Trip to Belgium
Tuesday, May 27th, 2008
May 8th, 2008
Went to Belgium for four days last week. It was great trip
May the 8th is a National Holiday in The Czech Republic, celebrating the end of World War II in Europe. So, since May 8 was on Thursday, we had four full days to escape and relax. Colleen and I left at 7am and arrived in Brussels at 9am. Left bags at the hotel and went out to explore the city. Brussels is a beautiful city with one of the most stunning and impressive Old Town Squares I have ever seen. The architecture is incredible. The square is called The Grand place and Grote Market. I have no idea what Grotes are. Maybe it’s man’s name. Anyway, the market has functioned since the 11th century. The dominant structure is the Hotel de Ville (City Hall) which was built in the 15th century, between 1401 and 1459 and covers one entire side of the square. It features a central belfry tower that stretches up 315 feet over the square to a statue of St. Michael at the top. The building is very gothic, very ornate, and has, in addition to many gargoyles, spires and decorative elements, 137 life size or larger statures adorning the facade. Don’t know who they represent but suspect that they are the prominent business men of the day as many of the other buildings around the square were built to house the different craftsmen’s guilds. One of the buildings (La Maison du Roi) was built in 1536 for the ruling Spanish Monarchs and one (Le Pigeon) was the home of Victor Hugo when he went into self exile in 1852 during the reign of Napoleon the Third. The south side of the square features La Maison des Ducs de Brarant, six attached guildhouses with statues of the Ducs across the top. (Did I mention that French is the common language in Brussels? I was in heaven!) Other beautiful buildings, all with French names surround the square. It certainly rivals, if not excels, Old Town Square as the most impressive town square I have ever seen.
After a coffee and lots of pictures, we wandered down a narrow street to see the Mannekin Pis. You’ve seen pictures I’m sure. It’s a statue of a little boy relieving himself and for some unknown reason, it has become the symbol of the city. All the shops nearby have replicas nearby, little statues, corkscrews (and you can imagine where the corkscrew protrudes), postcards, etc. I bought Harrison a charm of Mannekin Pis for her bracelet. What was interesting is the fact the the statue is only about 12 inches high. Had it not been for the crowd gathered to take pictures I would not have walked by without noticing. How could something so insignificant become the symbol of the city?
We walked back through the square and had lunch in a deli on a side street. Walked through Butcher Street, which is simply a narrow, winding street lined with outdoor cafes featuring seafood, primarily mussels. It was packed with tourists and is a great spot for photographs. It exudes Old World charm.
Next visited the National Cathedral, the Cathedral of St. Michel and Ste. Gudula. It’s magnificent as all great cathedrals seem to be. I always try to visit the churches in Europe as they are often the oldest and best preserved structures. Construction of the Cathedral began early in the 13th century but was not completed for 300 hundred years. It fascinates me that the “architect” of these great religious structures seldom saw the finished product. And the finished product probably didn’t look like the original plans as the styles changed through the years as new building techniques allowed structures that would not have been possible to erect 100 hundred years before. There interior is ornate as all of them are but this one is described in the brochure as “very bare inside” due to ransacking by Protestants in 1580 and thefts by French Revolutionists in 1783. However, it still has beautiful stained glass windows, statuary everywhere and a huge carved wood, very impressive, baroque pulpit.
We wandered through the Park of Brussels and found the Museum of Fine Arts but decided to wait til another day since we were tired and the day was wearing on. Walked through Butcher Street once more, which was very crowded and noisy with patrons slurping down mussels and other seafoods, and had a falafal on a side street which was very quiet and much less expensive.
Friday, May 9, 2008
We decided to go to Luxembuorg. Actually, I was the one who wanted to go. I buy flag pins in every country I visit (if possible) and this was another opportunity to add to my collection. OK, I admit it. That’s a flimsy excuse for visiting a country. But it’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. Besides, Luxembourg is a small country and when am I going to be this close again.
The train station is very active, full of people and trains come and go within a matter of minutes on each of the nine tracks passing through the station. The trains were a little behind schedule ( very unusual in Europe) so I asked the conductor if this was our train. He said, “Next one,” so we jumped aboard. I became a little concerned when we seemed to be stopping at every station along the way. When a conductor finally came by to check our tickets (about 45 minutes into the trip), he told us this was not the train to Luxembourg. Luckily, all we had to do was get off at the next station and catch the train following. I was pleased that, at least, we hadn’t been going in the wrong direction. We changed trains at Ottignies and got on a clean, new, double decker, air-conditioned train. Very nice.
The countryside was beautiful. Green, rolling hills with immaculate fields filled with cattle or sheep. The villages were pristine with manicured lawns. The houses were attached and uniform, row houses like in the movies but very clean and neat.
