Falstaff Art Nouveau Café - Brussels

Opposite the stock exchange (La Bourse) on Rue Henri Maus is Falstaff, an original Art Nouveau café dating from 1903. It is located not far from the northwest corner of the Grand Place. Like Prague, Brussels is a European capital city that boasts many extant buildings designed in Art Nouveau style. The most famous Belgian Art Nouveau architect and artist was Victor Horta, whose disciple Gustave Strauven continued the tradition.

Building Art - Murals in Brussels

Murals appear all over Brussels, often in out-of-the-way places. Since Brussels is the comic book art capital of the world, many murals are crafted in that style. Here’s one at No. 9 Rue de Bon Secours. The tourist office on Grand Place provides a map for seeking out examples of this indigenous street art.

Brussels - Capital of Belgium

Brussels has grown from a 10th-century fortress town founded by Charlemagne's grandson into a metropolis of more than one million inhabitants. Since the end of the Second World War, Brussels has been an important center for international politics. It hosts the main institutions of the European Union as well as the headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Brussels is officially bilingual (Dutch and French), although most of the locals are native French speakers.

Brussels has been fought over countless times and ruled by the Dutch, Spanish, Habsburgs and French, among others. A third of the city was destroyed in the French bombardment of 1695, and most of the magnificent Renaissance buildings extant today date from just after that time. Napoleon suffered a spectacular defeat at Waterloo, just a few miles south of Brussels.

On July 21, 1831, Belgium installed its own king, Leopold I, ending Dutch rule. In the years before and after 1870 the Senne River and its canals were covered over, allowing redevelopment. As a result, many of the grandest buildings of Brussels date from the 19th century (examples are Parliament, the Royal Palace, Law Courts, Opera House and Stock Exchange). The Grand Place, shown in the photo above, in the lower town is one of Europe's most spectacular town squares.

Today Brussels is known for lace, puppet shows, tapestries and (above all) chocolate!

Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie

http://www.lamonnaie.be/
Facing Place de Brouckère, a few blocks north of Grand Place

An opera house in the grand style, the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie (Royal Theatre of the Mint), was founded in the 17th century on the site of the former royal mint. It is home to the Opéra National and l'Orchestre Symphonique de la Monnaie. Ballet performances are also presented in this auditorium that seats 1,770 spectators. As Belgium's leading opera house it is one of the few cultural institutions which receives financial support from the federal government of Belgium. World premières by such diverse composers as Massenet, Chabrier, d’Indy, Milhaud, Honegger and Prokofiev have been presented in its grand auditorium.

But a far more important event took place here in 1830. Auber's opera La Muette de Portici (The Mute Girl from Portici) was scheduled, even though it had been banned from the stage by King William II, fearing its inciting content. At a performance of this opera on August 25, 1830, as the tenor sang “Sacred Love of the Homeland,” a riot broke out. Members of the audience ran out into the street in a rampage that developed into the September Uprising. By the following summer a new state of Belgium independent of the Dutch was born (July 21, 1831), and Leopold I (a German prince of Saxe-Coburg) was crowned.

Unfortunately, most of that building was lost in a tremendous fire in 1855; only the façade and perimeter walls were left standing. The structure we see today opened fourteen months later in 1856, incorporating the portico of the former building.

St-Jean-Baptiste-au-Béguinage

St-Jean-Baptiste-au-Béguinage is a Flemish Baroque confection of a church dating from 1676. It is the center of an area that was once the enclave of 1,200 béguine women. The béguines were a lay religious order that took up charitable work, and most of the members were widows or survivors of failed marriages. This was the largest and oldest (est. 1250) béguine community on the country. The devout women operated a hospital, laundry and windmill for the city.

The church is located northeast of Place Ste-Catherine, just west of Rue de Laeken in the Brussels lower town.

Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert - Brussels

The Royal Saint-Hubert Galleries (Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert) is a complex of three connected glass covered shopping arcades in the center of Brussels: the King’s Gallery, the Queen’s Gallery and the Galerie des Princes. The ensemble, called the Passage Saint-Hubert has gone by its present name since 1965.

