones who live in a 10-mile vicinity of these pillars of capitalism… this is one deal you cannot miss. This is especially true for those of us who enjoy imbibing on a frequent, if not daily, basis. Even if you have to burn a $4 gallon of gas to get to Total Wine and More, I would say it’s well worth it. I am convinced the CFO of this company would be able to eliminate our national debt in three months time based on this business model, probably the most important document since the Magna Carta.

The first thing that impresses you about Total Wine and More is, that once you walk in the sliding automatic door, the sheer size of this architectural masterpiece. Nothing fancy, just rows and rows of bottled happiness. The next thing you will notice is that they mean business.  And by that, I mean you have available a shopping cart. And not one of those baskets or the small ones you find at the drug store. I’m talking a full-on shopping cart so you don’t feel like a lush when you fill it up.

I am partial to vodka and red wine and the deals are just amazing. And the more expensive stuff you buy, the better the savings. A handle of Stoli is $24.  It’s $30 at most other liquor stores, when it’s on “sale.”  Also their selection of fine rums is to die for. I paid $27 for a 23-year-old rum that I have seen go for as much as 50 bucks. You can find quality reds for less than $10. If you buy a case, you basically get one free. The cheap stuff is comically inexpensive. I saw a bottle of white wine for $3.99. I don’t think the hangover would be worth it, however, so I stick to the fancy $8.99 a bottle wines.

The beer aisle is like candy land. All the usuals, plus you can make your own six-packs from the single specialty beers. I like to make mine by country. Remember, you are not a real country unless you have your own beer and airline. Kegs are also available for up to $10-15 cheaper than at most other stores. Bonus: You can actually walk into the beer cooler if you want… always a good time.

The one downer is if you want the really good stuff, you have to ask for a person to open up the safe… I mean refrigerator. Every time I have done this, hilarity ensues. Despite the 30 or so people who work there, like, one person has this key. I would venture a guess that buying plutonium is not this difficult, but once the safe is open, it’s go time. If you are buying multiple items, go to the safe last because they don’t let you carry it around once they give it to you.

There is almost always free wine tasting in the store. If you buy one of the wines they feature, you get a discount. Also, on the weekends there are usually various companies hawking their products, so you can basically get drunk for free if you want. DISCLAIMER: I don’t suggest this.

Also on various nights, depending on the location, there is a full on wine tasting that is paired with cheeses. I paid $25 last time and got a great wine buzz, so, well worth it. They have other classes as well but your columnist has not tried those… yet.

If you don’t see something you like you can go to the customer service and request it. I did this on a bottle of champagne and the guy called my cell phone each and every time it was in stock. His name's Jim, laid off a year ago from UPS… two kids, a wife and a golden retriever…nice guy. This made me feel either (1) like a complete alcoholic, or (2) like a connoisseur.

I get the Sunday paper delivered and there are always coupons for this store, so keep that in mind if you’ re trying to save while supporting your vice.

My close proximity to this store has easily caused me to lose anywhere between five and 30 years from my life, but I will continue to frequent the place, regardless, as my patriotic duty to support the economy.

Total Wine and More, how do I love thee...

Total Cost: Good wines run about $10, champagnes as low as $30, and handles of quality vodka for less than $25
Best Deal: Saving $23 on a bottle of rum
Worst Deal: Ice

Tell Jim I said hi!

Editor's Note: You can also get coupons to Total Wine and More delivered to your email.  Regularly the store sends out deals for $1 off a six-pack of beer (priced $6.99 or higher), $1 off a bottle of wine (priced $7.99 or more) and $15 off every $100 of wine you buy.  You don't even have to print the coupons out, you just show them to the cashier on your smartphone and get the money off!

Experience Gifts for the Holidays – ________ of the Month Clubs

Bacon is meat candy.  That’s the tagline for Bacon Freak, a website from which I bought Frank a membership to the Bacon of the Month Club a few Christmases ago.  Over the course of a few months, he received Apple Cinnamon Bacon, Honey BBQ Bacon, and Hickory Smoked Bacon, among others.  It was more bacon than any vegetarian who loved her man could ask for.

