Beer Museum and Manneken Pis

One of our last two stops was strictly by luck. We were headed towards the famous Manneken Pis and Steve saw a Beer Museum, so of course we had to go and check it out!!! It was a great little find. They had the old way and the new way of making beer and the best part is with your price of admission you got a beer. Luckily we didn't have to pay anything for the kids so the boys got Kellee's and my beer and were able to taste both kinds they had on tap. A few interesting facts: The Brewers' House at 10 Grand Place was built between 1695 and 1698 and is the seat of the trade association, the 'Belgian Brewers.' Beer culture has its origin in ancient Mesopotamia, a stone plate from around 6000 BC was found there showing primitive illustrations of the brewing process. After the fall of the Roman Empire and the emergence of feudalism and Christianity, the abbeys became the center of the beer culture. The use of hops was imposed in 1364 by Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor. The overall consumption of beer is about 1 1/2 milliard of hectoliters (2007), which in the charts of drinks consumed, puts it in second place (after tea). And last but not least on an interesting facts: Beer is good for your health. In ancient Greece and throughout the Middle Ages, beer and alcohol were used for various medical applications, such as for treating fevers, wounds or sleep disorders. In todays world, the main health advantage of beer relates to cardiovascular diseases. Studies have shown that people who drink no alcohol are at slightly higher risk of cardiovascular disease than those with moderate consumption (up to two drinks a day). Those drinking over two or three drinks a day are at a higher risk in proportion to their consumption. So the message (as the beer museum tells us) is clear: drink in moderation.

Old time beer process

CO2 process

the boys up front in front of the movie, not watching but watching the crowd.

The boys and their beer.

Some neat old bottles

The boys with the patron saint of beer. After that we headed over to the famous Manneken Pis. It literally means "Little man pees in Marols." It is a fountain of a little boy urinating. I was really surprised at how small it was. I was expecting something a little bigger. The 61 centimeter high bronze statue has been stolen several times and the present statue is a copy made in 1965. The original is kept at the Maison du Roi at Grand-Place/Grote market. In Kellee's travel book it said that the original was taken down because it was being anatomically manipulated. :-) I thought the phrasing was pretty funny. The statue also gets dressed up in many different outfits, there are over 850 outfits for the statue. I have heard you can pay to have an outfit put on it for 24 hours. David was thinking a Seahawks jersey. :-)

As you can see the day we went he was dressed up like Robin Hood

A view of the whole fountain - there were a ton of people around it when we got there. It is just on a random corner, nothing real special about the corner, except that this statue is there.

David and I in front of the famous statue

The three boys, Michael was really cold and over trying to stay warm with Daddy

So I had Daddy bring him over, have to get a picture with the statue ;-)

We found many chocolate statues, etc that are waaaaay bigger than the original. Here is one with a famous Belgian waffle. You can see the height with AJ standing next to it.

Couldn't help this, I thought it was too funny and it is David's favorite color!!

This is a statue that I saw a lot of people coming and touching and I couldn't figure out why. It is because it is a statue for luck. Depending on where you touch, it is for luck in love, travel, health, etc. So many things. This is not the original, but the original was almost all but warn off because of all the people touching it. For love there was a little heart that you can barely see anymore.

Gotta love this shop!! I think maybe one of my favorites!!!

Michael was dancing in front of a mirror waiting for the big boys to be done with their souvenir beer shopping. It cracked me up!

These were a little different, I have never seen them before. They are restaurants and hotels built over the autobahn. There are people in them just looking down at all the cars driving by. Not sure if it is the view I would want, but to each his own.

We had such a WONDERFUL time in Belgium and we can't wait to go back!! There are quite a few more places to see and more beer for David to try. We had wonderful hosts and it was great to be able to see them and some new places!! We already have our next adventure booked!! And we can't wait!!!