July 3 - 5, 2011 (3D2N):  Last leg of our BIG 30 Birthday trip! See prior posts on Iceland and Amsterdam.  Belgium, in addition to its delicious chocolates, fries and a wide array of beers, is well connected to the rest of Europe by train; so you can easily visit Paris and London from Brussels.  We took the train from Amsterdam to Brussels with a stopover in Antwerp (a very pretty city).

 *Highly Recommended

Day 1

• SNCB Euro from Amsterdam to Antwerp Central Station (1:15 hr)
• Walk to Histroical Central:
  • Shopping Stadsfeestzaal (prettiest mall I have ever seen)
  • Stroll down Meir shopping street
  • Waffle @ Desire De Lille*
  • Cathedral of Our Lady Antwerp
  • Grote Markt van Antwerpen
  • Drink @ the outdoor cafe across from Stadhuis van Antwerpen (City Hall)
• SNCB Euro from Antwerp to Brussels Midi Station (~50 mins)
• Walk to Hotel De Fierlant (great hotel but the neighborhood wasn't the best)
• Dinner @ les brassins* (get the rabbit)
• Birth Place of Audrey Hepburn
• St Michael and St Gudula Cathedral, Brussels (photo at night)

Day 2

• Breakfast @ hotel
• Tour of Brussels Central:
  • Town Hall (Hotel de Ville)
  • Grand Place (visit some chocolate shops)
  • Manneken Pis
  • Notre Dame de la Chapelle
  • Justice Palace (Palais de Justice)
  • Fries @ Belgian Frit'n Toast*
  • Lunch @ Aux Armes de Bruxelles* (get mussels)
  • Jeanneke Pis
  • Drink beer @ Delirium Monasterium*
  • Buy some chocolate @ Pierre Marcolini
  • More drinking @ Le Roy d'Espagne* (Day drinking & people watching by Grand Place)
  • Eat more fries!!

Day 3  

• Breakfast @ hotel
• SNCB Euro to Amsterdam

Other points of interest

Antwerp

• Rubens House
• Middelheim Museum
• Rockox House

Brussels

• Atomium
• Place Royale
• Jardin du Petit Sablon

Tips 

• Look for hotels near the Brussels Central train station, not Midi.  Our hotel was quiet far from the main attractions.