Sights in Brussels
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Grand Place
For one of Europe's finest urban views, head straight to Brussels' magnificent central square, Grand Place. It boasts the country's best baroque guildhalls, the beautiful Hôtel de Ville (Town Hall), museums, pavement cafés, chocolate shops and intimate cellar restaurants - a combination that lures visitors in droves. Hidden at the very core of the old town, it's revealed as you enter from one of six narrow side alleys (Rue des Harengs is the best) - a discreet positioning that adds charm.
The square dates from the 12th century and rose on a site that was once marshland. By the early 15th century, Brussels was booming through the cloth trade and the patronage of the duke…
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Rue des Bouchers
Leading off Galeries St Hubert in a lively little quarter known as Ilôt Sacré is the famous Rue des Bouchers. Whether you decide to eat at one of the many seafood restaurants here or not, this pedestrianised cobbled street is a spectacle not to be missed. Both sides of the street are packed with tables for dining throughout the year - overhead heaters keep frostbite at bay in winter. Waiters entice diners with iced displays of marine delicacies and the odd novelty (expect dancing plastic fish). Many of the restaurants are not recommended but there are exceptions, including Chez Léon.
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Musée d'Art Ancien
To view the collections of the Royal Museums of Fine Arts chronologically, start with the Musée d'Art Ancien. Begin with the Flemish Primitives, including works by Rogier Van der Weyden, Dirk Bouts, Hans Memling and Gerard David. Move onto Quinten Matsijs, whose paintings demonstrate a turning point in Flemish art as traditional realistic scenes were superseded by the more flamboyant Renaissance style imported from Italy.
The Breugel family, in particular Pieter Breugel the Elder, comes next. The mysterious Fall of Icarus is one of his most famous works, although De Volkstelling (The Census at Bethlehem, painted in 1566) is more typical of his distinctive peasant scenes.…
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Musée Magritte
A completely anonymous, suburban yellow-brick house: that's the façade of the Musée Magritte, and the façade that René Magritte, Belgium's most famous surrealist artist, showed the outside world. This museum in Jette occupies the house where Magritte and his wife Georgette lived from 1930 to 1954. Its appeal comes from its incredibly ordinary nature. It's odd to think the man responsible for some of the 20th century's most enduring images spent 24 years of his life in this bourgeois backstreet.
The museum opened in 1999 as the private initiative of a friend of the widow Magritte. With scandalously little support from the Belgian state, the curators assembled hundreds …
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Musée d'Art Moderne
The Musée d'Art Moderne houses 19th- and 20th-century art and occupies a subterranean gallery that meanders for six levels below ground. Due to the opening of the new Magritte Museum here, some of the collection has been moved to the Dexia Art Centre in Rue de l'Écuyer. Whether here or there, earlier highlights to look out for include sculptures by Constantin Meunier, Ensor's macabre fighting skeletons, and many paintings by Paul Delvaux.
Other national artists include Léon Spilliaert and Rik Wouters, both of whom belonged to the Fauve group of painters. The international scene is much less extensive but look out for Francis Bacon's delightful Le Pape aux Hiboux (Pope …
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Mini-Europe
Over 350 miniature scale models (all 1:25) depict some of Europe's best-known architectural highlights, such as the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela (which took 24,000 man-hours to create), London's Big Ben, Lisbon's Torre de Belem and Paris' Pompidou Centre; with various moving features like little railways, and even a cross-section of the Chunnel.
It's a fun way for kids (and kids-at-heart) to brush up on European geography, and the models are true works of art. On some weekend nights in summer Mini-Europe opens to midnight and has musical fireworks displays; call for dates.
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Musée Royale de l’Armée et d’Histoire Militaire
One for military buffs, this museum houses an extensive array of weaponry, uniforms, vehicles, warships and documentation dating from the Middle Ages through to Belgian independence and the mid-20th century. There’s a panoramic view of the park’s triumphal arch (built in 1880), the Arcade du Cinquantenaire, from the top floor.
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Grand Place Guildhalls
The splendour of the Grand Place is due largely to the antique frame of Grand Place guildhalls. Each merchant guild erected its own building, which is named (no street numbers back then) and adorned with gilded statues and elaborate symbols related to its trade. When the guildhalls were obliterated in the 1695 bombardment, the guilds rallied and rebuilt their headquarters using stone (rather than partial timber as before) for the façades and adding fanciful baroque touches to the gables.
Some of the highlights:
Maison du Roi (King's House- Opposite the Hôtel de Ville, this dark, brooding building was never home to royalty, despite the name. These days it houses the Musée…
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Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique
This museum houses Belgium's premier collections of ancient and modern art and is particularly well endowed with works by Pieter Breugel the Elder, Rubens and the Belgian surrealists. Both sections are large and you'll need a good day here if you want to do them justice.
