Belgium is famous for its lace and chocolates. We were in enchanting Brugges, a most delightful, walled, Mediaeval town, arguably the loveliest in Europe It has become such a tourist attraction that today, they
limit the number of tour busses and the number of tourists who can enter the town.
Meandering through the crowded streets one Sunday afternoon, we came upon a series of street vendors, selling a variety of wares along the sidewalk.
Nearly next door to a shop extolling the virtues of its chocolate, made to the specifications of a centuries-old, closely guarded family recipe dating back to the 1600's, a young girl
of no more than 14 or 15 years had set up a small card table. On it, she had spread out some chocolates she had just made in her kitchen, a few doors up from the fancy shop. We stopped to chat with her,
and she was most interested to learn how we had been able to get to Brugges with a wheelchair. As we were talking, she offered us a sampling of her chocolates.
We had NEVER tasted anything as delicious in our lives! We bought a small bag of 6 pieces for what would have been a couple of dollars, whereas in the shop next door, the confections
were nowhere near as tasty- and about 10 times the cost!
We know the competition for who makes the best chocolate is fierce everywhere in the world. The Swiss think theirs is the best. The Americans think either Ghiardelli's or Hershey's is the best. The English think Thornton's is supreme.
They are all wrong- that young girl beats them all! | 
