Day 3: Antwerp Museum Day

Though we stayed in Antwerp (also known as Antwerpen and Anvers), we only spent one day in the city. I chose Friday because it was the first day of the Christmas Market.

First thing in the morning I walked up to the tourist booth in the gorgeous train station to purchase a one day city pass. I could have done it from my phone, but I was hoping for two paper passes so Don I could each have our own instead of putting them both on my phone. That's now how it worked, I purchased it there, but was given a QR code to activate it.

At 45 euros for 24 hours (55 euros for 48 hours, and 65 euros for 72 hours), and most places costing 12 euros to enter, the person at the visitors' center tried talking me out of it and just buying tickets at each location, unless I had a plan.

I did have a plan:

• 20 euros: Chocolate Nation
• 12 euros: Rubens Museum
• 12 euros: MAS
• 12 euros: Plantin Museum
• 12 euros: Red Star
• 12 euros: Our Lady Cathedral
• Plus we could ride mass transit for the day

As with many plans, it did not pan out the way I expected. Instead we went to:

• 20 euros Chocolate Nation
• 12 euros Our Lady Cathedral
• 12 euros Plantin Museum
• 12 euros Red Star
• 12 euros The Antwerp Story

The Rubens Museum is mostly closed. For the same twelve euros, there is a movie shown hourly in English and Flemish and a chance to stroll the gardens. I put that on my list for a future visit.

Chocolate Nation was something I thought about visiting last April, but thought it would be more fun with Don. My big takeaway from the experience was learning about ruby chocolate, a fourth type of chocolate discovered in 2017 (white, milk, dark, and now ruby). It is so new, Yoran's mom, Lieve, said she only recently learned about it, too.

Another fact I learned is that when the country is trying to figure out inflation they use the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and track a set list of food, housing, and other costs to compare the increase or decrease each year. Belgium includes chocolate on that list.

The highlight of Chocolate Nation was the sampling room at the end. There were ten different types of chocolate starting with white (which, doesn't feel like real chocolate to me), and increasing the percentage of cacao from milk to dark chocolate, and including ruby chocolate (which saved me from a major quest). They also included gold chocolate, which is not an official type of chocolate. My favorite was called 811. It is only 54.5% cacao (at home I regularly eat 70-80% chocolate), and includes a hint of vanilla. It was very dark, and very smooth.

The chocolate tasting was considered our lunch for the day to allow more time to visit museums. We did have yogurt for breakfast and a sit down dinner.

We went to the Our Lady Cathedral next. It's big claim to fame is it has four Rubens. This was the other reason I did not object to skipping the movie version of the Rubens Museum for now.

By an unknown 14th century artist

On our walk to the Plantin Museum, we stopped off at a jewelry store I admired on my last trip. I meant to take the business card with me, but left it at home. Ashley was kind enough to snap a picture of it for me. In April I fell in love with everything in the store and deemed it the perfect place for Don to purchase me a present. At the time I didn't know we would be returning so soon. I'm thrilled we got back.

Chapter 42 is around the corner from the Plantin-Moretus Museum. When I last visited the Plantin, I thought Don would love it. The museum is dedicated to the history of printing as told through the Plantin family starting there in the 16th century. They have an excellent audio guide included in the price of admission. I wanted to take Don there.

One plan was I would leave him there and visit another museum on the list. Then the docent told me they have a second exhibit about the nine generations of women who lived in the building, and helped make the printing business a success. I followed their stories while Don followed the main storyline. It was a win for both of us!

In April this square was finishing up an archaeological dig. I didn't recognize it this time. It was a brisk day, but yet someone set up a flea market in one section. I suspect on warmer days the cafes overflow into the square and all sorts of activities take place.

The day was set up as a checklist, so off to the next activity: the Red Star Line Museum. Most have heard of White Star Line, the company that owned the Titanic. Red Star Line would have been their competitor out of Antwerp. For decades people sailed from here to New York and Philadelphia in search of a better life. The museum shared samples of stories of the two million people who passed through on their way to our part of the globe, including Albert Einstein. Another person talked about his father moving to Lancaster, PA. We travelled across an ocean only to learn about stories close to home.

In the beginning passengers traveled by boat to Ellis Island where they were
inspected to see if they were healthy enough to enter the United States. One heartbreaking story was of a mother and her children who had finally saved up enough to follow the father in the United States. At the border the youngest (I don't remember her exact age, but it was under ten) was deemed too sick to enter. The mother had to decide if they would all return, or just send the youngest back. She entered the country with the older children and the youngest was returned. Back in Antwerp a family member picked her up. I believe she was eventually allowed to return to the United States. I just can't imagine!

Later the health screenings were conducted before boarding. Two percent of passengers were turned away. For some reason, I always imagined the number to be much larger.

There were stories of people escaping pograms in Russia. Walking. Taking trains. Doing whatever was necessary to get to Antwerp. They then had to save up enough for the boat, and more to prove they could fend for themselves in the New World. This helped the population of Antwerp grow and become a major city in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. 

Today there are over 170 nationalities represented in Antwerp. 

At the top of the museum is a lookout. We timed it to be there at sunset (which is around 4:30 pm). It was a similar view to the top of the MAS, which is free. Still nice.

Quick calculations had us skipping the MAS because its last admission is 4 pm, and instead hustling to Het Steen and the Antwerp Story located inside a castle. The sugar high from Chocolate Nation had worn off, but we pressed on. The Antwerp Story seemed to focus on highlighting Antwerp's museums. It, too, has a look out -- one that is free.

I had reached museum overload by this point. I did not take any notes and two weeks later, nothing stands out from the museum. Some might say it was worth the price of admission (free included in the day pass).

Pictures of the Rubens we saw in the cathedral

I asked the ticket taker for nearby dinner recommendations for Belgian food. He sent us across the street to Elfde Gebob. The restaurant seemed quiet when we arrived, but filled up as we ate dinner. The Catholic icons were jarring in a restaurant, especially the statues of Mary, Joseph, Jesus, and the saints wearing 20th century Santa hats and dangling ornaments. It added to the experience. On the table were conversations questions ranging from what memory instantly makes you smile to why should someone start believing in God. A great variety designed to create dialogue. 

We walked around the Christmas Market until it was time for our Dark Side of Antwerp tour. I'm actually surprised we didn't return to our VRBO to recharge.