In the historic center of Antwerp, our author finds a Far Eastern land of milk and honey. The waffle in her hand suddenly seems bland.
I walk around the Chocolate Museum with a Belgian waffle in my hand. Antwerp, a city like a sugar shock. Between the treats and ornaments on the historic buildings, I feel like I’m in an image film of the city. If Hercule Poirot walked by, I wouldn’t be surprised.
I’m all the more taken aback when my walk is stopped by two marble lions, faces like dragons, with Chinese characters engraved on their base. My gaze goes up the red pillars next to them to the golden mythical creatures. It is the pagoda gate to the Chinatown district. It was shipped from the port metropolis of Tianjin to Antwerp in 2010 in honor of the immigrants.
The marble lions are supposed to protect the residents of the district.