If you can see from the website page there, the Bacon of the Month Club did cost a pretty penny - $145.95, plus tax.  But, it was pretty well worth it when Frank came home to a box of pork on the doorstep once a month. 

A Bacon of the Month Club is just one of the unique memberships you can buy for your friends or family this holiday.  And with just a few days left before Christmas, I tend to think the clubs where you get something delivered once a month are a pretty good idea.  For Christmas 2008, I bought Frank a Wine of the Month Club.  Once a month, we’d get a nice bottle of white and a decent bottle of red.  This wine was most likely consumed that night, but it was better than driving to the store!

 

Not a bacon fan or wine isn’t your thing?  There are several other “____ of the Month Clubs” you can join.  Fruit, beer, beauty products… think about one thing the person you’re shopping for likes, and I’m pretty sure there’s a club out there.  Lucky Magazine broke down the best “of the month clubs” out there, and I think they did a pretty good job.
 
Fill-in-the-blank “of the months” club is the gift that keeps on giving, months after the holidays end.

Have you ever tried out one of these "clubs?"  What did you buy?

Experience Gifts for the Holidays – Crafting Class

You may have read about the fun I had at a painting class this year.  I bought a Groupon to Uptown Art for my sister-in-law for her birthday.  But what fun is drinking and painting without me?  So I bought one for my husband and myself as well!  I liked the class so much, I bought a similar Groupon for my best friend’s birthday to Vino’s Picasso in Ft. Myers.

These painting classes are popping up all over South Florida.  They are also popping up all over Groupon, which makes them an economical gift worth giving this holiday.

Right now, Talin Tropic in Boca Raton is offering painting classes for just $19 per person – a $26 discount from the normal price of $45.  The deal is through Gotta Half It and ends tomorrow.

Don’t just limit yourself to painting canvas… Art-Sea Living in Boynton Beach offers wine glass painting classes.  Right now, Groupon is offering the class for two people for just $25, but act fast, because this one is for a “limited time” only.  Still, the deal isn’t so bad without a Groupon either - $25 each.  Art-Sea Living also offers a variety of other crafting classes though, like pottery painting and even ornament-making (to which you can bring your own booze!).  Check out their calendar here.

Looking for something a little more intense?  At McMow Art Glass in Lake Worth, you can fuse glass to create unique plates and other artwork.  Groupon is offering a deal at McMow Art Glass that also runs only for a “limited time.”  For just $35, you get a two-hour class, half off the normal price. 

There may not be a Groupon involved, but the arts and crafts store Michaels (located in Boynton Beach, West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, and other areas around South Florida) offers plenty of classes.  The cake decorating is one of their most popular.

I didn't take my cake decorating class at Michaels, but my teacher had taught at Michaels before and used mostly
Wilton products, which is what you'll use at Michaels.

The cost is $22.50 per class.  Michaels recommends four classes for each of their four courses.  That means for less than $100, you could buy someone one complete course.  Michaels also offers crochet classes, beading classes, and a variety of classes for kids.

JoAnn Fabrics also offers classes, for a slightly more economical price.  In January and February, you can buy a cake decorating class for just $17.50. 

Personally, I'd much rather get an "experience," like a crafting class, mini golf, trapeze teachings, or a spa day before another Christmas sweater (do people give those anymore?!?!).  And one of the best things about buying someone an "experience," especially on Groupon?  It normally includes two for one, which means you can participate in the gift as well!

Did I miss anything?  What other craft classes are out there or would you want to take?

Experience Gifts for the Holidays – Mini Golf

If the spa isn’t your thing, and heights freak you out, and you’re still looking for an economical gift, may I suggest golf and beer? 

