Last Night in Brussels.

As we came up from underground train station, the fluorescent lighting gave way to a golden sun, and indeed the first sun we had seen on our trip.

It was our last evening in Brussels, before we made our way to Ghent in the morning. We decided to take a last tour of the city and find all of the pieces we had missed, including my most important sight, the Manneken Pis.

The Manneken Pis was the only thing I had known about Brussels upon arrival. And everywhere we had visited, had been full of figurines depicting it. I could not leave the city without seeing this infamous little boy.

We made our way to the Grand Place and followed the hordes of crowds down the narrow side roads, past rows of shops selling tatty memorabilia. And then all of a sudden, the crowds came to a stop. Masses of people forming a solid wall on one corner of a small cross roads. And then, as I fought through the crowds, I saw why.

In the corner, sheltered by a carved, stone shell, stood the bronze statue of the Manneken Pis. The boy who saved Brussels, by peeing on the opposition from a tree. The most famous person in all of Brussels. And it was tiny! In fact, compared to all of the models I had seen, it was the most underwhelming of all.

It may have been the huge crowds surrounding it, or it may have been all of the hype from the past couple of days. But compared to the rest of the city, it didn't have a look that stops you in your tracks. It was not striking, or jaw dropping, or even so intricate that you could stare at it for hours.

We made our way back up to the Grand Place, tucking in and out small cobbled roads full of the most amazing little shops and glass covered walkways, and watched as the golden sun set over the city.

The most gorgeous final evening in a wonderful city.