McAleese, who has 221 caps and has now metamorphosed from midfielder to defender with age, says a "ghost-town-like" Brussels and its surrounds are under siege with the presence of armed military personnel creating a war-like atmosphere following what was "a pretty crazy day".
The enormity of the senseless violence struck home when he discovered later that day that one youngster he coaches was at Zaventem Airport at the time of the explosion as part of a school excursion.
McAleese, who plays for the Braxgata club in the most elite professional Belgium Honour Division, says the boy came through unharmed.
The Commonwealth Games bronze medallist isn't entertaining any thoughts of leaving his European base.
"It is always in the back of your mind but it is something scary in the world that can happen anywhere, anytime," he says, listing myriad countries which have become targets for terrorists.
"I still have a life to live and things to do so, generally, I'm pretty safe here," he says, revealing there are other Kiwis playing in lower grades in Antwerp and Brussels but their paths seldom cross.
The sanctuary of an accomplished Bay upbringing is dawning on the former Napier Boys' High School pupil as he "switches on" to everything abroad.
"It does make you appreciate home more than ever because New Zealand is a pretty safe country," he says, after spending time here through December before leaving Auckland for Antwerp on January 10.
The Azlan Shah Cup is a good tourney, he believes, in preparing for Rio Olympics as, unfortunately, unlike the Black Sticks women, the men won't be competing in the Champions Trophy.
Instead, the men, who first won the Malaysian tourney in 2012, will roll the dice one more time at a Six Nations competition in Spain in June.
Australia, Canada, India, Japan, Malaysia and Pakistan are the other nations competing at the Azlan Shah Cup which McAleese says is steeped in history since it began as a biennial event in 1983 before evolving into an annual one from 1998.
"We will be trying to perform well as a team and as individuals," he says before they open their account against the hosts on April 6.
McAleese pulled out of a six-week US$15,000 Hockey India League (HIL) contract following his inability to accommodate Belgian club demands with international duties.
He suspects he'll be a tad long in the tooth for another shot at the HIL stint post-Rio but reconciles that with a prolonged childhood dream of playing his code at the pinnacle of success.
"What price can you put on going to represent your country in Olympics?" he asks, elevating the status of Rio rather than cramming a fistful of dollars in his back pocket.