The arcades are located in the Îlot Sacré district just north of Grand Place. The galleries were designed in 1837 by the young architect Jean-Pierre Cluysenaar, and built in 1846. The name comes from the former Saint-Hubert Street, which ran from the Grasmarkt to Beenhouwersstraat. The galleries are over 700 feet long and 24 feet high and accommodate specialized luxury shops, cafés and restaurants. On March 1, 1896, the first film presentation in Belgium by the Lumière brothers was held here.

In 't Spinnekopke - Brussels Restaurant

Place du Jardin-aux-Fleurs 1 (near the fish market)
Closed Sundays; no lunch on Saturdays

"In the Spider's Web" occupies a stagecoach inn from 1762, just far enough off the beaten track downtown to be frequented mainly by "those in the know." You dine in a tilting, tiled-floor building, at plain tables, squeezed into a tight space. This is one of Brussels's most traditional café/restaurants – so much so, in fact, that the menu lists its hardy standbys of regional Belgian cuisine in the old Bruxellois dialect. The bar stocks a vast selection of traditional beers.

Pierre Marcolini Chocolatier - Brussels

It’s astonishing that in a city of barely a million inhabitants, Brussels boasts 2,200 retailers that vend chocolates. Two of them, however, stand out from the masses. I have already entered a post about Wittamer, so now it’s time to exclaim about one of the neighbors. Entering the enclave of Pierre Marcolini on Rue des Minimes (Place du Grand Sablon) in Brussels is like stepping into a haute couture fashion house in Milan. The decór is cutting edge modern (the antithesis of Wittamer a few doors away), the carpet is plush, and the ambience is hushed. And once you’ve made your selections and stepped away to the cashier (again, as in a couture house), the elaborate packaging begins. These are not boxes you’ll toss after the contents are gone, and the shopping bags will be treasured until the corners are worn out. Did I mention that the average small box of these over-the-top chocolate creations will set you back $28?

Pierre Marcolini, a Belgian of Italian decent, is one of only two Belgian “chocolatiers,” and one of four in all of Europe. The title of “chocolatier” is bestowed solely upon those who select their cocoa beans, roast them and make their own basic ingredient, “couverture.” Marcolini uses only the finest beans from Venezuela, Madagascar, Ecuador and Mexico.

This extraordinary artisan has received the most prestigious awards and was named World Champion Pastry Chef in 1995. The secret to his astounding success is a pursuit of perfection and a total discipline in his recipes. Natural ingredients give all of his creations their authentic flavors. The same care and attention that goes into making the finest wine is applied to making the finest chocolate, and from bean to bar Pierre is wholly responsible for the product.

Pierre's atelier in Brussels employs a 35 person team of talented artisans. It is here that the lengthy process of cleaning, roasting, conching and tempering gets underway. Taking up to a week. the end result is the “couverture.” Pierre's philosophy is "to aim to be the best, and always improve." This man takes himself, and his creations, seriously.

www.marcolini.be/#/en/pierre-marcolini/

Théâtre Royal de Toone

A scene from The Three Musketeers.

On impasse Schuddeveld, a tiny cul-de-sac off Petite rue des Bouchers, is the Royal Marionette Theater, which can trace its origins back to Antoine Genty in 1830, when the first "Antoine" (Toone is the Brussels diminutive form of Antoine) established the dynasty of master puppeteers that continues to this day. In July, 2009, Nicolas Géal, the puppet master known as Toone VIII, will present his interpretation of Bizet’s Carmen. The building that houses the theater is also home to a puppet museum, workshop and library.
Two-hour shows begin at 8:30p (Saturdays also at 4:00p). Admission 10 Euros per person. No credit cards.
www.toone.be/

Parc de Bruxelles

Detail from the bandshell (1840) inside the Parc de Bruxelles, located in the Upper Town. The Royal Palace of Brussels, the Belgian Parliament, Théâtre Royal du Parc and the US Embassy encircle the park, which was once the hunting grounds of the Dukes of Brabant. After a devastating fire in the early 18th century, the park was redesigned in the 1770s with fountains, kiosks, statuary and tree-lined paths, which were laid out in the design of Masonic symbols, most notably the square and compass.

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:

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.

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.