Waterzooi

After waffles, the next most famous Belgian food is Waterzooi, a classic Flemish stew. Its name is Dutch, meaning “watery mess.” I’m not making this up. It is sometimes called Gentse Waterzooi (in Dutch), which refers to Ghent, a major city in Belgium.

The original form was based on fish, though today chicken waterzooi (kippenwaterzooi) is more common. The most accepted explanation for this is that rivers of Ghent became too polluted, and the fish there disappeared. The stew is made of fish or chicken, vegetables (including carrots, leeks and potatoes), herbs, eggs, cream and butter. It is invariably delicious, cheap and filling.

Both the chicken and fish versions are based on a vegetable broth thickened with egg yolk and cream, usually served as a soup with bread to sop up the liquid.

Cathédrale des Sts Michel et Gudule

A relatively restrained Gothic cathedral, St Michel's (dedicated to the city's patron St. Michael, and to St. Gudula), is the national church of Belgium. Its purity of line and lack of superfluous frill is the distilled essence of a style that dominated European cityscapes for half a millennia. Its somewhat plain interior is partly due to Protestant iconoclast ransacking (1579-80) and thefts by French revolutionists in 1793. The cathedral was fully restored in the 1990s.

Victor Hugo considered this magnificent church to be the "purest flowering of the Gothic style." Begun in 1226, it was built over a period of 300 years; it was not officially consecrated as a cathedral until 1961 (I assume they wanted to be really sure about the whole bishop thing). The 16th-century Habsburg Emperor Charles V donated the remarkable stained glass windows, and the locally quarried sandstone exterior is also distinctive. The Baroque carved wood pulpit by noted Antwerp sculptor Henri-Francois Verbruggen was added in 1776. The cathedral is located in the Upper Town of Brussels, near the Gare Centrale and the Parc de Bruxelles.

René Magritte - Belgian surrealist

From 1930 to 1954 the great Belgian Surrealist artist René Magritte (1898-1967) lived and worked in an undistinguished rented town house in suburban Brussels. Now restored, that 19-room house is a museum of the artist's life. You can visit most of the rooms but can only view through glass the dining-room-cum-studio where he painted many of his fantastical masterpieces while wearing a three-piece suit. You can even look through the famous window, with a view of nothing in particular, on to which Magritte projected images that would revolutionize art and the way we look at the world. That said, there is very little to see, even though the museum's founders have been diligent in uncovering bits and pieces of the artist's banal private life.

However, since June 2, 2009, visitors have been able to enjoy the new Musée Magritte in a building of the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium. Located at the Place Royale, in the very center of Brussels, the museum displays the works of the surrealist artist, which belong to the museum, private collectors, as well as public and private institutions which have loaned their masterpieces. This multi-disciplinary collection is the richest in the world. It contains more than 200 works consisting of oils on canvas, gouaches, drawings, sculptures and painted objects as well as advertising posters, music scores, vintage photographs and films produced by Magritte himself.

Museum web site (click):
www.musee-magritte-museum.be/Portail/Site/Typo3.asp?lang=FR&id=languagedetect

La Maison du Roi (Broodhuis)

The beautiful neo-gothic building with its many decorative architectural details is the "Maison du Roi" (King's House) in French or "Broodhuis" in Dutch. Located opposite the Town Hall on the Grand Place, it now serves as the historical City Museum of Brussels.

The Dutch name "Broodhuis" (bread house) indicates the origins of this building. In the 13th century a wooden building stood here that was used by the bakers to sell their bread. In 1405 a stone building replaced the original wooden bread hall. When the bakers turned to selling their products from house to house in the 15th century, the ancient bread hall began to be used more and more for administrative purposes by the Duke of Brabant, hence the French name "Maison du Roi". During the reign of emperor Charles V, the King's House was rebuilt in flamboyant Gothic style (1515-1536). In one of the rooms the counts of Egmont and Hoorne spent their last night before their execution by order of Filip II of Spain on the Grand-Place on June the 5th 1568.

After the French bombardment of 1695 the building was restored as far as necessary to keep it from collapsing. In the following centuries it was used for different purposes (e. g. as "Maison du Peuple" - the people's house - after the French revolutionists had taken over power in the country at the end of the 18th century).

In 1860 the mayor of Brussels had convinced the city authorities to buy the old King's House, which was then in a sorry state. The entire building had to be build up from scratch. The restoration was done in the then fashionable neo-gothic style. The architect was clearly influenced by the early 16th century town hall of the City of Oudenaarde.