Putt’n Around is a mini-golf course in Delray Beach, just north of Atlantic Avenue, full of fun, friendly competition, and most importantly, booze.

What can we say?  We like cider!

Putt’n Around places a priority on drinking while golfing, which is why this ranks as one of my favorite “experience” gifts for the holidays.  While you are golfing on one of the two 18-hole courses, you can sip your beer along the route.

Her score was probably 100, but she has a beer
in hand, so she's still smiling!

The course itself isn’t very challenging – even the youngest players can guide their balls across the green.

That kid is my brother-in-law... he's only 7, but
totally fits the part of a golfer with that hat!

But the actual course isn’t the allure at Putt’n Around.  If you’re on the 5^th hole and you run out of alcohol (it happens!), you just call the front desk and they deliver your drinks. 

There is no way we can walk away from a game like this! 
Course service, please!

This mini-golf mecca is always offering great specials.  I’ve purchased deals through Groupon (two for one), but you can also get great deals just by becoming Facebook friends with Putt’n Around.  If you are forced to pay regular price, it’s only $9.85 per person for 18 holes.

Is that Tiger Woods I see?

Total Cost: $9.85/person, plus drinks

Best Deal:  Getting a round for as little as $5.30, just by checking Putt’n Around’s Facebook page (I saw that deal there myself!)

Experience Gifts for the Holidays – Woman on the Flying Trapeze

Wow.  This past weekend, Frank and I took a trapeze class and let’s just say, he wants his next birthday there.  This is the ultimate gift experience for someone on your holiday list if you want to impress with minimal impact to your wallet.

Aerial Trapeze Academy is located very far west in Royal Palm Beach.  It pretty much looks like it’s in someone’s backyard.  No, wait.  It is definitely in someone’s backyard.

Frank and I were a little confused about the area, seeing as how it looked nothing like one would expect a trapeze set-up to look like.  The area was residential, very spread out, and on a canal… But, alas, the team behind Aerial Trapeze Academy was professional, funny, and extremely talented.

They started by helping us do a basic hang… very close to the ground.

From there, we wasted no time climbing an extremely tall ladder for our first trick.

 At the top, you look down about 30 feet below to where you could plummet to your death.

Thankfully, you have a net and safety harness!
I didn't feel the least bit in danger!

But even the safety precautions don’t make you feel any easier when you do a back flip for the first time.  Once the instructor says “Hep!” (they don’t use “go” because it sounds like “no”), it’s time to rock.

Did you hear me freak out as I flipped off the trapeze?  I think I scared the small children attending the class.  But it was SO exhilarating!  The crew made us practice a few rounds of hanging from the bar and then doing a back flip and then they decided if we were “catcher ready.”  That is, ready to fly from the trapeze into someone’s arms.

See that chalk on our arms?  That said we were
ready for the catcher!  We tried not to wash
it off all day!

Frank went first, out of the six people who were considered “catcher ready.”  They were pretty lenient with who went, unless you couldn’t hang from the trapeze (in which case, you should not consider joining a circus... I, however, am considering it now!).

The guy who caught Frank was a little dude, but I wouldn’t want to get in a scrap with him – he was strong.  He held on to Frank tightly, and even Frank was a little surprised to pull the whole thing off.

Then it was my turn.

That was it, I was hooked.  For $50 for two people (we bought a Living Social), we had the time of our lives for two hours.  Next up, I’m thinking the Circus Sampler - trampoline, hoops and the trapeze?  Yes, please!

Total Cost: Without any coupons, the class is $50 a head

Best Deal: As the slogan for Aerial Trapeze Academy goes, we joined the circus and were home in time for dinner!

Experience Gifts for the Holidays – The Spa

Because I will be in Ireland this holiday season, I am trying to find “experience” gifts for my in-laws – gifts I don’t have to cart overseas.  Something I’ve been given as a present more than once is a spa day.  And this gift never gets old.  My favorite spa of all time is the Eau Spa at the Ritz-Carlton on Palm Beach.