Luxembourg city is a miniature Brussels but with fewer spectacular buildings. This old city is built on a plateau with steep cliffs on three sides and the site was obviously chosen because it would be easy to defend. There are the requisite cathedrals, old town square and the Royal Palace, complete with one armed guard standing on duty. There are also many expensive, name brand shops just outside of old town. We ate at the Quick (a European McDonalds) and sat in a lovely tree lined square. There was a beautiful, ancient, ornate fountain with a gaudy, colorful kiddy train ride encircling it. Something I’m sure the designer of the fountain did not envision. It seemed grossly misplaced. We strolled through town and took pictures.
The main square in front of City Hall was filled with stalls representing most, but not all, of the countries in the European Union. It was a celebration of European Union Day. We listened to a Spanish Band (I think) performing on stage and ate free cake which was being passed out. Another band, maybe Hungarian according to the costume, was ready to go onstage but we didn’t have time to wait.
As we rode the train from Luxembourg to Brussels, I realized that many battles of the First and Second World Wars had been fought on this soil, including the Battle of the Bulge. These two small nations had suffered due to conflicts of their much larger neighbors. In Luxembourg, we saw a monument to those killed in both World Wars. There were fresh wreaths from the major participants, including the United States. I later learned that several of the male teachers at my school had planned a trip in the summer to visit WWII battlefields in Europe.
Saturday, May 10 2008
Took the train to Bruges, about an hour trip from Brussels. Don’t listen to what Colin Farrell says about Bruges in the movie “In Bruges”. Bruges is a jewel! It’s beautiful and truly incredible! It’s the best preserved medieval town in Belgium, possibly Europe. It escaped major damage in both wars and has never been industrialized. There are no billboards, no highrises, nothing over four stories except the churches and the buildings around the square, and traffic is heavily controlled so that walking around the town is easy and pleasant. Don’t remember hearing a single car horn. It was fantastic! The Town Square is not as stunning as the one in Brussels but it is certainly worth a trip. Beautiful ornate buildings on all four sides. It has the requisite City Hall and Cathedral, both very impressive, but it also has quaint, outdoor restaurants that give the square a warm feeling.
The square has been the site of a market since the the 10th century. The oldest facade on the square is the Huis Bouchotte built in the 15th century which was the home of Charles II of England during his exile in 1656-7. The dominant structure on the square is the Belfort whose octagonal belltower which rises 272 feet. It was built between the 13th and 15th centuries. You can climb to the top for a panoramic view of Bruges ( I did not). The Stadhuiis has a gothic facade featuring statues of the Counts and Countesses of Flanders. ( these were added in the 60s to replace the originals which were destroyed by the French).
Bruges has canals running through it and is known as the “Venice of the North”. The boat trip takes about half an hour and you get a different view of all the buildings as well as an informative commentary. It’s a nice ride and well worth it. And it’s refreshing on a hot day.
The Church of Our Lady is another impressive structure which is visible throughout the entire canal trip as it towers above the smaller building nearby. Construction started in 1220 and took 200 years to complete. The interior is somewhat plain by European Church standards but the chapels and pulpit are elaborately decorated. The highlight in the church is a sculpture of Madonna and Child by Michelangelo. It is the only one of his works that left Italy during his life time and it is magnificent!!! There are two other sculptures beside it and the difference amazingly obvious. Michelangelo maybe had a finer piece of marble to start with but what he accomplished is incredible. The marble seems soft, almost translucent and the effect is stunning. You feel as if the figures might actually move they look so lifelike. This piece of art alone is almost worth a trip to Bruges.
Went to the Groeninge Museum which features paintings by Jan van Eyck, Hieronymous Bosch, Pieter Brueghel and Rene Magritte. Quite a collection for a small town. I asked for a ticket in my best French and the lady turned to the man next to her and said, “Why does everyone speak French?” Obviously she could see that I was an American practicing a foreign language. Told her that I had just come from Brussels and everyone spoke French. She retorted, “Well, we don’t speak French here.” I found out later there is a conflict in Belgium The southern half of the country, Wallonia, speaks French while the northern half, Flanders, speaks Flemish. Flanders has a majority of the population and is making efforts to make Flemish the official language.
We were in Bruges only for one day and it wasn’t enough. Fair warning when you are preparing your trip. The entire Town is beautiful. Everywhere you go you will see Medieval building. It’s a great town and I recommend it highly.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Sunday was a lazy day. Walked around Brussels again and took more pictures. Fewer tourists in the Town Square which was nice. Went to the Museum of Fine Arts, a terrific museum. They had all the major Flemish painters and a smattering of all the others. Stayed there for five hours. It was wonderful. Some of my favorites are there. Rogier van der Weyden, Hieronymous Bosch, Lucas Cranach, Pieter Brueghel, Georges de la Tour. Also had Rubens, Seurat, Gauguin, Matisse, Picasso, Magritte, Chagal and Dali. Another great Museum.
Leisurely made it to the airport for the flight back to Prague.
It was a great trip and I want to go back and I want to have more time. Didn’t make it to Ghent or any of the smaller towns. I was really impressed with Belgium and recommend that you get there before more people discover what a wonderful country it is.
higgiro39