In June 1887 the King's House became the City Museum of Brussels. On exhibition are original statues of the town hall, paintings, wall tapestries and different artifacts which have a relation to the history of the city. A favorite among tourists, the wardrobe collection of Manneken-Pis is housed on the second floor. Between 1918 and 1940, Brussels received around thirty "suits" that were used as a special costume for the little pissing statue that has become the mascot of Brussels. By the 1980s the museum counted more than 400, and today its collection numbers more than 800! Most of the costumes were donations from embassies, tourist offices, sportsmen, artists, bon vivants, associations, anyone who wished to honor Manneken-Pis with a suit or costume. The surprisingly small statue is located two blocks southwest of Grand-Place on the corner of rue du Chêne and rue de l'Etuve. Today the museum houses hundreds of statuettes of Manneken-Pis which present a selection of his costumes from all over the world (be sure to check out the "Elvis" costume, shown in use in the photo below).

Hôtel de Ville (Brussels Town Hall)

This magnificent construction from 1402 shows off Gothic intricacy at its best, complete with dozens of arched windows and sculptures. Some of these, like the drunken monks, a sleeping Moor and his harem, and St. Michael slaying a female devil, display a sense of humor as well as extraordinary skill. The interior reflects the extravagant tastes of the imperial aldermen who ruled over the city from here. A 315-ft. tall tower (built in 1449) sprouts from the middle, yet it's not placed directly in the center, and it's slightly crooked. Atop the spire is a statue of the Archangel Michael, patron saint of the city.

The building, which occupies the entire southwest side of the Grand Place, is still the seat of civic government, and its wedding room is a popular place to marry. You can visit the interior on guided tours on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays. Worth seeking out is the spectacular Gothic Hall, open for visits when the city's aldermen are not in session. Baroque decoration stands side by side with magnificent 16th- to 18th-century tapestries.

On summer evenings there is a popular son-et-lumière (sound and light) show in which various buildings on the Grand Place are illuminated by lasers. Summer evenings at 10:30p. The following video is the 2008 December illumination:

Belgian Lace

The intricate lace patterns of Belgium are unmatched in any other country. The lace trade rose during the early Renaissance, and Emperor Charles V decreed that lace-making should be a compulsory skill for girls in convents and beguinages (where women live as nuns without taking vows) throughout Flanders. Lace became fashionable on collars and cuffs for members of both sexes, and trade reached its peak in the 18th century.

Lace makers are traditionally women. Hundreds of craftswomen still work in Bruges (Brugge) and Brussels, both centers of bobbin lace, creating intricate work by hand – often using over 100 threads per bobbin. Belgian lace is bought today mainly as a souvenir, but despite the rise in machine-made lace from other countries, the quality here remains as fine as it was in enaissance times.

In Brussels, close to the Grand Place, the Musée du Costume et de la Dentelle (Museum of Costume & Lace) has a permanent collection of fine lace. Displayed in subdued lighting and safely laid out in drawers, this extraordinary collection contains pieces made on the spindle and with needles. The costumes the lace was made for are also displayed in thematic exhibits.

Atomium - Brussels

Created for the 1958 World's Fair, the Atomium is a symbol of the atom concept. It represents an iron crystal, magnified 165 billion times. As with most of the pavillions, it was never intended to stay longer than the duration of the fair. Nevertheless, The Atomium remained by popular demand, underwent major renovation in 2005-2006, turned 50 last year, and has long been regarded a major symbol of Brussels and Belgium.

The World’s Fair was held from April to October 1958 and hosted more than 42 million visitors. It was the first major world exposition after WWII; the previous world’s fair had been held in New York in 1939, when German troops were invading Poland.

The World’s Fair, more commonly called Expo 58, was certainly one of the most representative international events of the fifties. It symbolized 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.

The appropriately named DEATH RIDE allows the brave to zip-line down from the top.

Bruges - Flanders

Walking around the beautifully preserved city of Bruges (Brugge) is like taking a step back in time. Bruges seems to have changed little from its 13th-century origins as a cloth-manufacturing town. In the Middle Ages, Bruges was among the wealthiest cities of Europe, evidenced by the elaborate and distinctive architectural treasures that remain from that time. UNESCO has recognized the cultural importance of the historic center by awarding it World Heritage status in 2000, and Bruges was a 2002 European Capital of Culture.

Photos below - Bruges Town Hall (top) and its spectacular interior (bottom):


About an hour north of Brussels by train or car, the Dutch-speaking city is the capital of West-Vlaanderen (West Flanders) province and the pride and joy of all Flanders citizens. Around four million visitors a year descend on the city of 115,000 residents.

Medieval Gothic architecture is the big deal that Bruges provides, in quantities that come near to numbing the senses. In addition, its scenic canals and reputation as a lace-making center add icing to the cake that is one of the wonders of Europe.


