Let’s play a game. I want you to close your eyes and imagine a middle-aged Orthodox Jewish man. Picture the peyas (hair curls) peeking out from under a black hat and the long, black coat. Now taking the total image, put this man on a bicycle going down hill, and his peyas flapping in the wind like a dog’s ears when its head is out the window.

This is the image of Antwerp that will stick in my head.

Antwerp is home to 80% of the diamond processing in the world. Before this trip, I was unaware of the Jewish presence in the diamond industry, and because of that, Antwerp has a high Jewish population. Tel Aviv is also high on the list for diamond processing.

We visited the diamond district and my ears were pleasantly confused with the variety of languages around me. I heard English, French, Flemish, Dutch, Hebrew and Arabic. My brain had no idea what to process first. It was a wonderful mix of cultures.

We ate lunch in the city and wandered around a bit. Dad had delicious hot chocolate from a store that advertised they have “the best hot chocolate to go in the world.” It was true.

Following our morning in Antwerp, we went to the Duvel brewery. Duvel isn’t my favorite beer but after viewing the brewery, I view it favorably.

Unlike St. Bernardus, neon yellow safety vests were needed on this tour. It was much more of a production. We were on the floor and in the warehouses that store the beer before shipment. We watched the bottling and labeling, and like St. Bernardus, they reuse bottles. I learned today this is a common practice to reduce both waste and costs.

Duvel means “devil” and got its name from when the beer was first created and drinkers said it was the devil when they drank too much. The company is impressively sustainable. They recycle bottles, use solar energy, purify water from the city and from their well 60m deep, and reuse their heat energy created during the boiling process. I’m sure I’m forgetting some.

The tour took about two hours and afterwards, we got to try nearly all the beers under the company. This includes the Duvel IPA and several other beers not imported to America. Surprisingly, I enjoyed the IPA. Belgian IPAs are much less bitter than American ones. If you haven’t tried one, I recommend it. You’ll be surprised by the difference too!

After the tour, we went back to Brussels for dinner and stopped at this restaurant, Le Bistro, that dad found on TripAdvisor. The staff had so much personality! Eating there was a joy, not to mention delicious. Should you find yourself in Brussels, go there and be marveled at their wit. They had a playful, smart ass attitude.

Today, Wednesday, we attended a chocolate making class! Filled chocolates in Belgium are referred to as pralines. They are not the same pralines as in America; I’ve made that mistake. There were nine of us in the class: my family and me, a woman from Niceville, FL, two students studying abroad from Michigan, and a couple from Kuwait. We made 21 pralines and another type of chocolate “bark” with dried fruit and nuts. Whatever chocolate was left over was made into hot chocolate and oh man was it delicious!! We exchanged contact information with a few people from the group and hope to keep in touch.

The class ran a little later than we expected so we rushed over to our final brewery tour at Delirium. This was the tour I was most excited for.

Ian introduced me to Delirium beers a few years ago with Delirium red. I fell in love with Belgian beers then. I was attracted to the sweet, bold but smooth flavor. Every time someone said they were going to Belgium, I told them to tour Delirium. I am SO GLAD I finally could too.

We wore neon pink safety vests and hair nets. We were even closer to the production line than at the previous tours!

Delirium tremens, their most popular beer, received its name because of the state you enter when you drink too much. The alcohol gives you a delirium and you being to tremble. Their pink elephant mascot comes from when the beer was first released, the manager of the bar where the party was held tied pink elephants to the ceiling with a mixture of other animals. If you found the pink elephant, you got a free beer.

Of the three breweries we’ve visited, Delirium falls in the middle in terms of size. They can bottle 20,000 bottles and 240 kegs per hour. They are in the process of expanding and are on a mission to become the most sustainable brewery in Belgium. Delirium tremens was voted the best beer in the world. You need to try it.

What fascinates me the most is the trends I’m noticing between the the breweries. They’re sustainable and expanding. They keep the business in the family. Delirium receives 30% of its energy from solar panels on property and the remaining 70% from a nearby windmill farm. They have a social engagement program and employ the disabled to package their boxes. They open their doors to the community so the residents can understand that the brewery is not just a business, but the company is working to make and leave a positive impact on the area.

One thing I didn’t realize is how much science is involved in beer making. We got to see the lab where the varieties of yeast are tested. Where full bottles undergo temperature simulation to see how the quality holds up in transport. They measure alcohol content for quality, everything was about quality. We watched *the* master brewer run tests and look at machines, it’s incredible.

As if this wasn’t enough, when we exited the tour, there were three men casually drinking and talking in the bar area. All dressed in business attire and one had a white lab coat draped across the back of his chair. Our tour guide introduced him as Alain De Laet, owner and CEO of Delirium. We thanked him for the opportunity to tour the facility and professed our love for the beer. “Thank you,” he said and that was it. Along the tour, we learned they have a gluten free beer (not available in the U.S.) and mom shared her excitement to try it.

Our guide led us to the bar and once my parents, Ian and I had full glasses, we wanted a picture. The CEO was standing nearby watching us and decided to hop in our photo! We were ecstatic! “I can’t see two good looking ladies in here and not have them on my side!” he said. We got the photo of a lifetime.

Dad went to go send it to us and in his excitement, accidentally air dropped it to Alain himself!! He was very confused and after dad apologized and everyone laughed, Ian told him how to change his privacy settings. It was very amusing. Best part, he accepted the photo!

We went into a reception area to watch a short movie about the history of the company. While we were sitting and chatting after the movie, one of the head brewers joined us. It was fascinating to talk to him. He shared with us how he got into brewing, what he loves to drink, and all the little nuances that go into brewing. He’s been there 12 years and counting.

We left the brewery giddy and it wasn’t just because of the beer tastings. We had our Delirium paraphernalia in hand and we’re still in awe we not only had a 45 minute conversation with a head brewer, but the CEO photo bombed us! And dad sent him a copy!

Gent isn’t too far from the brewery and we hadn’t yet explored the city. This made it the perfect destination for dinner! While sitting outside at the restaurant, I spotted the couple from Kuwait we met at the chocolate class. Mom trotted toward them shouting the man’s name, and they sat with us while we ate. They shared their culture with us and we talked about travel, work and everything but nothing. It was delightful and unexpected. They’re celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary and go somewhere new each year.

The past two days have been a whirlwind. It’s wonderful and I’m loving Belgium even more the longer I’m here. Dad’s afraid I’ll go abroad again for a longer period of time. I know I’ll always feel at home in Europe. There’s much more for me to discover and I want to see it all.