Finding my way to work via landmarks

So, I walk to work every morning, which is really nice.  I get the feel of the city as I'm walking, I see interesting things, and more importantly I start to find stuff that I am pretty excited about.
 
The first two days (days one and two of me being in Brussels), I got slightly lost every time I headed to work.  I would follow the map that I had on my phone, but I would get into this park and then everything would go to pieces and I would basically stumble across the EP just in time to get to work
 promptly :-)

Yesterday walking home I finally finalized the route that I need

 to take that gets me there in twenty five minutes, and I thought I would share with you the landmarks that I follow :-)
 
The first major one where I know I need to turn is this store,which up to this point is my favorite store in Brussels.  Can you figure out why?  That's right, it's a Polish store.  I have walked in two days out of the three I have been here, just to speak Polish with the people in there.  All of the food is from Polish companies that you would find in any store in Poland, and I really feel completely comfortable there.

The next one is this bridge. I'm pretty sure that it's really close to a major railway station in Brussels (just having looked on maps and stuff).  This is also where there is a metro stop that I will probably use to get to church or to get to the train station.

This is probably the most iconic landmark (and I apologize for the poor quality of the picture).  It's this hotel called "aloft", and the thing that makes it cool to me is the way that the clock is the "O" in hotel, and the slightly odd architecture.  I always know that I need to turn right when I reach the intersection where this hotel is, which leads me to...

...this plaza.  I like this place because is looks SO European.  For all y'all who have been in Europe, how many of you have seen a plaza like this somewhere in other cities?  I know I have seen one similar in Spain, Poland, and Germany, to name but a few.  I go across this plaza to a cross walk and turn right, heading towards yet another bridge!  I don't know anything about it, except that it's cool and that I turn left at it :-)

 


Finally, I'm on the street where the Parliament is!  I head under this last bridge right here, and then finally reach the Parliamentary building.

Like I said before, there is more than one building, so I go in the right-side one, show my badge, send my stuff through security, and then head up to work!  It's a nice walk, and honestly reminds me of being a missionary!  Walking a significant distance that you have walked over and over again in nice clothes?  Yep, totally a missionary thing :-)  Some of you should visit me, and we will walk it together!  Cheers!