Belgium??

Antwerp and Ghent are great too, each could be well worth at least a day. You could either stay in each of these places or you could make a base in one and take day trips. There's a handy Belgian rail pass for 10 tickets at about 75 euros or so, with each of the ten 'lines' worth one one-way trip which can make this quite feasible. You can use it with more than one person, just filling in the appropriate number of lines. Look up Belgian railways by Googling 'SNCB'.

Not sure what you mean by 'Dutch' towns; do you mean you also want to go to the Netherlands, or do you mean you're only interested in the Flemish part of Belgium? If you don't limit yourself to Flanders, you might consider a visit to Namur, which has an interesting walled citadel...

Be sure to bring layers and warm clothes, autumn here doesn't look as if it's going to be warm!

cheers,
SJ in Brussels

JB,
I'm so impressed that you're making the most of your time in Europe! Way to go! Just curious--did you go to Dublin?

I have not made it to Dublin, I am going November 21st.

So far we've done Rome, Capri & The Amalfi Coast, San Gimignano, Lucca & Pisa, Cinque Terre, and Siena. My girlfriend went to Prague but I opted for the Amalfi Coast and man i'm glad I did! I love Capri.

We are heading to Venice tomorrow, then next Friday we're flying to Athens, Greece and spending 10 nights in Athens, Santorini, and Ios. After that it's Belgium, Dublin, Thanksgiving in Panzano!, Vienna & Hallstatt, and another weekend in Tuscany, and we're spending our final nights in Europe in Roma and then 6:10am on 12/23 its wheels up to America :(

If you are within 10 years of college age, you may want to spend a night in the university town of Leuven, just to the east of Brussels. Other than some impressive Gothic buildings, there isn't too much here of touristic interest, but the lively scene on the Oude Markt (or is the Grote Markt, I forget) is one of the most enjoyable in all Europe. If you vist, you'll probably be the only Americans there.

Between Hasselt and Genk in Limburg province, there's an impressive outdoor folk museum (Domijn de Bokrijk) that highlights Flemish culture and also boasts authentic buildings (re-assembled from their original location) from various regions and periods of Flanders. Nearby Hasselt is pleasent enough for a quick visit and has some good restaurants, but unless you're a huge fan of Genever (known in English as "Dutch gin") or into high fashion, there isn't a whole lot for the typical tourist to see here. But because my wife is from here, I had to mention it...

Oh, but sorry, you asked about Antwerp? I would describe this city as what Bruges may have become today had the city not gone into hibernation and woken up as a museum. It still retains much architecture from the Dutch/Flemish Golden Age, but it also has the modern buildings and urban grit that one would expect to see in such an industrialized port city. The city boasts the home of the Reubenhuis museum, and a magnificent (if largely unknown to tourists) late Gothic cathedral filled with his work. Personally, I think the city has the most impressive Grote Markt in all of the Lowlands (even more so than Brussels), but others may disagree. There's also an intersting sailors' museum in an old castle on the river. Finally, this being a port city, like Amsterdam, there also is a small area where... um, let's say, women of the world's oldest profession sell their wares. Not that I'm endorsing anything, but if you see large groups of rough (or rowdy) looking men walking in a certain direction, they're probably not going to see a tulip garden. While sitting at a cafe on the Oude Markt, I couldn't help noticing these groups of the above-mentioned individuals all walking in a certain direction. I asked my wife if she knew what it was all about, and with a smirk on her face, she showed me...

I understand your love of Bruges; we just left. We planned an overnight there and spent 5 nights. i am sorry we didn't check the graffiti wall before going because we might have found a great B&B (several are listed). We tried the Passage Hostel/Hotel and found it lacking as far as accommodation. However, the food (and service) in the hotel for dinner was great and probably the most reasonable in price in all of Bruges. Try the beef stew with beer and the spareribs. Also, when in Bruges, rent a bike and travel out to Damme. It is only about 5 km along the canal on a safe cycle path and worth the time. Not much at the destination this time of year but the trip is most pleasant.
We also took a tour to Flanders, not that we "do tours", but this was worth every cent. Only go with Nathan, if possible, the history aspect is his passion and he made the tour. This is just a small tour in a 7 passenger van and covers the entire area. (Flanders, Leper, Passchendale, etc.)
Another city to consider is Ghent; a little more alive as it is an university town and a more realistic city, not as "sanitized" as Bruges. After that, we traveled to Amsterdam and used it as center to complete day trips out to the countryside. Bus 110 from the central station will allow you to explore the wetlands, and you can visit Edam, Marken, Volendam, Hoorne, etc. A great place to visit, especially if you enjoy biking as the trails are excellent. Go to the bus info center, outside of the train station, and they will set you up. Enjoy.

Husband and I spent just one day in Bruges last April and it wasn't nearly enough. We went to the bobbin-lace-making museum and got to see 6-7 ladies actually making the lace. We both enjoyed that.
Someplace, we had the beef-stew-and-beer, which was totally yummy, and I don't like beer! We also did the touristy thing of taking a ride in the horse-drawn carriage, which saved our aching legs a bit and was very interesting. Our driver was a hoot and a fountain of info about the town.
We'd love to go back someday...