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Slideshow

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Brussels

Fast Facts

Country Name: Belgium
Capital: Brussels
Currency: Euro
Religion: Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25%
Population: 10,274,595
Climate: Maritime Temperate
Language: Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French)
Time Zone: GMT +1
Country code: +32

POPULAR

(must-sees for the 5-days-tourist)

Because this was Brussels and it was a cheap flight we decided to splash out and stayed at the rather plush, posh and modernised Art Deco Hotel Chambord. We paid 159 Euros each night for the double room not too bad for the centre of Brussels I have been told and breakfast was included as was a fast free internet connection - nice.
The closest underground is Porte De Namur Website http://www.hotel-chambord.be.

Day One

Here is a great tip before we start, if like to visit museums and will probably visit most of the museums in Brussels get 'The Brussels Card' it will give you free access to museums and the STIB public transport for 72 hours and also offers a 25% discount on the Visit Brussels tour bus together with reduced prices in selected restaurants shops and bars. The cost is 30 Euros and the card can be purchased in most hotels, museums and tourist offices check out more information here www.brusselsmuseums.be.

Brussels is small, but that doesn't make it any the less interesting in fact the opposite applies, because Brussels is small it means that the visitor can see the major attractions at his or her leisure and if tempted revisit them before departure.

The place that most people go first and then seem to migrate towards time and again is the Grand-Place so it tends to get a little crowded but for all of that it is a great place to see. If you can walk down one of the many cobbled street and approach the Grand-Place the journey will be worth it, but if you are pressed for time go to Métro Bourse or Gare Centrale to speed your way to Grand-Place.
On all sides you will be surrounded by wonderful Gothic building dominated by the Hotel de Ville which was amazingly built in the 15th Century.
Turn and you can't help but notice the Maison du Roi which is equally amazing and was built in 1515 and then faithfully reconstructed in the 1890s. The Maison du Roi which once housed Kings and Emperors is now houses the Musée de la Ville de Bruxelles which doesn't open on a Monday but on the other days of the week costs 3 Euros to enter.
Later in the day after lunch and lunches in Brussels tend to be long and very enjoyable stroll down the Rue de l'Etuve away from the Gran-Place and you will be surprised and probably amused by the Manneken-Pis a bronze statue of a boy urinating. Just passed the statue and you will be able to see the grandeur of the Bourse.

Day two

Today take a bus or walk it isn't far to the Place du Grand-Sablon a place that is oddly one of the smartest places in town and yet one of the most relaxed.
From it humble beginnings as a place to site a small chapel for the guild of archers the Place du Grand-Sablon's popularity has grown due to the arrival in 1348 of a statue of Mary which was said to have healing powers.
After the statue arrived the chapel was constantly expanded and became the impressive Gothic church the Notre-Dame du Sablon which is home to the annual Ommegang procession.
After visiting the church entrance is free it is worth perusing the antique shops and if you happen by on a weekend you will be impressed with the antique and book market. Indeed there are all sorts of little alleys to investigate in and around the Sabon area like the Place du Petit-Sablon which is a small square surrounded on all sides by 48 bronze statues representing the 16th Century guilds.
From the Place du Petit-Sablon it isn't far to the Parc de Bruxelles where some of the most famous, rich buildings and attractions are situated. The Parc de Bruxelles is formally laid out with straight tree lined avenues and a beautiful fountain at the centre.
Towards the south east is the Palais des Académies once owned by the Prince of Orange, and close just opposite the Parc de Bruxelles is the Palais Royal (Royal Palace) and several museums. The Palais Royal is no longer the residence of the royal family they live in Laeken to the north, but the Palais Royal is still used by the royal family as an office and state functions are held here.
The Palais Royal is open to the public from the end of July until the beginning of September and unlike the Buckingham Palace in England where some of the British royal family live, admission is free. Do visit if you have time the Musée Belvue it is close by and was reopened in July 2005 as part of the celebrations for the 175th anniversary of the founding of Belgium. Admission is 3 Euros.

Day three

Today if you didn't get the opportunity to visit the Musée Belvue do, catch the métro to Trone or the 92 Tram. Once you have seen the Musée Belvue you will can take a short walk to see a collection of impressive buildings, the European Parliament and the Muséum des Sciences Naturelles with its excellent collection of Dinosaurs and other wildlife living and extinct, admission is 4 Euros.

Do visit the European Parliament they offer audio-guided tours on Monday to Thursday at both 10.00 and 15.00, then on Friday at 10.00. Please note visitors have to be at least 14, so much for equal rights to all and here is a tip if you look older that 14 and want to visit get to the entrance about 15 minutes before the tour start time, you will also need ID, passport, driver's license etc for registration purposes.There is no admission charge.

At lunchtime disappear down any of the streets that lead away from the European Parliament or try to find the Petite Rue des Bouchers there are plenty of wonderful little restaurants where lunch starts from about 25 Euros a head.

This afternoon I thought we could take a trip to The Atomium built in 1958 for the Universal Exhibition. The Atomium is an odd building, monument er thing it is an enormous steel construction 102 metres high and represents an iron atom but magnified 150 billion times it has 9 spheres connected by corridors.

You can find it in the Parc de the Heysel, north-west from the centre, which can be reached directly by metro. More information can be found here http://www.atomium.be. Admission is charged at 5.45 Euros for each adult, people under 12 - 3.97 Euros.

