Week One in Antwerp

On Sunday, the first night in Antwerp, the group got acquainted at an Italian style restaurant called Verona. We each got to order an item off the menu, free of charge, while still being immersed in the busy restaurant atmosphere of native Antwerp-ens. Above in the picture (from left to right) Caroline, Shivonne, and Brandie pose for a picture during dinner. It was an opportunity for both the James Madison students and the University of Alabama students to mingle.



Pieter Bombeke

 On Tuesday after class, the group was split into two groups based off team numbers. One group headed first to the Chocolate Factory Tour, as our group headed to the Diamond Center of Antwerp. During this tour, we were shown to a board room overlooking the city, where a PR representative of the center gave us an inside look to the diamond industry. We learned that Antwerp is responsible for handling close to 80% of the world's rough diamonds. We were given an exclusive tour inside one of Antwerp's four brouse, Diamantclub, where diamonds are exchanged, examined, and bought. Diamantclub brouse is the oldest one in Antwerp. (100 years +) The last part of the tour was a visit to a famous diamond polisher, Pieter Bombeke. He showed us his process of cutting and polishing the diamonds so they can be sold to jewelers.

Marzipan being covered in dark chocolate.

After the Diamond tour, our group got the chance to experience the Chocolate tour. An informational video of the planting, growth, and harvesting of coco beans in African illuminated an unfamiliar process and supply chain. After understanding how coco beans are transformed into an ingredient  used in the chocolate industry, two brothers whose family has owned a chocolate shop in Antwerp since 1908, showed us first hand how they both hand make chocolates. The brothers also showed how they have integrated specially designed machines into their factory while still maintaining their unique and special taste of chocolates. of course the tour included  a tasting of three different chocolates :).