Okay, okay, can’t afford the Ritz?  Neither can I!  Luckily, my in-laws gave me a gift certificate awhile back.  That’s when I found out you can spend a day at the Eau Spa without going into debt.

My sister-in-law is just as much of an economical explorer as
I am!  Both of us like to save our money for drinking!

It’s called a “day pass.”  It costs $50, but if you want a gift that will knock the socks off your friend, husband, wife, mother-in-law, whoever, this is it.

Will also knock your clothes off, as you get to
put on this comfy robe!

The day pass covers every area of the 42,000 square foot spa – you just don’t get an actual massage.

We started in the Bath Lounge.

Rubber duckie, you're the one!

This giant jacuzzi features a shower pouring down on you, while jets massage your body.  In the background of that picture you see two “lounge chairs.”  They are made of cement, and while that may not sound comfortable, they are heated and I almost fell asleep on one.  After warming up there, we went to the Relaxation Lounge.

I know, I know, I look like a fat kid shoving cupcakes in my mouth!

This room is aptly named, as it is beyond relaxing.  There is refreshing flavored water and cute little mini cupcakes.  I ate about 10.  There are plenty of couches in the Relaxation Lounge as well.  We sat down for a bit before going to the Self-Centered Garden.

It's all about me here!

I brought a magazine and hung out for a bit, then took a nap.  There are lots of little areas with different water features, including a small pool and fountain.  But nothing beats swinging in a little egg over a pool of water.

Along the sides of this little pool, you'll find water running down the walls, which creates an awesome feeling over your fingers.

We were having a photo shoot with ourselves!

Of course, you can eat at the Eau Spa, but I’m too cheap for that, so we hung up our robes momentarily and walked over to Dune Deck Café, which is next door.

Then, back at the Eau Spa, we jumped in the showers, used all the luxurious Ritz products, and headed on our way. 

The spa is open 8am to 9pm, so you could stay all day if you want.  And most of the night.  But, you must reserve a spot for the day pass, and the spots do fill up, so make sure to book ahead of time.

Total Cost: $50 for a day pass, $10 for lunch

Best Deal: Feeling rich, without paying the price

Boynton Beach Holiday Parade

This weekend, I went to the library, beach, bar, dinner and the Boynton Beach Holiday Parade without pulling my car out of the driveway – I rode my bike everywhere (economical and environmentally friendly)!  And whether you’re on foot, on two wheels, or four, you can now see the Christmas tree in Boynton Beach lit up for the holidays.

Not as impressive as Delray's 100-foot tree,
but my awful measuring skills would
estimate this one is about 60-feet tall

The tree is located on Ocean Avenue, just east of Seacrest, across the street from the Boynton Beach City Library.

As for the parade, it was pretty much what you can expect from a small city.  However, only in South Florida can you see a holiday parade with a beautiful sunset in the background, while enjoying 70° temperatures.

Virginia and Jason from the KVJ show on Wild 95.5 in the morning were the masters of ceremonies.  As promised, I did stalk them.  Actually, we happened to park our bikes, and our water bottles filled with wine, right across the street from them.  Their antics were just as funny as on the morning show.

We saw lots of school marching bands perform, but Frank felt none of them were as good as the band in Drumline.  The band from Roosevelt Middle came pretty close.

Forgive my awesome video skills, as I had a water bottle filled with wine. 

My favorite float was from Jazzercise, and was entitled “My Christmas Wish List 1985.

Yep, that's a Smurf in front and Strawberry Shortcake to your left.
And a Rubik's Cube!  Pretty sure I got all of those things on
Christmas morning in 1985!

There were also pirates representing.

Nothing screams "Merry Christmas" more than someone
making you walk the plank!

Next up, the Boynton and Delray Beach Boat Parade!  It’s this Friday at 6:30pm, and if you need a place to watch it, you can meet me on my dock!

Total Cost: Free!

Best Deal: Bringing our own wine in water bottles