The main sights of Bruges are concentrated within a fairly small area, making the city easy to explore on foot. Highlights include the 272-foot tall 15th-century Bell Tower (with a clock and 47-bell carillon), that offers stunning views over the city and surrounding countryside. The architecture of the adjacent Market and Burg Squares is spectacular, most notably the City Hall dating from 1376. Its gothic council chamber on the building’s first floor is open to the public, and features distinctive wooden ceilings decorated with gilded medieval carvings. Various other sites offer daily lace- and chocolate-making demonstrations.

Place du Petit Sablon - Brussels

One of the most attractive small gardens in Brussels, Place du Petit Sablon was created in 1890 by architect Henri Beyaert and is dedicated to the memory of martyred Counts Egmont and Hornes, whose statues rise above an elaborate fountain. It is an attractive tree-lined space enclosed by magnificent wrought iron fencing and gates, encircled by 48 bronze statuettes, each representing a different medieval guild.

The Sablon is one of the most prestigious and attractive areas in central Brussels. In recent years it has become known as the center of antiques shops and art galleries.

The name “sablon” refers to the yellowish earth layer that could be seen along the shoulders of the dirt roads. This type of sandy clay was called "zavel" in Dutch and "sablon" in French. In the 14th century a small chapel in the sablon area was transformed into an important pilgrimage site where a miraculous statue of Our Lady was venerated. Soon the area became more populated and was enclosed within the 14th-century city walls. Around 1450 the little chapel had been transformed into a beautiful Gothic church, the Sablon church, known as Our Lady of the Victories. In the following centuries more and more noblemen settled in the area because it was close to the duke's palace.

A dramatic change occurred in the second half of the 19th century. The Sablon was divided into two parts by the construction of the Regentschapstraat/Rue de la Régence. During this period the church was renovated in neo-gothic style and the houses which had been attached to it were demolished. On the eastern side of the church a new park was laid out, called "De kleine zavel/Le petit sablon".
The Église Notre Dame du Sablon (Church of Our Lady of Sablon) is noted for its gallery with brightly colored stained glass windows which are illuminated from the inside at night. The celebrated statue of St. Hubert inside was once stolen from Brussels and taken to Antwerp, but was seized and returned to the church in 1348, where it has remained ever since.

Not only famous for its antiques, the Sablon area also offers a range of good restaurants and pleasant cafés. A visit to Wittamer, the most exclusive pastry maker in Brussels, is also a must.

Bottom photo: Several of the 48 columns supporting bronze statues, each representing one of the trade guilds. (click to enlarge)

Grand Place - Brussels

Every 2 years, on the 15th of August, the city of Brussels produces an enormous carpet of flowers in the center of the Grand Place (Grote Markt in Dutch), the city’s central market square. This photo from 2008 shows 700,000 begonias forming an intricate design.

The Grand Place of French-speaking Brussels is the location of the city’s Town Hall, La Maison du Roi and many ornate Guild Houses. The entirety of the Grand Place is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and it is one of the most glorious town squares in all of Europe.

Hotel Metropole, Brussels

Inaugurated in 1895, this legendary Brussels hotel is the city's only 19th-century property still open for business. It was originally built by a brewer's family as an addition to their café, intended to promote their selection of beers on the famous Place de Brouckère. Today, it boasts the grandest hotel setting in Brussels. The main entrance is all French Renaissance frivolity leading to an Empire-style reception hall replete with gold stained-glass windows that celebrate the city's art-nouveau heritage. Glittering with chandeliers, the sumptuous lobby retains many of its original features.

Throughout its history the hotel has become part of the city's social, economical, political and cultural life, welcoming such guests as Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, Enrico Caruso, Sarah Bernhardt, Arthur Rubinstein, the crew of the Challenger space shuttle, as well as many presidents and royals.

Wittamer Patissier

Wittamer Patissier & Tea Room
Place du Grand Sablon 6
Closed Mondays

Wittamer is the stuff of legends. The founder, Henri Wittamer, established his shop at the Grand Sablon in 1910. Until his death in 1945, the bakery in the Sablon square went from strength to strength, building a solid reputation and fame. It would bake bread on weekdays, and then on Sundays fruit loaves and bread rolls, as well as some traditional fruit tarts, the memory of which will never fade.

After the war, still in the frustrating period of ration tickets, Henri Wittamer junior, the founder’s only son, and his wife Yvonne, took over the reins of the family business. In 1955, they enlarged and modernized the selling areas.


Later, in 1965, Henri-Paul Wittamer, the third by that name, having been awarded a diploma in the art of chocolate making from the prestigious COBA school in Switzerland, gave free rein to creativity in the workshop, by creating his first mousses and Bavarois, and by setting up the chocolate shop and the patisserie. Then in 1980, his sister Myriam joined him in running the company.

In 1994, Leslie Wittamer, the founder's great-granddaughter, joined the 60 skilled workforce. In 2000, The Maison Wittamer officially became the Supplier by Appointment to the Court of Belgium. The company is currently managed by Paul and Myriam Wittamer.