9 hours in Brussels

I have a 9 hour layover in Brussels later in May. I suppose with travel
to-from the airport that gives me a good 7 hours in the city.
I would love some pointers on how to optimize my time for the best bang for
the minute, and what to do?
I prefer outside to inside (streets vs. museums), but I would like some
inside options in case the weather is miserable.
I prefer local fare/wares to touristy fare/wares (small shops vs. malls).
It will be a Saturday, if that makes a difference.

I would also like to know:
- best train station to get off at
- what to dress for (weatherwise)
- free wifi. I understand the city has free wifi, but I could not find a
map. Would I be right to guess wherever I will end up hanging out as a
tourist will have access?


Thanks in advance.
Rex

"Rex Vincere" wrote in
:

I have a 9 hour layover in Brussels later in May. I suppose with
travel to-from the airport that gives me a good 7 hours in the city.
I would love some pointers on how to optimize my time for the best
bang for the minute, and what to do?
I prefer outside to inside (streets vs. museums), but I would like
some inside options in case the weather is miserable.
I prefer local fare/wares to touristy fare/wares (small shops vs.
malls). It will be a Saturday, if that makes a difference.

I would also like to know:
- best train station to get off at
- what to dress for (weatherwise)
- free wifi. I understand the city has free wifi, but I could not find
a map. Would I be right to guess wherever I will end up hanging out as
a tourist will have access?


Thanks in advance.
Rex




take the train to gare Centrale. the Grand Place is down hill from there
andthe government buildings above. Avoid the food on the Rue boucher except
for Armes aux Bruxelles and if you like chain type food Chez Leon.

the walk from the Palais to the Grand Sablon is nice and then a turn up to
Avenue Louise shops Oh forget that part LOL. Bruxelles is a great city to
walk in, Check the weather and dress accordingly. Do have a gaufre (waffle)
from a sidewalk vendor. Bruxelles has great food except on the overly
touristed street mentioned above.

Rex Vincere wrote:
I have a 9 hour layover in Brussels later in May. I suppose with travel
to-from the airport that gives me a good 7 hours in the city.
I would love some pointers on how to optimize my time for the best bang for
the minute, and what to do?
I prefer outside to inside (streets vs. museums), but I would like some
inside options in case the weather is miserable.
I prefer local fare/wares to touristy fare/wares (small shops vs. malls).
It will be a Saturday, if that makes a difference.

I would also like to know:
- best train station to get off at
- what to dress for (weatherwise)
- free wifi. I understand the city has free wifi, but I could not find a
map. Would I be right to guess wherever I will end up hanging out as a
tourist will have access?


Thanks in advance.
Rex



What to dress, weatherwise: Check for an online forecast a day or two
before you travel. www.wather,com is as accurate as any of the local
European weather sites. It's Spring here. Have a rain jacket or
umbrella for your walk-about, just in case.

Free WiFi: Funnily enough, I think Brussels National Airport is about
the only place to readily find free WiFi (unless you go 'war-strolling'
and just sniff for an unsecured network!) Not sure if the service is
still free though, and what parts of passenger area covered now - have a
look at airport website, might be the http://www.biac.be// Also
info there about train connections to town.

jcoulter wrote:


the walk from the Palais to the Grand Sablon is nice and then a turn up to
Avenue Louise shops Oh forget that part LOL. Bruxelles is a great city to
walk in, Check the weather and dress accordingly. Do have a gaufre (waffle)
from a sidewalk vendor. Bruxelles has great food except on the overly
touristed street mentioned above.

You don't always find them, but a couple of times I lucked
out and encountered a street vendor selling "escargots"
stewed in a peppery broth. They were a bit tough, but
delicious!

"Rex Vincere" wrote in message
...

- free wifi. I understand the city has free wifi, but I could not find a
map. Would I be right to guess wherever I will end up hanging out as a
tourist will have access?



Go to http://www.jiwire.com/search-hotspot-locations.htm - select Belgium
as a country and make sure you select "Free" hotspots only.
It will show you even map how to get there. They also have free program -
hotspot finder for you to download (but map feature works only online).

Robert Clark wrote:

What to dress, weatherwise: Check for an online forecast a day or two
before you travel.

.....and then just go ahead and pack for any kind of weather anyway!

--
David Horne- www.davidhorne.net
usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk