Belgium

So this morning was bitter sweet. The group that i met the first day had to leave. It's lame but it happens alot you meet some one or a group and yall just click and then you k ow you're gonna have to part ways and you don't want to be the last person in the group in the hostel when everyone leaves....Unfortunately I was that guy but after learning to be more open and more approachable eating people is pretty easy. While wandering and taking some much needed pictures I wandered back into the main square next to the tower. Today the local farmers and some stores had brought their caravans full of fresh meat, cured hams, cheese, breads, fruits and waffles. I bought some supplies to make a sandwich and low and behold I meet up again with Espania. He was carrying his backpack and wandering around too. I tagged along to whatever he did that day cause I Ran out of ideas. We decided to try the strongest beer in bruges. Triple distilled and amazing with cheese. Apparently the limit was 3 per person but we came back 2 hours later and drank 4. From there we went to the belgian Frys snack stand. The fries are triple fried in Animal fat and then drenched with curry sauce, to motor sauce, mayonnaise and some other sauces. It sounds like a heart attack waiting to happen but it's the best thing after some strong belgian beers. We met some girls from spain who were also traveling but only had 10 days to travel and they were spending a lot of money on Hotels for 1 night in each place. I tried to explain that hostel are cheap and fun but they thought othewise....to each his own. We went back to Bauhaus and saw a girl looking really nervous and sad so we introduced ourselves. She in return explained she was italian and had graduated college and she was in bruges because of a pretty big international ultimate Frisbee league was playing a tournament and she had to play for 3 days. Her friends were all late to the hostel and she was nervous they wouldn't show. Her name was Claudia and she was a really sweet girl but had some difficulties with the language barrier. Soon her friends met up with her and I had to bid adieu to Espania. Coolest cat from Miami I know. Tommorow it's back to amsterdam to spend the night and catch a plane to rome the day after. The hostel I'm staying at next is called coco mama. The hostels looks pretty I treating and they have a hostel pet named joop.

The first pub we went to was called The Crash. A very metal genre pub with a dark mysticism about it. The bartender was once just a bar back and had just bought the bar from the owner that night. So tonight was a special night for him. He was preparing absinthe for the locals and made all the drinks discounted. The pun crawl chaperone looked rastafari and said he was from Jamaica. After a couple of drinks he came forward and told us its just an act and he was from phillie. Today was also a special day for him because it was his last ever pub crawl because his visa was expiring and he was going to go back to the states. Apparently he got the job when he was backpacking and he just kind of fell in love with the locale and stayed. The second bar we went to was pretty big and also had a hole in the wall feel. In the back there were 5 pool tables but we're full of people. Along the pub crawl I met a cat from spain and his name for the night was Espania. I also met a Malaysian guy and his friend who were around 19 years old just backpacking and drinking. Espania came over to the table that I was drinking and told me all the people that were back there were kids and they all drank and smoked. The hilarity of this suggestion made me curios so I had to investigate. I heard one of the very young girls who was drinking her beer speak Spanish and I told her I wasn't a creeper but I was curios how old the kids were she replied she was 16 and some others were 16-17. Apparently it was a school trip from spain and it was legal to drink for them. I learned soon enough that in bruge yoi can drink at a very early age and smoke but you cannot drink hard liquor until 18. After finding that out were crawled unto the next bar saw that the dance floor had a shower head on the ceiling. Somehow we got the bartender to turn in on and we danced the night away. Soon we all left and I had somehow been separated in bruges at night. The worst possible thing happen to me while drunk. Somehow I saw Espania also wandering around and we both found the hostel. I managed to climb into my bed and pass out. The next day I woke up extremely sore and just wanted to rest but ate breakfast with the group and had a great time just telling stories and future plans. One By One They all left to they're next destination and we all bid farwell. I made a friend from the UK who wanted to climb the tower that day. So I joined her and we talked a lot along the way and saw the sights. Climbing the tower was interesting because the stairs spiral at an extreme angle and everyone wants to go up and down at the same time. The top of the tower had the musical chime room that coordinated mechanically how the 36+ bells would ring and play a song(very steampunk). After spending about an hour up and down the tower we wandered back to the hostel and start and ate some go made sandwiches we all prepped in the bar. That evening we want back out to take some pictures during the night and I believe that bruges at night is way better for pictures. We called it a night early due to being hungover and I slept like a rock.

Also belgian beer is very strong I do not suggest you drink too many while pub crawling.

"There are no strangers in here, just friends you haven't met..."- Roald Dahl