Near by is Bruparck amusement park, which offers 'Mini-Europe,' an outdoor exhibition of 1/25 scale replicas of Europe's most famous architectural sights, like the Brussels Grand-Place, the Eifel Tower, the British Houses of Parliament, the Parthenon in Athens, the Dogues Palace in Venice among others. This evening we thought we would try a nightclub and had seen Ethnic Lianou on the net. The nightclub was on av.louise 277 - take a Taxi to find it and it was rather mmh or could that be har. Dull. Drinks were around 10.00 Euros which is really too much. Not happy we left early. If you want to bother check out their face book entry first http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brussels-Belgium/ethnic/6554751233 and sort of see for yourself.

Day four

Time to shop. Take the day and walk, that way you will be able to burn off all of the calories you will consume if you like chocolate, mind you is you really like chocolate maybe you should run, take in a gym at lunch time, starve for two weeks and well you know the drill because you are in for one amazing day.
If you don't go anywhere else go to Wittamer at the Place du Grand Sablon number 6 to be precise. Wittamer chocolates aren't cheap but they are delicious, buy at least two boxes one for now and one for later. After a few hours in the shop if you haven't eaten too much try the Wittamer Café up the road at number 13 for lunch it is worth saving space lunch is excellent. Cross the road and guess what there is another chocolate shop this one belongs to Pierre Marcolini and be warned Pierre's chocolates are the most expensive in Brussels and frankly that probably means the world - well the chocolate world anyway they are around 45 Euros per kilo, wow! And of course yummy!

Day five

This is your last day and after all of the chocolate from yesterday maybe you should do something active, you could got to Antwerp, Bruges they are all about an hour away by car or train and worth a visit even if it is a whistle stop one.
If on the other hand you conscience is getting the better of you and the voice in your head is saying do something even more active how about a bike tour to round off your five days and make entirely sure that you have Brussels well and truly covered?

The average bike tour around bike friendly Brussels will sit you in the saddle for around 4 non-polluting and waistline reducing hours. Check out Brussels Bike Tours online here http://brusselsbiketours.com they are accommodating and know really know what they are doing, your will be shown parts of Brussels that even people who live there don't know about. A four hour tour costs around 25 Euros and of course that includes the hire of a bike. When you finish the bike tour you will probably be full of Belgium fried and beer, I suggest you find a nice bar to relax in or just go back to your hotel and soak you muscles they might be aching.

NATURE & GEOLOGY

Not only most of Brussels but most of Belgium is urbanised around 94% of the land however Brussels is surrounded Parcs and Forests and is considered the greenest city in Europe and has more green areas per inhabitant that most cities in the world. The wildlife you can find in some of the parks and also further away from the city include, fallow deer, rabbits and all of the birds you would expect to find across Europe.

Not far from Brussels on the coast of Belgium you will find miles of sand dunes but as you move in land the terrain rises valleys are fertile and well irrigated by numerous rivers, this are is typified by the Campine a sandy plain in the northeast. Most of Belgium's wildlife lives in the Ardennes an area of thick forest and rugged hills.

There are several factors which contribute to significant environmental problems in Belgium, these include; the large population density lack of political will to address the problem and the country's place in the centre of Europe.

HISTORY

Like most European cities Brussels has had a long interesting and eventful history. It has been ruled by all manner of Europeans including the Romans, the Spanish and the Germans. It is generally agreed that Brussels grew from a fortified town in the 10th Century. In the 14th Century the city was further fortified with the building of the city walls parts of which can be seen today.
In 1830, after the Belgian Revolution the first King of Belgium ascended to the throne and has ruled as a constitutional monarch ever since. Sadly like most European cities, Brussels had its share of significant damage from bombing raids during the Second World War and was very badly damaged in 1940 the German army shelled Brussels but most of the damage was caused by Allied air raids between 1944 and 1945.

CULTURE

Brussels has two official languages: French and Flemish almost 90% of the population speak French. Brussels is home to not only the headquarters of the European Union but alsoNATO, which in some peoples eyes makes Brussels the unofficial capital of Europe.
Today's Brussels is therefore full of people from many different countries which has given Brussels a very cosmopolitan feel to say nothing of an enormous number of new and in some cases impressive buildings. However in tandem with the new there is the old, wonderful cobbled streets, adorable cafés and splendid Art Nouveau architecture, which made Brussels a significant European city before the politicians and technocrats arrived.
In spite of having very strong international ties and a large percentage of foreigners who have visited, lived and worked in Brussels the people havetheir own distinct identity. Brussels was almost the birthplace of Surrealism and Art Nouveau and the people of the city are almost as proud of their comic strips as they are of their handmade lace, wonderful potato fries with Mayonnaise and chocolate. To say nothing of the wonderful beer made not only from hops but also various fruits.

POLITICAL

Belgium is governed by a Federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch, the seat of government is Brussels. Currently Belgium is in danger of splitting into two because of pressure mainly from the French speaking Walloon majority. The government has been the centre of several scandals over the last decade and in addition appears to have been blamed for other non-political ones this further undermines their ability to govern.

INFRASTRUCTURE

Brussels is a major centre for international politics, it is the home of the European Union and NATO and to 1000 other international organisations and 2000 international corporations and as such has a very good infrastructure.
Brussels is served by three airports, the high speed London Eurostar link and to Cologne Paris Frankfurt and Amsterdam by rail.

The Metro was built in 1976 and supplements the underground lines of the tramways, there is also a very competent and comprehensive bus and tram network serving Brussels. As you would expect for a city of such important in the heart of Europe the road and motorway network is extremely good.

DOS & DON'TS

Don't imitate the Mannequin Piz it just isn't nice, and please don't encourage anyone to bring back a small statuette of the Mannequin Piz they are not nice either and you will never put it on display I promise you.

Do enjoy Brussels it is a great little place.

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