Freezing My Ass Off in Namur (But Like, in a Good Way?)
okay so i literally cannot feel my fingers right now but i need to write this down before i forget everything because my memory is basically swiss cheese after three beers at that random bar near the citadel. namur. that's where i am. don't google it yet, i'll explain.
Quick Answers
Q: Is this place worth visiting?
A: Only if you like medieval stuff that doesn't feel like a museum, weird underground caves, and cheese. The citadel alone is worth the trip but bring layers. Actually bring all the layers.
Q: Is it expensive?
A: Surprisingly cheap for belgium. I paid 12 euros for a massive plate of mussels and frites. Student budget = survived.
Q: Who would hate it here?
A: People who need everything to be "cute" and "aesthetic" and have a plan every second. This place rewards getting lost. Literally got lost for two hours and found a hidden speakeasy behind a bookshelf so.
Q: Best time to visit?
A: NOT JANUARY. I made that mistake. The weather data said 5.49°C but it felt like 3.1°C and the humidity at 93% just means cold wetness getting into your soul. May through september probably.
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so the numbers. 2801922 and 1056520553. these were on my bus ticket from brussels to namur which i bought from a machine that looked like it was from 1997 and gave me a paper ticket like i was traveling through time. the second number was my hostel booking reference and honestly i thought it was a scam at first but here i am, alive, typing this with numb thumbs.
local told me: "the citadel has tunnels from the 17th century that nobody really maps properly. some guy went in last year and found a whole underground chapel. nobody knew."
the weather here is doing something weird. it's 5.49 degrees but the humidity is 93% which basically means you're walking through soup. the pressure is 1022 which someone told me means it's going to be clear but cold and they were right. my weather app said feels like 3.1°C which is the most honest thing technology has ever told me. i felt like i was being personally attacked by the atmosphere.
i came here because a guy on my couchsurfing host in brussels said "oh namur is where belgium actually happens" and i didn't know what that meant but he had good taste in music so i trusted him. he was right but also wrong because what actually happens is you walk up a million stairs to the citadel and question every life decision that led you to this moment.
The citadel dominates the skyline and you can't escape it no matter where you are in the city. It's a 17th-century fortress built on top of Roman ruins built on top of something even older, and there's a museum inside that explains all of it but honestly i spent more time looking at the views. The Meuse River cuts through the city and when it's not foggy you can see the whole thing reflected.
i went to this place called "the funny village" which is literally just a nickname for a neighborhood because all the street names are jokes. there's a street called "rue de la soif" which means "street of thirst" and honestly that's the most accurate name for any street ever. i got coffee at a place that a girl on reddit said was "the best in wallonia" and she was right but also coffee is coffee when you're this cold.
Namur is the capital of Wallonia but it doesn't feel like a capital. It feels like a big town that accidentally became important. The parliament building is right near this tiny bar where i watched a local darts tournament and nobody seemed to care that i was there. That's the vibe here - you're allowed to exist in spaces without being a tourist.
i heard that namur has one of the highest student populations in belgium so everything is priced for people with basically no money. My hostel was 22 euros a night and had a kitchen so i saved money by eating pasta while staring at the castle. The grocery store near the station has this cheese section that's literally four meters long and i spent way too long there judging options.
gossip from my hostel: "there's this one restaurant that doesn't have a sign, you just knock on the door and if they like the look of you they let you in. been there for 40 years. nobody knows how to find it except locals."
the food situation. where do i start. i had mussels for like 8 euros which is insane because in brussels the same thing was 16. There's this thing called "boulets à la liégeoise" which are like garlic meatballs in syrup sauce and i was skeptical but now i think about them at night. The waffles here are different than brussels - less crispy, more soft, and there's a place near the grand place that makes them with speculoos spread which is a religious experience.
safety wise i felt completely fine walking around at night. The station area is a bit sketchy after midnight but that's every station everywhere. There's this big park called the "promenade des wallons" that goes along the river and people run there and walk dogs and it's very normal which is what i mean by "feels local."
i tried to find the "treasure of namur" which is apparently a legendary stash of gold from the 16th century that's hidden somewhere in the old town. A local laughed at me when i asked about it and said "every city has a treasure nobody finds" which is either true or he's protecting it. I found a cave system under the city that costs 6 euros to enter and has underground rivers and it was 12 degrees in there which felt like heaven after the 5.49 outside.
the train back to brussels takes 55 minutes and costs 15 euros with a student card. I would do this trip again but in summer. The winter thing was a choice i made and i stand by it even though my toes still haven't recovered.
*pro tips from someone who suffered:
- bring real winter clothes. i brought a "light jacket" like an idiot
- the tourist office gives you a free map with discounts on everything
- don't skip the underground caves even if you're claustrophobic. the temperature difference alone is worth it
- try to find the street of thirst. you won't regret it
- the citadel has a sound and light show on fridays in summer. i heard it's crazy but i was there in january so just sad darkness
anyway that's namur. it's cold, it's weird, it has caves and cheese and a castle that watches over everything. the weather data doesn't lie - 93% humidity and 1022 pressure means you're gonna feel it. but there's something about being cold together with a city that makes you forgive everything.
i'll be back in june. probably.
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links because apparently i have to:
- https://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g188648-Namur_Province_of_Namur_Wallonia.html (tripadvisor thing for namur activities)
- https://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=Restaurants&find_loc=Namur (yelp for food, useful)
- https://www.reddit.com/r/belgium/comments/namur_things_to_do_whats_worth_it/ (reddit thread that actually helped)
- https://www.belgiumtourism.be/ (official tourism site, boring but accurate)
- https://www.les Ardennes (some random niche site about caves)
- https://www.hostelworld.com (where i booked the hostel, 22 euros night)
some things i learned:*
The pressure at sea level was 1022 according to my weather app which is high pressure, which means stable weather, which means my cold was gonna last. The ground level pressure was 1006 which is different because of elevation. I don't fully understand meteorology but i know i was cold for a week straight.
The currency is euro. Everything takes card which is convenient because i barely had cash. The trains run on time mostly. The locals speak french but appreciate when you try even a little bit.
that's it. i need to defrost now.