Highlights of the Museum of Ancient Art are paintings from the 15th and 16th centuries, including Flemish primitives, Hans Memling, Rogier Van der Weydan, Dirk Bouts, and a whole room dedicated to Hieronymus Bosch.
Rubens dominates the 17th- and 18th-century collection, including the magnificent Adoration of the Magi, although you'll also get to appreciate fantastic pieces by Brueghel the Elder and Anthon…
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Parc du Cinquantenaire
Parc du Cinquantenaire was built during Léopold II's reign. It's best known for its cluster of museums - art, history, military and motor vehicles - that house an incredible 350,000 artefacts from all continents. We love the fine jewellery and cult of the dead funerary gifts from the Merovingian civilization. There is also the massive Arcade du Cinquantenaire, a triumphal arch built in 1880 to celebrate 50 years of Belgian independence. In summer, this area is put to good use with a popular drive-in cinema.
The Royal Art and History Museums in the southern wing of the Cinquantenaire buildings are chock-a-block with antiquities from all over the world.
Autoworld, in the n…
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Bruparck
The theme park, Bruparck, incorporates a water fun park, Océade, the giant Kinepolis cinema with a multiplex and an IMAX, and the highlight, Mini-Europe. In the latter, over 350 miniature scale models (all 1:25) depict some of Europe’s best-known architectural highlights, such as the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela (which took 24,000 man-hours to create), London’s Big Ben, Lisbon’s Torre de Belem and Paris’ Pompidou Centre; with various moving features like little railways, and even a cross-section of the Chunnel. It’s a fun way for kids (and kids-at-heart) to brush up on European geography, and the models are true works of art. On some weekend nights in summer Mini-…
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Place Flagey
When Bruxellois say something is ‘hype’, they don’t mean overhyped but hipper-than-hip. Fitting that description is Place Flagey, a revitalised square near the Étangs d’Ixelles (Ixelles Ponds). The square’s focal point is the restored, ocean-liner-like Flagey building, constructed in 1938 as the Belgian broadcasting flagship. It now houses a concert venue, a cinema, an international restaurant, and a fabulous brasserie and bar. On the square, the Frites Flagey caravan serves up what many consider to be Brussels’ best fries. For amazing pizza, try Mamma Roma. A stroll south of the ponds will bring you to the leafy Bois de la Cambre.
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Koninklijk Museum voor Midden-Afrika
Preserved insects, stuffed animals (including a huge elephant), masks, musical instruments, jewellery and a 22m-long pirogue (canoe) crafted by the Lengola people are among the mind-boggling displays at the extraordinary Koninklijk Museum voor Midden-Afrika, housing the world’s largest collection of such artefacts outside Africa. Most artefacts were plundered during King Léopold II’s exploitation of the Congo in the 19th century, something that is, finally, being increasingly addressed through the museum’s displays. The on-site café serves African dishes, along with African beer, which you can walk off on the paths through the adjoining Park van Tervuren.
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Begijnhof
Surrounded by protective walls, these whitewashed cottages – clustered around a central garden carpeted with daffodils in springtime – have an air of tranquil purity. Established as homes for a Catholic order of single and widowed women, there were around 1500 of these begijnhoven (or beguinages) in Belgium in the early 20th century, but only 22 remain. Dating from the 13th century, this is one of the best preserved, and home today to Benedictine nuns. The tiny on-site ‘t Begijnhuisje museum gives you an insight into a typical cottage. After your visit, prolong the serenity with a stroll in the swan-filled Minnewater park nearby.
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Tour & Taxis Complex
Brussels’ canal quarter has long languished, but the area (about 600m northwest of Yser metro station) is being given a new lease of life thanks to the regeneration of these old canalside warehouses and customs depots. Built over a century ago by the Tour et Taxis family, who founded Belgium’s postal service, today the buildings are being transformed into the Tour & Taxis complex, hosting temporary exhibitions (such as Star Wars), and harbouring a growing collection of industrial-chic shops, bars and restaurants. The renovations are part of an ambitious blueprint to rehabilitate the entire canal quarter.
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Le Peruchet
Le Peruchet is one of several small private puppet theatres to survive in Brussels. It's aimed specifically at kids (as opposed to productions at Théâtre Royal de Toone) in the two-to-eight age group. Occupying an old whitewashed stone farmhouse in the middle of modern Ixelles, the theatre is totally at odds with all around it, making it one of those Brussels experiences you won't forget.
