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Razernij 2026

Razernij 2026

Published on 22 August 2026

Razernij – Beerdrinkers & Hellraisers in Rumst is definitely one of my favourite beer festivals in Belgium. This is in large part due to it actually having live music, and the bands are just as carefully selected as the invited breweries! The highlight in the line-up this year was The Real McKenzies.

After a short night—because of a night shift—and a well-caffeinated train and bus ride, I made it to that by now familiar field in Rumst. Somehow I even managed to be one of the first five festival goers to get their tokens, so I ‘won’ a book with beer poetry. No time to read though, but time to try the first beer! Funny story: the brewer from Maktoob Brewing actually recognised me from when I was in Bucharest last year! The kilt I wore probably helped him remember…

While trying and enjoying many more beers, the bands started playing: Mechels Laweit, The Scabby Knees, F.O.D., Shandon, and of course the Canadian Celtic punk band I was waiting for, The Real McKenzies!

Thanks Krikke, for organising this once again!

Hash Pride Hash in Amsterdam

Hash Pride Hash in Amsterdam

Published on 1 August 2026

No, not that kind of hash—although I’ve been offered to buy some in Amsterdam many times—but as usual for me, it was time for another beery run! For the third time in a row (after 2025 and 2024), I joined the Amsterdam H3 to run, drink, and watch the Pride Amsterdam Canal Parade.

This time I didn’t take a Eurostar, nor a ‘normal’ train to Amsterdam, but for the very first time, I took the EuroCity Direct. Annoyingly, this train doesn’t stop in Brussels Central station, but like most international high speed trains, it departed from Brussels Midi. The train wasn’t too crowded though—at least until Rotterdam—and I was happy to discover there were power sockets and USB A ports at every pair of seats! 

After arrival in Amsterdam Zuid train station, my first order of business was to get to the general area of the parade and hash, and get some coffee in me. My pick of the day was photo gallery and coffee shop LYUBLU on the Waterlooplein, serving coffee by local roastery Stean’s Beans.

Then it was time to find the hashers in the Wertheimpark. Usually they’re quite easy to spot, with their flashy clothes, but on a Pride day, they didn’t quite stand out that much! We didn’t wait very long before starting the run, because the aim was to be back before the start of the parade. So the run was short—just a little over 5 km—and sweet, with some nice views on the floats and spectators getting ready. After the run we convened back in the park for lunch, and to watch the parade.

Apparently it was WorldPride, so a bit of a special edition of the Pride Amsterdam Canal Parade, drawing even more visitors than usual to Amsterdam, and to our little corner of the park in particular. This made it a bit harder to get a good view—or photos—of the floats, but luckily I could see a bit more from the nearby bridge.

After a nice afternoon with hash friends, barbecuing, and beer, I slowly made my way back to Amsterdam Zuid train station, but not after a stop at Gollem. So, there are actually several Gollem beer bars in Amsterdam, and by foolishly just following directions of a map app, I ended up at Gollem aan het Water, not the Gollem I actually intended to go… The beer offer was a bit smaller—especially on draught—but I didn’t have time to try that many anyway. They did have a Flammkuchen though, which I needed and enjoyed.

I made it to the station just in time, so two hours later, I was back in Brussels again.

Misery Fest 2026

Published on 25 July 2026

It had been way too long since I had been in beautiful Harzé to visit Misery Beer Co.… After a failed attempt last year, I finally made it to their birthday festival again this year!

When I visited their opening festival, there was a bus going all the way from Brussels. This time, there was just a shuttle bus from Liège station. It suited me just fine, since this way I had time for a coffee first.

The festival itself was all what I expected: great beers by Misery and three guest breweries—L’Ermitage, Verdant, and Pophin—terrific music, and tasty food. It was a hot day again, so I skipped the imperial stouts, but I tasted pretty much everything else.

After the last band, it was about time to get on the shuttle bus to the train station again. Some would come back the next day for more beers and different groups, but for me, just the one day was enough…

Mars in Antwerp

Mars in Antwerp

Published on 16 July 2026

It had been a while since I spent a day in Antwerp, and there was an exhibition about Martial Arts at the MAS I really wanted to see. The hot weather made the prospect of spending some time in a cool museum irresistible, so when I saw a gap in my work schedule, I was on my way!

But first coffee! Kolonel Coffee definitely wasn’t there yet when I still used to go to the MAS regularly, back in my teaching days, so it was a pleasant discovery.

The Martial Arts exhibition was really interesting! I learned about sports I had never heard about—don’t tell me you were familiar with the Iranian warrior training Zurkhaneh!—and enjoyed hearing the many testimonies of Antwerp practitioners. Oh, and Mars—the same one my first name is derived from—was there as well!

Curiosity satisfied, time to quench the thirst! Billie’s Bier Kafetaria was closed due to unforeseen circumstances, but I managed to visit most of the other usual suspects: Dr. Beer, Café Pardaf, Café Ernst, Billie’s Bottle Shop, and Beerlovers Bar!

C-C-C-Copenhagen 

C-C-C-Copenhagen 

Published on 19 June 2026

The last full day of my trip! And it has everything: croissants, a castle, a Copenhagen museum, a craft brewery, coffee, crunchy onions, and crisp beers…

Since there didn’t seem to be any nice breakfast places nearby, the prospect of enjoying a croissant while seeing the city from the tenth floor, and a rather strict schedule in the morning, I had my breakfast in my WakeUp Copenhagen hotel. 

The strict schedule was enforced upon me by my Rosenborg Slot ticket: whereas all other tickets I bought in advance just specified the day, for this one I had to pick a specific ten minute slot, and risk being refused entry if missed… It was worth the hassle though, because the castle was a lot more connected to Danish royalty than I realised, and some of the items on display are still occasionally being used by them! 

The time-sensitive part over, I could relax with coffee at La Cabra, and a standing lunch with a spicy grillmedister hot dog from one of the Den Økologiske Pølsemand stalls. 

I then headed to Københavns Museum, a museum I somehow only noticed the day before as I passed it on my way to another museum, but was definitely worth a visit. 

Back in the centre, I checked out the Torvehallerne. I already knew the Mikkeller & Friends Bottle Shop would be there, but I also seized the opportunity to have frikadelle smørrebrød at Hallernes Smørrebrød. 

My brewery of the day was BRUS, where To Øl CPH has a small brewkit, and a lot of nice beers brewed right there, or wherever To Øl brews in bigger volumes. 

Too Old To Die Young was just a five minute walk from there. While it still exists as a brand, the bar didn’t really have a connection to any brewery, or at least not anymore, so they explained to me.

Then it was time to solve the mystery of the Koelschip, or is it the Mikkeller & Friends bar? Well, it’s still not any clearer, but I received a stamp for each in my Mikkeller Passport, and was able to claim my first free beer here. 

A quick coffee and a sweet snack at Coffee Collective, but across the street I noticed a craft beer bar I had not heard of yet: Haven. Well, I had to pop in there as well, of course!

My last beer stop in Copenhagen was Peders, another atmospheric basement bar. Since the next day would start way too early, I then called it a night.