DAY 6 / TUESDAY / APRIL 20
BRUSSELS WALKING TOUR
OVERNIGHT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
Cosmopolitan
Brussels
is the capital, not only of
Belgium , but also the
European Community. Brussels is also the headquarters of the
North Atlantic
Treaty Organization (NATO).
Brussels is mainly a French-speaking city, but it lies within the predominantly
Flemish region
of Belgium and is thus at the center of a long-standing struggle
between the two linguistic communities of Belgium.
The historic
Métropole Hotel
is perfectly located right in the historical
center of the European capital, near the Grand'Place, the Bourse, the
Theatre de la Monnaie
and the city’s most exciting shopping street.
Built in 1895, it is the only remaining 19th-century hotel in Brussels. In April 2002,
the Council of Monuments and Sites of the Brussels-Capital Region designated the Métropole’s
façade and ground floor a protected historic site.
The main entrance is decorated in French Renaissance style and the magnificent
reception hall in Empire style.
Grand' Place
(Grote Markt in Flemish) is today, as it has been since the
12th century, the very heart of Brussels. Enter the square from any one of
the narrow streets that converge there and you will be awed by the splendor
of it all.
Not only is there the magnificent
Hotel de Ville (Town Hall)
and the
Maison du Roi (King's House)
but also the many houses of the
medieval guilds:
Haberdashers, Boatmen, Archers, Joiners & Coopers, Tallow Makers, Bakers,
Painters, Tailors, Brewers and Butchers.
The spire of the Hotel de Ville is 298 ft with a 15th century weathervane
in the image of St. Michael.
The Neo-Gothic Maison du Roi, since its 12th century origin, has been a
meeting house, tribunal, and now contains a splendid museum showing Brussels
through the centuries as well as artifacts of the time.
The Grand' Place presents a lively tableau of shops, flower vendors,
cafés and restaurants. Gourmets consider Brussels to be one of the two
or three best cities in the world for eating out. Some of the best around
the Grand' Place hide their proficiency in the culinary arts behind
unpretentious façades.
Belgium has enjoyed an unparalleled reputation for its
specialty beers
since the Middle Ages..
Be sure to try
gueuze, "The Champagne of the Beer World,"
brownish in color and a little fizzy, a specialty of
the Brussels region.
At the top of almost every visitor's "must-see" list is an irreverent
bronze statuette known as
Menneken Pis. A small boy caught urinating,
he stands atop a fountain on rue de l'Etuve, not far from Grand' Place.
Just off the Grand’ Place is the historic
Royal Saint-Hubert Gallery,
the world’s first enclosed shopping mall, built in 1846.
DAY 7 / WEDNESDAY / APRIL 21
BRUSSELS SIGHTSEEING
OVERNIGHT IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
The Atomium Outside Brussels
The
Atomium , called "The Most Astonishing Building in the World," was built as part
of the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair, more commonly called Expo 58.
The Fair symbolised a
democratic desire for peace between nations, faith in technical progress (despite
fears about the atom bomb) and optimism about the future of a modern world that
promised to enhance people’s lives.
Place du Grand Sablon is one of the most elegant squares of
Brussels, surrounded by inviting cafes, restaurants and terraces, including world-famous
Wittamer
chocolate shop .
Brussels is said to be the chocolate capital of the globe. Chantal Coady, author of
The Chocolate Companion: A Connoisseur's Guide to the World's Finest Chocolates,
says Wittamer is “without a doubt the finest chocolate-makers in Belgium."
The Sablon is one of the most prestigious and attractive areas in Brussels. In recent
years it has become the center for art galleries and antiques shops, including a number
specializing in the Art Nouveau objets d’art for which Brussels is famous.
North of the Place du Grand Sablon stands the flamboyant church of
Notre Dame du Sablon, built in the 15th-16th century.
Inside you can admire a rose window representing the Virgin and Child. In one of the
baroque chancel chapels lie the tombs of the wealthy Thurn and Taxis family. The choir is
a pure masterwork with its fine columns and ravishing ensemble of glass stained windows,
reminding those of the Sainte Chapelle in Paris.
The Petit Sablon is one of the most beautiful gardens in the world, enclosed by
a superb balustrade of hand-wrought iron.
Forty-eight bronze statues , representing
the guilds of Brussels, stand atop little Gothic columns along the balustrade.
