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Easter in the Land of Chocolate

It didn't take me long to think of the best way to spend my Easter weekend. Where better to spend Easter than in the land of chocolate? So I bought myself a bus ticket and headed over to Belgium. 

As I headed into the town centre, one of the first things I came across was a giant chocolate version of the Manneken Pis.

If ever you need a symbol to sum up why tourists come to Brussels, here it is- a boy peeing made out of chocolate. But maybe I'm oversimplifying things...

Next to the chocolate Manneken Pis I had my first Belgian speciality. Waffles are everywhere, so I snapped one up for a mere euro (plus eighty cents per topping). I chose to smother my waffle in strawberries and Speculoos.

I think it is fair to say that Speculoos is one of the greatest loves of my life. Originally from Belgium, its purest form takes the shape of a caramelised spiced biscuit that you normally get with coffee. However you can also buy a spread version which has recently become available in Britain. I cannot urge you enough to try it.

Given my unusual obsession with Speculoos, I was in a kind of paradise when I found myself in a Speculoos shop the next day in Bruges. The biscuits were made in the back of the shop, so you could watch them being freshly prepared. I don't think I have been anywhere that smelt so good.

Of course I couldn't go to Bruges and not try some chocolate. So I headed over to Leonindas, a Belgian chocolate company that recently celebrated its 100th birthday. I picked up a chocolate Easter egg and chocolate rabbit surrounded by several mini individually wrapped chocolate eggs. Each of these mini eggs had an exciting centre, including praline, green mint paste and popping candy. I loved the element of surprise this gave!


All I can say is if you go to Belgium your sweet tooth will be spoilt. Especially at Easter.
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Comments

  1. Read_and_dream17 June 2014 at 22:06

    You didn't tell me about the Speculoos shop; it sounds amazing!

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