Go through thick curtains to discover a world of fables and fairytales, and an adjoining museum chock full of colourful characters. All productions are in French, but the set up is unique enough for kids of any language to enjoy.
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Crowne Plaza Hotel
In the 1990s, when excavating for the foundations of the Crowne Plaza Hotel, workers literally hit a wall. This wall, it turned out, belonged to the 10th-century St-Donaas church (where Charles the Good, Count of Flanders is believed to have been assassinated in 1127), which later became a cathedral. Construction was allowed to proceed, provided that the remains were accessible to the public at no cost. It’s occasionally closed for hotel conferences, but otherwise you’re free to go down at any time (within reason) to find old maps, paintings, tombs and respite from the crowds above ground.
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Musée Horta
Although the exterior doesn’t give much away, inside, Victor Horta’s former home – which he designed and built between 1898 and 1901 and inhabited until 1919 – is an Art Nouveau jewel. Bathed in warm colours, the ground-floor living areas incorporate gleaming floor-to-ceiling tiling, while upstairs, you can see Horta’s personalised touches (such as the nifty plumbed urinal behind a cupboard in the bedroom) in the small, intimate rooms. The lower level offers an overview of his work, including the scale model of his magnificent Maison du Peuple before it met with the wrecking ball.
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Centre Belge de la Bande Dessinée
Belgium’s national Comic Strip Centre is a studious look at the evolution of comics: how they’re made, seminal artists and their creations, and contemporary comic-strip artists. In truth, the admission price is steep for the rather limited displays – unless you’re an Art Nouveau aficionado, in which case it’s worth visiting to see Victor Horta’s 1906 light-filled glass-and-steel textile warehouse in which the museum is housed. Few interpretive signs are in English; ask to borrow an English-language booklet. There is also a comprehensive shop selling comics, and a pleasant café.
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Broussaille
Don't miss Broussaille, by Frank Pé. Painted in 1991, it was the city's first giant comic mural, depicting a young couple arm-in-arm discovering Brussels. This strip is located in Brussels' gay nightlife hub and, in the original version, it was difficult to tell whether the couple was straight or not.
Gay establishments used the mural to promote the quarter until 1999 when the mural was repainted and the black-haired figure was given a more feminine hairstyle, earrings and (slightly) bigger breasts.
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Fondation Jacques Brel
Chansonnier Jacques Brel (1929–78) made his debut in 1952 at a cabaret in his native Belgium, and shot to fame in Paris, where he was a contemporary of Édith Piaf and co, though his songs continued to hark back to the bleak ‘flat land’ of his native country. This dedicated archive centre and museum, set up by his daughter, France (named for Brel’s adopted home), contains more than a hundred hours of footage and another hundred of audio recordings, as well as thousands of photographs and articles.
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Costume and Lace Museum
A stone's throw from the Grand Place, the Costume and Lace Museum is Belgium's second-best lace exhibition (top honours goes to the Nationaal Vlas, Kant en Linnenmuseum in Kortrijk). Notice the sombre black attire once worn by women en promenade (out walking in public) and the more colourful lace gowns for women en visite (visiting someone's home). Note also the antique underwear, including an old bustehouder (bra). Pick up the English-language booklet before setting off.
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Musée du Costume et de la Dentelle
Lace-making has been one of Flanders’ finest (and most eye-straining) crafts since the 16th century. While <em>kloskant</em> (bobbin lace) is believed to have originated in Bruges, <em>naaldkant</em> (needlepoint lace) developed in Italy but was predominantly made in Brussels. The Costume and Lace Museum reveals lace’s applications for under- and outerwear over the centuries, as well as displaying other luxury textiles such as embroidery. Ask for an English-language booklet.
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St-Baafskathedraal & The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb
Flemish Primitive artist Jan Van Eyck’s richly detailed 20-panel altarpiece, De Aanbidding van het Lam Gods (The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb; 1432) is one of the earliest-known oil paintings in existence and the highlight of Ghent’s 22-altar, stained-glass-adorned cathedral. A rare depiction of God the Father can be seen on the altarpiece’s upper tier, while the lower tier features the eponymous lamb, symbolising Christ’s sacrifice. The altarpiece’s survival defies the odds.
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Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts
The country’s most prestigious museums, the Royal Museums of Fine Arts incorporate both the Musée d’Art Ancien (ancient art) and the Musée d’Art Moderne (modern art). Among the many highlights are the collections of Flemish Primitives, the Breugels (especially Pieter the Elder) and Rubens in the Musée d’Art Ancien; and works by surrealist Paul Delvaux and fauvist Rik Wouters in the subterranean Musée d’Art Moderne. Also here as of early 2009 is the brand-new Musée René Magritte.
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