Among the flowers, in the center of the garden, are the statues of the counts of
Egmont and Hoorne, who were beheaded in 1568 for their struggles against Spanish rule.
Ten other statues around the inside of the garden represent humanists of the 16th-century,
including famous map-makers, Gerard Mercator and Abraham Ortelius.
The Palais du Roi (King’s Palace) is the official residence of Belgium’s royalty.
The present building was begun in 1820 under the reign of King William and it was
modified in 1904 by King Leopold II, who had the façade rebuilt in Louis XVI style.
If you are a military history buff, especially World War I or World War II, you will
appreciate
The Royal Museum of the Army and Military History in
Cinquantenaire Park, which contains
about one hundred thousand items, and ranks among the top military museums in the world.
Perhaps the best way to describe the Museum is to say that it is a survey of more than
10 centuries of military and technological history. The collections range from suits of
armour to valuable firearms and masterly crafted swords to armoured vehicles and airplanes.
In one of the larger halls is a collection of 130 airplanes, many of them from World
War II, such as Hurricanes, Spitfires, Mosquitos. Many of them are open for visitors to enter.
Cannon at The Royal Museum of the Army and Military History
© Photo by Michael Reed ~ Creative World Travel
Hangar at The Royal Museum of the Army and Military History
© Photo by Michael Reed ~ Creative World Travel
You may want to visit the
Royal Museums of Fine Arts.
Founded two centuries ago, the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium consist of
the Ancient Art Museum (XV - XVII century), the Modern Art Museum (XIX XX century),
the Wiertz Museum and the Meunier Museum. They hold
some twenty thousand paintings, sculptures and drawings.
Brussels is the home of
Tintin and Snowy, world-famous and beloved
comic characters created by the Belgian artist,
Hergé (pen name of
Georges Rémi, the Walt Disney of Europe.)
Tintin is the hero of 24 adventure
stories, of which the most famous is
Explorers on the Moon.
This book has sold more than 5 million copies.
Brussels Journal
DAY 8 / THURSDAY / APRIL 22
ANTWERP CITY TOUR
AND DIAMONDLAND
OVERNIGHT IN ANTWERP, BELGIUM
Antwerp, on the River Scheldt, is the largest city in Belgium,
with 450,000 inhabitants. Located in the Flemish-speaking region
of Belgium, it is known in Flemish as Antwerpen and in French as
Anvers.
Antwerp is the chief commercial center of
the nation, an international center for the diamond business, and
a thriving port (among the five largest in the world.)
Three-quarters of Belgium's millionaires live in Antwerp. It has
always been a city of merchants, and since the wealthy have
traditionally been patrons of the arts, it has been a cultural center
as well, and has many notable buildings and important paintings.
Under the rule of
Emperor Charles V in the 16th century, Antwerp was
the most prosperous and wealthy metropolis in Europe.
Grote Markt, the central market place, in Frankish traditional is roughly
triangular, surrounded by
magnificent guild houses, a legacy of the Golden Age
of the 16th century.
Focal point of the square is the
Brabo Fountain, named for the Roman legionnaire
who killed the giant who demanded tolls from travelers on the river. Silvius
Brabo cut off the giant's hand and threw it in the river. Some say that is
how the city got its name: hand-werpen meaning "throwing the hand."
The Stadhuis (Town Hall) is a Gothic jewel, built during the years 1561-1565,
as an expression of the Renaissance spirit of Antwerp's Golden Age.
The
Cathedral of Our Lady is the largest church in Belgium,with works by
Rubens and other artists inside.
The Flemish baroque painter
Peter Paul Rubens
(1577-1640) was the most
renowned northern European artist of his day. He is now widely recognized
as one of the foremost painters in Western art history. He was also a
diplomat, linguist and scholar.
By completing the fusion of the realistic tradition of Flemish painting
with the imaginative freedom and classical themes of Italian Renaissance
painting, he fundamentally revitalized and redirected northern European
painting.
Antwerp is famous for its diamond industry. "Antwerp-cut" is a trade term
synonymous with quality. Of the 18 diamond exchanges in the world, four are
in Antwerp. We visit Diamondland, the largest dealer in the city, where diamond-cutters
can be seen at work.
In addition to the bargains to be find in diamonds, Antwerp offers exceptional
shopping opportunities on the lively pedestian street known as the Meir.
